CST to London
United Kingdom Time is 6 hours ahead of Central Time for 337 days of the year, and takes 2 different values across the year.
CST to London conversion table
Every hour of the day at the difference that holds for 337 days of 2026 — 6 hours. See “When the difference changes” below for the rest.
| CST | London |
|---|---|
| 12:00 AM | 6:00 AM |
| 1:00 AM | 7:00 AM |
| 2:00 AM | 8:00 AM |
| 3:00 AM | 9:00 AM |
| 4:00 AM | 10:00 AM |
| 5:00 AM | 11:00 AM |
| 6:00 AM | 12:00 PM |
| 7:00 AM | 1:00 PM |
| 8:00 AM | 2:00 PM |
| 9:00 AM | 3:00 PM |
| 10:00 AM | 4:00 PM |
| 11:00 AM | 5:00 PM |
| CST | London |
|---|---|
| 12:00 PM | 6:00 PM |
| 1:00 PM | 7:00 PM |
| 2:00 PM | 8:00 PM |
| 3:00 PM | 9:00 PM |
| 4:00 PM | 10:00 PM |
| 5:00 PM | 11:00 PM |
| 6:00 PM | 12:00 AM +1 day |
| 7:00 PM | 1:00 AM +1 day |
| 8:00 PM | 2:00 AM +1 day |
| 9:00 PM | 3:00 AM +1 day |
| 10:00 PM | 4:00 AM +1 day |
| 11:00 PM | 5:00 AM +1 day |
Shared working hours
Taking a working day as 09:00–17:00 in each zone, Central Time and United Kingdom Time overlap for 2 hours.
9:00 AM–11:00 AM in CST is 3:00 PM–5:00 PM in London.
When the difference changes
The two zones move their clocks on different dates, so the gap takes more than one value. These are the stretches of 2026:
| Dates | London is | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 31 December – 8 March | 6 hours ahead of | — |
| 8 March – 28 March | 5 hours ahead of | Central Time clocks go forward one hour |
| 28 March – 24 October | 6 hours ahead of | United Kingdom Time clocks go forward one hour |
| 24 October – 1 November | 5 hours ahead of | United Kingdom Time clocks go back one hour |
| 1 November – 31 December | 6 hours ahead of | Central Time clocks go back one hour |
Dates are Central Time local dates for 2026. Transition dates move by a few days from year to year; the rule each country follows does not.
About Central Time
Central Time covers the middle third of North America, from Manitoba down through Texas. It is UTC−6 as CST and UTC−5 as CDT, changing on the same dates as the other US zones — so the one-hour steps between Pacific, Mountain, Central and Eastern hold all year and never briefly collapse.
Cities on this clock: Chicago, Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin, Nashville, Minneapolis, New Orleans.
Watch out: CST is also the abbreviation for China Standard Time, which is UTC+8 — fourteen hours away from this one. This page is the North American zone.
About United Kingdom Time
The United Kingdom is on GMT (UTC+0) for about five months and BST (UTC+1) for the rest, changing on the last Sunday in March and the last Sunday in October. Ireland keeps exactly the same clock, so every figure here applies to Dublin as well as London.
Cities on this clock: London, Lisbon, Dublin, Edinburgh, Manchester.
How the difference is worked out
The gap between Central Time and United Kingdom Time is not one number. The two zones change their clocks on different dates, so for part of the year the difference is 6 hours and for the rest it is something else — the table above lists each stretch of 2026 with the date it starts and which country's clocks moved.
With both zones on their own standard time — daylight saving not in force anywhere — United Kingdom Time is 6 hours ahead of Central Time. That figure never changes; everything else on this page follows from it plus whichever clocks have moved.
Every figure here comes from the IANA time zone database via your browser's own Intl engine, using the zone ids America/Chicago and Europe/London. Nothing is looked up on a server and nothing about your visit is recorded.
Is London ahead of or behind CST?
United Kingdom Time is 6 hours ahead of Central Time for 337 days of the year, and takes 2 different values across the year. The gap moves because the two zones change their clocks on different dates — on 8 March, Central Time clocks go forward one hour; on 28 March, United Kingdom Time clocks go forward one hour; on 24 October, United Kingdom Time clocks go back one hour; on 1 November, Central Time clocks go back one hour (dates for 2026).
What time is 9 AM CST in London?
9:00 AM CST is 3:00 PM London for most of the year — see the table above for the 5 stretches of 2026 the gap holds different values.
When can Central Time and United Kingdom Time meet?
Taking a working day as 09:00–17:00 in each zone, the two overlap for 2 hours: 9:00 AM–11:00 AM in Central Time, which is 3:00 PM–5:00 PM in United Kingdom Time.
What does CST stand for?
CST is Central Time, also written CDT, Central Time, Chicago time. CST is also the abbreviation for China Standard Time, which is UTC+8 — fourteen hours away from this one. This page is the North American zone.