Enter a time zone abbreviation like EST, PST, IST, or CET and get back the full time zone name, UTC offset, locations it applies to, and whether it observes daylight saving time. You can also browse by region or search by UTC offset to find matching abbreviations.
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EST (Eastern Standard Time) is UTC−5 and applies during standard time in winter months. EDT (Eastern Daylight Time) is UTC−4 and applies during daylight saving time in summer. Many people say 'EST' year-round informally, but technically they are two distinct offsets.
IST is a well-known example — it stands for Indian Standard Time (UTC+5:30), Irish Standard Time (UTC+1), and Israel Standard Time (UTC+2). Many abbreviations are reused globally. Always confirm the location context to avoid confusion.
UTC stands for Coordinated Universal Time. It is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It does not observe daylight saving time, making it a stable reference point for expressing all other offsets.
GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) and UTC share the same offset of ±0, but they are technically different. UTC is a precise atomic-clock-based standard, while GMT is a legacy time zone. In everyday use they are treated as equivalent, but in scientific contexts UTC is preferred.
Daylight saving time is observed in parts of North America, Europe, and some other regions, typically shifting clocks forward one hour in spring and back in autumn. Countries near the equator and places like China, India, Japan, and most of Africa do not observe DST.
Simply type the abbreviation (e.g. CET, AEST, PST) into the search box above. The tool returns the full name, UTC offset, whether DST applies, and the regions or countries that use it.
The IANA Time Zone Database (also called tz or zoneinfo) is the global authoritative source for time zone rules. It uses region/city identifiers like 'America/New_York' rather than abbreviations, because abbreviations can be ambiguous. Abbreviations like EST are derived labels used for human-readable display.
Military time zones use single letters (A–Z, excluding J) to represent UTC offsets from −12 to +12. For example, Z = UTC±0 (Zulu time), A = UTC+1, N = UTC−1. These are standardized within NATO and aviation but differ from civilian abbreviations.