Skip to content
CurrentTimeIn

Quick Answer

What is CET time right now?

CET is Central European Time (UTC+01:00). The current CET time is 11:47.

Central European Time (CET) is UTC+01:00. In summer, the same zone observes Central European Summer Time (CEST, UTC+02:00). The 2026 CEST transition is March 29; CET resumes October 25. CET is the most widely observed standard timezone in Europe, covering 34 countries. The IANA identifier is Europe/Paris. Notable: Turkey (UTC+03:00) and the UK (GMT/BST) are not on CET.

Central European Time

11:47

Friday, March 6, 2026

UTC+01:00 • Europe/Paris

Last updated: March 6, 2026

What Is CET?

CET stands for Central European Time, a timezone at UTC+01:00 (1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time) from Coordinated Universal Time. It is used in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City, Andorra, Malta, Kosovo, and 5 more European territories. The IANA Time Zone Database, the authoritative global reference used by operating systems, programming languages, and web services, records this zone under the identifier Europe/Paris. IANA identifiers are unambiguous: Europe/Paris maps to exactly one timezone in the world, unlike the abbreviation CET, which is specific to this region. During Daylight Saving Time, clocks advance one hour to CEST (UTC+02:00).

CET follows the 15th meridian east longitude (15°E). The European Union's Directive 2000/84/EC harmonizes DST transitions across all member states. All 34 CET countries transition simultaneously on the last Sunday of March (CEST begins) and the last Sunday of October (CET resumes).

Current CET Time and Date

The clock above shows the current CET time: 11:47 on Friday, March 6, 2026. It is calculated using the browser's Intl.DateTimeFormat API with the IANA identifier Europe/Paris, the same source your phone and laptop use for timezone conversions. The time updates every second. If you need a static reference, note that CET is always UTC+01:00 from UTC during standard time (winter). During summer, CEST applies at UTC+02:00.

CET to UTC Conversion

To convert CET to UTC: subtract 01:00 from the CET time. Example: 14:00 CET = 13:00 UTC. In ISO 8601 format, a CET timestamp is written as 2026-03-06T11:47:00+01:00. This format is unambiguous and machine-readable, always prefer it over abbreviation-only notation for data exchange.

Cities in the CET Timezone

Major cities that observe CET (UTC+01:00) include:

These cities all share the IANA zone identifier Europe/Paris (or a zone with the same current offset). Click any city link to see its live clock, DST status, and time difference from major world cities.

DST Transition Dates for CET

Central European Time observes Daylight Saving Time. During DST, clocks advance by one hour to CEST (UTC+02:00).

In Europe, DST begins on the last Sunday of March (clocks spring forward at 01:00 UTC) and ends on the last Sunday of October (clocks fall back at 01:00 UTC). For 2026: DST starts March 29, ends October 25.

During the transition period, when North America and Europe are mid-switch, the offset between CET cities and other timezones changes temporarily. The live clock on this page always reflects the correct current offset.

DST Variants: CET vs CEST

CET (UTC+01:00) is the standard time variant, observed during winter months. During Daylight Saving Time, the zone advances to CEST (UTC+02:00). In 2026, European DST begins March 29, 2026 at 1:00 AM UTC and ends October 25, 2026 at 1:00 AM UTC. The distinction matters: a meeting scheduled for "14:00 CET" in January means UTC+01:00; the same description used in July almost certainly means CEST (UTC+02:00), which many people informally call "CET" year-round.

Why Timezone Abbreviations Are Ambiguous

ISO 8601, the international standard for date and time notation, does not define timezone abbreviations. IANA, which maintains the authoritative timezone database, uses geographic identifiers (America/New_York, Asia/Kolkata) rather than abbreviations. Abbreviations emerged from railway timetables and military communications in the 19th and early 20th centuries, before any international standardization effort.

The result is a patchwork. EST is used in North America for UTC-05:00 and in parts of Australia for UTC+10:00 or UTC+11:00. IST covers three different UTC offsets across three continents. CST applies to UTC-06:00 (US Central), UTC+08:00 (China), and UTC-05:00 (Cuba). Even GMT, seemingly the anchor, is used differently than UTC: GMT is a timezone designation specific to the UK and West Africa, while UTC is the mathematical standard maintained by atomic clocks. They share the same offset (UTC+00:00) but are not interchangeable in formal contexts.

Best practice: always write the numeric offset alongside the abbreviation (CET (UTC+01:00)) or use ISO 8601 format for machine-readable timestamps. For the IANA identifier, use Europe/Paris.

Converting CET to Major World Timezones

Current conversions from CET (11:47) to other major timezones:

  • New York (EST/EDT): 05:47 (UTC-05:00)
  • London (GMT/BST): 10:47 (UTC+00:00)
  • Dubai (GST): 14:47 (UTC+04:00)
  • India (IST): 16:17 (UTC+05:30)
  • Singapore (SGT): 18:47 (UTC+08:00)
  • Tokyo (JST): 19:47 (UTC+09:00)
  • Sydney (AEST/AEDT): 21:47 (UTC+11:00)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CET?

CET stands for Central European Time, a timezone at UTC+01:00 from Coordinated Universal Time. During Daylight Saving Time, it advances to CEST (UTC+02:00). The IANA identifier is Europe/Paris.

What time is it in CET right now?

The current time in CET (Central European Time, UTC+01:00) is 11:47 on Friday, March 6, 2026. This clock is calculated using the IANA Time Zone Database identifier Europe/Paris.

Is CET the same as UTC+01:00?

Yes, CET (Central European Time) is exactly UTC+01:00. To convert CET to UTC, subtract 01:00 hours.

Does CET observe Daylight Saving Time?

CET (Central European Time, UTC+01:00) is the standard-time variant and does observe DST. During summer, clocks advance to CEST (UTC+02:00). In 2026 for North American zones: DST starts March 8 (clocks spring forward) and ends November 1 (clocks fall back). The switch means meeting times that say "14:00 CET" in January become "14:00 CEST" in summer, at the same UTC time.

What countries or regions use CET?

Central European Time (CET, UTC+01:00) is used in: France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City, Andorra, Malta, Kosovo, and 5 more European territories. This abbreviation is not shared with other timezones, though always confirm the UTC offset (UTC+01:00) to be certain.

How do I convert CET time to UTC?

To convert CET (UTC+01:00) to UTC: subtract 01:00 from the CET time. Example: 14:00 CET = 13:00 UTC. In ISO 8601 format, include the offset explicitly: a CET timestamp looks like 2026-03-05T14:00:00+01:00. This format is unambiguous and safe for international data exchange.