EST to PST Converter
Convert Eastern Time to Pacific Time (ET to PT), with daylight saving handled
Pacific time is 3 hours behind Eastern time: 12:00 p.m. ET = 9:00 a.m. PT. To convert EST to PST, subtract 3 hours. The gap is the same in winter (EST to PST) and in summer (EDT to PDT).
EST to PST converter
LiveDaylight saving time is handled automatically for the date you choose.
How to convert Eastern time to Pacific time
Eastern Standard Time is UTC−5 and Pacific Standard Time is UTC−8, so Pacific clocks read three hours earlier. In summer both zones move forward one hour together, to EDT (UTC−4) and PDT (UTC−7), and the difference stays at three hours. That is why the whole conversion comes down to one subtraction. The PST to EST converter runs the same rule in reverse, and the time zone converter section covers Central, GMT, UTC and India Standard Time as well.
- Take the Eastern time, for example 1:00 p.m.
- Subtract 3 hours: 1:00 p.m. becomes 10:00 a.m. Pacific.
- If the Eastern time is between 12:00 a.m. and 2:59 a.m., the Pacific time is on the previous evening: 1:00 a.m. ET is 10:00 p.m. PT the day before.
- Label the result PST or PDT depending on the date, or simply write PT.
The converter above does the same thing with the official IANA time zone rules for America/New_York and America/Los_Angeles. Pick a date and an Eastern time; it finds the exact moment, shows the Pacific weekday, date and time with the correct abbreviation (PST or PDT), and states the difference in hours. If your starting point is a server timestamp rather than an Eastern clock, convert it first with the UTC to EST converter.
What is 12 AM EST in PST?
12:00 a.m. (midnight) EST is 9:00 p.m. PST on the previous day. Every Eastern time from midnight to 2:59 a.m. falls on the evening before in the Pacific zone.
| Eastern (ET) | Pacific (PT) |
|---|---|
| 12:00 a.m. (midnight) | 9:00 p.m. (previous day) |
| 1:00 a.m. | 10:00 p.m. (previous day) |
| 2:00 a.m. | 11:00 p.m. (previous day) |
| 3:00 a.m. | 12:00 a.m. (midnight, same day) |
This late-night window is where most EST to PST mistakes happen, because the calendar date changes along with the clock. A game release or ticket sale set for 12:00 a.m. Eastern on Friday, the first minute of that day, opens at 9:00 p.m. Pacific on Thursday, so West Coast buyers can join before they go to bed rather than waiting for the next day.
The same shift catches overnight broadcasts: an event that starts at 1:00 a.m. ET starts at 10:00 p.m. PT the night before. When you write such a time down, include the weekday and the zone, for example Thursday 9:00 p.m. PT, so nobody reads it as Friday.
How do I see Eastern and Pacific time side by side?
Add Pacific time as a second time zone in your calendar or clock app; Google Calendar, Outlook, Windows, macOS, iPhone and Android all support it. Once it is on, every event shows both times.
- Google Calendar: Settings › General › Time zone, tick Display secondary time zone and choose Pacific Time – Los Angeles.
- Outlook (classic desktop): File › Options › Calendar › Time zones, then Show a second time zone.
- Windows: Date and time settings › Additional clocks, which shows a second clock when you hover over the taskbar time.
- Phones and Macs: add Los Angeles to the World Clock in the Clock app, or as a clock widget.
Menu names vary a little between app versions. Whatever the app, choose the city-based entry, such as Los Angeles or Vancouver, rather than a fixed GMT−8 option. City entries follow the IANA time zone database and switch between PST and PDT automatically; a fixed offset stays at UTC−8 all year and is an hour off from March to November.
Eastern to Pacific time chart
Pacific time is 3 hours behind Eastern time all year, because both zones switch to daylight saving time on the same dates.
| Eastern (ET) | Pacific (PT) |
|---|---|
| 00:00 | 21:00 (−1 day) |
| 01:00 | 22:00 (−1 day) |
| 02:00 | 23:00 (−1 day) |
| 03:00 | 00:00 |
| 04:00 | 01:00 |
| 05:00 | 02:00 |
| 06:00 | 03:00 |
| 07:00 | 04:00 |
| 08:00 | 05:00 |
| 09:00 | 06:00 |
| 10:00 | 07:00 |
| 11:00 | 08:00 |
| 12:00 | 09:00 |
| 13:00 | 10:00 |
| 14:00 | 11:00 |
| 15:00 | 12:00 |
| 16:00 | 13:00 |
| 17:00 | 14:00 |
| 18:00 | 15:00 |
| 19:00 | 16:00 |
| 20:00 | 17:00 |
| 21:00 | 18:00 |
| 22:00 | 19:00 |
| 23:00 | 20:00 |
EST vs PST: what is the difference?
Eastern and Pacific time are two of the four mainland US zones, three hours apart. They share one daylight saving calendar, which is why the gap never changes except for a few overnight hours.
| Attribute | Eastern (EST/EDT) | Pacific (PST/PDT) |
|---|---|---|
| Standard time (winter) | EST, UTC−5 | PST, UTC−8 |
| Daylight time (summer) | EDT, UTC−4 | PDT, UTC−7 |
| IANA tz database zone | America/New_York | America/Los_Angeles |
| Main regions | Atlantic coast from Maine to most of Florida, Ohio, most of Michigan, most of Ontario and Quebec | California, Washington, most of Oregon and Nevada, most of British Columbia |
| When clocks change | 2:00 a.m. local, second Sunday in March and first Sunday in November | 2:00 a.m. local on the same Sundays, three hours later in absolute time |
| Largest city | New York City | Los Angeles |
4 key differences
- Eastern time runs 5 hours behind UTC in winter and Pacific time 8 hours behind, so an Eastern clock always shows the later hour.
- Both zones have followed the same daylight saving dates since 2007, when the Energy Policy Act of 2005 moved the switch to the second Sunday in March and the first Sunday in November.
- Because each zone changes at 2:00 a.m. local time, New York switches three hours before Los Angeles, briefly widening the gap to 4 hours in March and narrowing it to 2 hours in November.
- Software should store America/New_York or America/Los_Angeles, not EST or PST, because the abbreviations do not say whether daylight time applies.
What is the difference between EST, EDT, PST and PDT?
EST and PST are the winter, standard-time names (UTC−5 and UTC−8), and EDT and PDT are the summer, daylight-time names (UTC−4 and UTC−7). Many people say EST and PST all year, but strictly those names apply only in winter. These are the four labels and when each one is in force in 2026.
| Label | Full name | UTC offset | In use in 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| EST | Eastern Standard Time | UTC−5 | January 1 to March 8, and November 1 to December 31 |
| EDT | Eastern Daylight Time | UTC−4 | March 8 to November 1 |
| PST | Pacific Standard Time | UTC−8 | January 1 to March 8, and November 1 to December 31 |
| PDT | Pacific Daylight Time | UTC−7 | March 8 to November 1 |
| ET / PT | Eastern Time / Pacific Time | Whichever is current | All year; the safest labels for invites |
Why doesn't daylight saving time change the EST to PST gap?
Because both zones change their clocks on the same two Sundays each year, they spring forward and fall back together. Under the Uniform Time Act of 1966, as amended by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, daylight saving time begins on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November, with clocks changing at 2:00 a.m. local time. In 2026 that means Sunday, March 8 and Sunday, November 1; in 2027 the dates are March 14 and November 7. Because the Eastern and Pacific zones follow the same calendar, the difference between them does not change when the seasons do.
The overnight exception
There is one small catch. Each zone changes at 2:00 a.m. local time, so the East switches three hours before the West. On March 8, 2026, from 3:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. EDT, New York is already on daylight time while Los Angeles is still on standard time, and the gap is briefly 4 hours. On November 1, 2026, from 1:00 a.m. EST to 4:00 a.m. EST, the gap is briefly 2 hours. The converter handles these hours correctly, and they almost never matter outside overnight shift work, flight schedules and automated jobs.
Clock times that do not exist, such as 2:30 a.m. Eastern on March 8, or that happen twice, such as 1:30 a.m. Eastern on November 1, are best avoided for anything you schedule.
What is the best meeting time for both coasts?
The best window is 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern, which is 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Pacific, when both 9-to-5 workdays overlap. Here is how each hourly start time lands on the two coasts.
| Start time (ET) | Start time (PT) | How it lands |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 a.m. | 6:00 a.m. | Too early for most West Coast teams |
| 10:00 a.m. | 7:00 a.m. | Early start in the West |
| 11:00 a.m. | 8:00 a.m. | Workable if the West Coast starts early |
| 12:00 p.m. | 9:00 a.m. | Good for both; lunch hour in the East |
| 1:00 p.m. | 10:00 a.m. | Good for both |
| 2:00 p.m. | 11:00 a.m. | Good for both |
| 3:00 p.m. | 12:00 p.m. | Lunch hour in the West |
| 4:00 p.m. | 1:00 p.m. | Good for both |
| 5:00 p.m. | 2:00 p.m. | After hours in the East |
Noon Eastern across the mainland US zones
Each mainland zone is one hour behind the one to its east, and all of them except most of Arizona change clocks on the same dates.
| Zone | Winter offset | Summer offset | When it is 12:00 p.m. ET |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern (ET) | UTC−5 | UTC−4 | 12:00 p.m. |
| Central (CT) | UTC−6 | UTC−5 | 11:00 a.m. |
| Mountain (MT) | UTC−7 | UTC−6 | 10:00 a.m. |
| Arizona, most of the state (MST all year) | UTC−7 | UTC−7 | 10:00 a.m. in winter, 9:00 a.m. in summer |
| Pacific (PT) | UTC−8 | UTC−7 | 9:00 a.m. |
Tips for scheduling from the East Coast
- Write both times. "2:00 p.m. ET / 11:00 a.m. PT" removes any doubt and takes a second to add.
- Use ET and PT instead of EST and PST. An invite for "1:00 p.m. EST" in July is technically wrong, because the East is on EDT. The generic labels are always right.
- Remember that your evening is their afternoon. A 6:00 p.m. ET email lands at 3:00 p.m. PT, when a West Coast colleague still has hours of workday left, so be clear about when you expect a reply.
- Set deadlines in one zone. "End of day Friday" means 5:00 p.m. in New York but 8:00 p.m. ET if the person working to it is in Seattle.
- Count working days separately. Time zones shift hours, not dates, except near midnight. To push a deadline out by a number of days, use the add days to date calculator.
Shift length is easier to reason about in one unit: the minutes to hours converter turns a call or shift logged in minutes into hours.
Sources and further reading
The standards and references behind the numbers on this page. Links open in a new tab.
Standards and official sources
- Time zone databaseIANA
- Energy Policy Act of 2005Wikipedia
Further reading
- Time zoneWikipedia
EST to PST FAQs
Short, exact answers to what people ask most.
What is 12 PM EST in PST?
12:00 p.m. EST is 9:00 a.m. PST. In summer the same applies with the daylight names: 12:00 p.m. EDT is 9:00 a.m. PDT.
Is Pacific time always 3 hours behind Eastern time?
Yes, for all practical purposes. Both zones start and end daylight saving time on the same dates, so the gap stays at 3 hours, except for a few overnight hours on the two switch nights.
What is 9 AM Eastern in Pacific time?
9:00 a.m. Eastern is 6:00 a.m. Pacific. That is why morning meetings set on the East Coast are hard for West Coast teams to join.
What is 5 PM EST in PST?
5:00 p.m. EST is 2:00 p.m. PST. The end of the East Coast workday is still early afternoon on the West Coast.
When does daylight saving time change in 2026?
In 2026, US clocks spring forward at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, March 8, and fall back at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 1. The converter applies the correct offset for any date you pick.
Should I write EST or ET in a meeting invite?
Write ET. EST strictly means standard time, used only from November to March, while ET means whatever time is currently in force in the Eastern zone.
What is 8 PM EST in PST?
8:00 p.m. EST is 5:00 p.m. PST on the same day, and in summer 8:00 p.m. EDT is likewise 5:00 p.m. PDT.
What is 3 PM EST in PST?
3:00 p.m. EST is 12:00 p.m. (noon) PST. In summer, 3:00 p.m. EDT is noon PDT.
What is 10:30 AM ET in PT?
10:30 a.m. ET is 7:30 a.m. PT. Half-hour times convert the same way: subtract 3 hours and keep the minutes.
Which time zones are behind Eastern time?
In winter, Central time is 1 hour behind Eastern, Mountain 2 hours, Pacific 3 hours, Alaska 4 hours and Hawaii 5 hours. Hawaii does not use daylight saving time, so from March to November it is 6 hours behind Eastern.
Is New York time the same as EST?
Only in winter. New York follows Eastern Time, which is EST (UTC−5) from November to March and EDT (UTC−4) from March to November; its IANA zone is America/New_York.
Related conversions
Time zone rules from the IANA Time Zone Database (America/New_York and America/Los_Angeles); daylight saving dates from the Uniform Time Act of 1966 as amended by the Energy Policy Act of 2005; calendar settings as described in Google Calendar, Microsoft Outlook and Windows documentation. Last updated . How we verify our numbers.