Current Time in Shanghai, China
Live local time in Shanghai with its UTC offset, daylight saving status and the time difference from your location.
Shanghai Asia/Shanghai
About time in Shanghai
Shanghai uses China Standard Time (CST, UTC+8) all year. Shanghai does not use daylight saving time, so its UTC offset never changes.
All of China uses one official time, often called Beijing Time, even though the country spans several geographic time zones. China has no daylight saving time.
Shanghai runs on China Standard Time, UTC+8, all year. China has no daylight saving time, so the gap to the US changes only when American clocks do. From the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November, New York is 12 hours behind Shanghai, Chicago 13 and Los Angeles 15. The rest of the year, add one hour to each. Office hours never overlap, so most calls land in the US evening. A 9 a.m. start in Shanghai is 9 p.m. the day before in New York during US summer time, 8 p.m. in winter.
All of China uses this one clock, often called Beijing Time, though the country spans about five time zones by longitude. In the far west the sun rises late by the clock, and many people in Xinjiang keep an informal local time two hours behind. China tried daylight saving from 1986 to 1991, moving to UTC+9 in summer, then stopped. Hong Kong, Taipei, Singapore, Manila and Perth all share UTC+8.
Time difference between Shanghai and other cities
The table below is calculated live from your browser's time zone data, so it already includes today's daylight saving rules.
| City | Time there now | Compared with Shanghai |
|---|
Need a specific date? Use Time Compare to convert a future time with the right daylight saving offset.
Sunrise and sunset in Shanghai
Local times in Shanghai, calculated for its coordinates (31.23° N, 121.47° E). They can differ by a minute or two from official tables.
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Today | |||
| March equinox (Mar 20, 2026) | 05:58 | 18:04 | 12h 06m |
| June solstice (Jun 21, 2026) | 04:50 | 19:01 | 14h 11m |
| September equinox (Sep 22, 2026) | 05:41 | 17:52 | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21, 2026) | 06:48 | 16:55 | 10h 07m |
Working hours in Shanghai converted to UTC
| Local time in Shanghai | UTC (standard time) |
|---|---|
| 09:00 | 01:00 |
| 12:00 | 04:00 |
| 17:00 | 09:00 |
Frequently asked questions about time in Shanghai
What time zone is Shanghai in?
Shanghai is in the China Standard Time zone (Asia/Shanghai). Its standard UTC offset is UTC+8.
Does Shanghai observe daylight saving time?
No. Shanghai stays on UTC+8 all year, so its time difference to cities that do change their clocks shifts by one hour whenever they switch.
When is the longest day of the year in Shanghai?
Around Jun 21, at the June solstice. The sun rises at 04:50 and sets at 19:01 local time, about 14h 11m of daylight. The shortest day is around Dec 21, with about 10h 07m.
What does a 09:00–17:00 working day in Shanghai look like in UTC?
A 09:00–17:00 working day in Shanghai is 01:00–09:00 UTC in standard time.