Time in Australia
It is 6:30 AM on September 4, 2026 in Canberra. Australia has 5 time zones, counted as distinct standard UTC offsets from UTC+08:00 to UTC+10:30. Canberra is on UTC+10:00 right now. Standard time is in force; clocks go forward to UTC+11:00 on October 4, 2026. Not every region does the same: Brisbane, Perth, Darwin and 2 more stay on standard time all year, while Canberra changes its clocks.
What time is it in Australia right now?
Which time zones does Australia use?
| Time zone | UTC offset | Daylight saving | Largest city | Cities |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia/Sydney also Antarctica/Macquarie, Australia/Brisbane, Australia/Hobart and 2 more identifiers | UTC+10:00 AEST | Varies by region | Sydney | 269 |
| Australia/Perth | UTC+08:00 AWST | Not observed | Perth | 24 |
| Australia/Adelaide also Australia/Broken_Hill, Australia/Darwin | UTC+09:30 ACST | Varies by region | Adelaide | 13 |
| Australia/Eucla | UTC+08:45 Australian Central Western Standard Time | Not observed | — | 0 |
| Australia/Lord_Howe | UTC+10:30 Lord Howe Standard Time | Observed | — | 0 |
Each row groups the IANA identifiers that share a standard offset. Where a row is marked as varying, the offset printed beside it is the one its largest listed city is on right now; other places in that row follow a different daylight-saving rule and can be an hour away from it.
Zone count and offsets come from the IANA time zone database; the city figures count the 306 cities our database places in a time zone in Australia, and the 292 largest are listed below.
- Capital
- Canberra
- Dialing code
- +61
- Local time
- UTC+10:00
Does Australia use daylight saving time?
Yes. Canberra alternates between AEST (UTC+10:00) and AEDT (UTC+11:00). On October 4, 2026 at 2:00 AM local time, clocks go forward one hour to 3:00 AM.
Not every region does the same: Brisbane, Perth, Darwin and 2 more stay on standard time all year, while Canberra changes its clocks.
When is the best time to call Australia from the US?
Office hours are taken as 09:00 to 17:00 on both sides, and the window is computed to the half hour.
| US office | Window in Canberra | Same window in the US |
|---|---|---|
| US Eastern (New York) | No overlap | |
| US Pacific (Los Angeles) | 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM | 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM (previous day) |
When does the sun rise and set in Canberra today?
Major cities in Australia
16 of the 292 largest cities (306 in our database)
Time in Australia: common questions
What is the UTC offset in Australia?
Canberra is on UTC+10:00 right now (AEST). Standard offsets across Australia run from UTC+08:00 to UTC+10:30, so check the city you actually need.
How many time zones does Australia have?
5. Time zones are counted as distinct standard UTC offsets, from UTC+08:00 to UTC+10:30; the 12 IANA identifiers the database lists for Australia collapse into those 5 zones. Canberra itself keeps Australia/Sydney.
When do the clocks change in Australia?
The next change in Canberra is on October 4, 2026: at 2:00 AM local time the clock goes forward one hour to 3:00 AM, and the zone moves to AEDT (UTC+11:00). The date and the hour come from the IANA time zone database. Not every region does the same: Brisbane, Perth, Darwin and 2 more stay on standard time all year, while Canberra changes its clocks.
What is the time difference between Australia and the United States?
Canberra is 14:00 ahead of New York and 17:00 ahead of Los Angeles right now. Both gaps shift whenever one side starts or ends daylight saving time.
Can I reach Australia during US office hours?
Call Canberra between 9:00 AM and 10:00 AM local time to land inside a working day in US Pacific (Los Angeles), which is 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM the previous day there.
What time does the sun rise and set in Canberra?
Today the sun rises at 6:17 AM and sets at 5:47 PM, local time in Canberra. Both are computed from the city's own coordinates and its IANA time zone.