The best time to meet across time zones is inside the overlap of everyone’s working day: noon to 5 PM Eastern for US East and West, 9 AM to noon Eastern for New York and London, and 9 AM to 11:30 AM London time for the UK and India in winter. Some pairs, like New York and India, have no 9-to-5 overlap at all, so someone has to start early or stay late.
Finding the best time to meet across time zones takes three facts: each city’s offset from UTC, whether it’s on daylight saving time on the meeting date, and the hours people are willing to work. This guide gives the overlap windows for the most common pairs, computed from the IANA time zone data that phones and computers use, notes the weeks when daylight saving shifts them, and offers practical rules for fair scheduling. To check any specific date and time, use the time zone converter, which applies each zone’s rules for the exact day you pick.
Start with UTC offsets
Every time zone is defined by how far it sits from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Comparing offsets is more reliable than comparing city names, because the offsets change on known dates and the names don’t. These are the zones used in this guide:
| Place | IANA zone | Standard time | Daylight saving time |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Eastern (New York) | America/New_York | EST, UTC−5 | EDT, UTC−4 |
| US Pacific (Los Angeles) | America/Los_Angeles | PST, UTC−8 | PDT, UTC−7 |
| UK (London) | Europe/London | GMT, UTC+0 | BST, UTC+1 |
| India | Asia/Kolkata | IST, UTC+5:30 | None, IST all year |
| Australia (Sydney) | Australia/Sydney | AEST, UTC+10 | AEDT, UTC+11 |
When you send an invite to people in several countries, adding the UTC time, such as “15:00 UTC,” gives everyone one fixed reference to convert from. Our UTC vs. GMT guide explains why UTC is the safer label, since London leaves GMT for half the year.
Overlap windows for common pairs
These windows assume a 9 AM to 5 PM working day in both places. Times are local to each city, and the gap is how far ahead the second city is.
| Pair | Gap | Overlap (first city) | Overlap (second city) | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Eastern and US Pacific | Eastern is 3 h ahead | 12:00 PM – 5:00 PM ET | 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM PT | 5 |
| US Eastern and London (most of the year) | London 5 h ahead | 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM ET | 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM UK | 3 |
| US Eastern and London (mismatch weeks) | London 4 h ahead | 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM ET | 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM UK | 4 |
| London and India (UK winter, GMT) | India 5 h 30 m ahead | 9:00 AM – 11:30 AM UK | 2:30 PM – 5:00 PM IST | 2.5 |
| London and India (UK summer, BST) | India 4 h 30 m ahead | 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM UK | 1:30 PM – 5:00 PM IST | 3.5 |
| US Pacific and Sydney (northern winter) | Sydney 19 h ahead | 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM PT | 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM next day | 3 |
| US Pacific and Sydney (northern summer) | Sydney 17 h ahead | 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM PT | 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM next day | 1 |
| US Eastern and India | India 9 h 30 m to 10 h 30 m ahead | No 9-to-5 overlap | 0 | |
| US Eastern and Sydney | Sydney 14 to 16 h ahead | No 9-to-5 overlap | 0 | |
For pairs with no overlap, pick the least painful edge. Between New York and India, 8:00 AM EDT is 5:30 PM IST, and 8:00 AM EST is 6:30 PM IST. Between New York and Sydney, 5:00 PM EST is 9:00 AM AEDT the next day during the northern winter. The Eastern to India chart and the Eastern to London chart show every hour of the day side by side.
When daylight saving moves the window
The US, the UK and Australia change their clocks on different dates, and in opposite seasons for Australia. India doesn’t change at all. That’s why an overlap that worked in February can be an hour off in March.
- United States: clocks go forward on Sunday, March 14, 2027 and back on Sunday, November 7, 2027, at 2:00 AM local time, under the rule described by NIST (second Sunday in March to first Sunday in November). In 2026 they went back on Sunday, November 1.
- United Kingdom: the UK government lists the changes as the last Sunday in March and the last Sunday in October: Sunday, March 28, 2027 and Sunday, October 31, 2027. In 2026 the clocks go back on Sunday, October 25.
- Australia: daylight saving varies by state. The NSW Government says New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT observe it, while Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory don’t. In NSW it started on Sunday, October 4, 2026 and ends on Sunday, April 4, 2027; the IANA data puts the next start on Sunday, October 3, 2027.
- India: India Standard Time is UTC+5:30 all year, with no daylight saving.
The result is two short mismatch periods for New York and London. From March 14 to March 27, 2027, and from October 31 to November 6, 2027, London is only 4 hours ahead of New York instead of 5. A recurring 9:00 AM New York call lands at 1:00 PM in London during those weeks, not 2:00 PM. Our daylight saving time guide lists the US dates in more detail, and the EST vs. EDT guide explains the US labels.
Scheduling tips that work
- Anchor recurring meetings to one city. Calendar apps usually keep a recurring event in the time zone it was created in. When clocks change in only one place, the meeting moves for the others. Tell attendees which city the series follows.
- Check the date, not just the time. Before the mismatch weeks in March, October and November, confirm the time for the specific date in the time zone converter.
- Write both times in the invite. “10:00 AM ET / 3:00 PM UK” avoids most mistakes. Add UTC when more than two zones are involved.
- Watch the date line. An afternoon call in California is the next morning in Sydney. Say the weekday for both sides, especially near weekends: a Friday afternoon in Los Angeles is already Saturday in Sydney.
- Rotate the bad slot. If one team always takes the early or late call, alternate who gets the inconvenient time.
- Use the overlap for live talk only. Short overlaps are better spent on discussion; status updates can go in writing.
Check any date and time yourself
The time zone converter takes two zones, a date and a time, and shows the same moment on the other clock, along with each zone’s offset at that moment and its next clock change. For the most common US pairs, ready-made charts such as Eastern to Pacific list all 24 hours for the day. If you’d rather know what time it will be a few hours from now on your own clock, the hours from now calculator handles that.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best time for a meeting between the US and the UK?
Between 9:00 AM and noon Eastern, which is 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM in London for most of the year. During the few weeks when only one country has changed its clocks, the overlap is 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM Eastern.
What is the best time to meet between the US and India?
There’s no overlap in a 9-to-5 day. Early morning on the US East Coast works best: 8:00 AM EDT is 5:30 PM IST, and 8:00 AM EST is 6:30 PM IST.
How many hours ahead is London than New York?
Usually 5 hours. For a short time in March and again from late October to early November, it’s 4 hours, because the US and the UK change their clocks on different dates.
Does India have daylight saving time?
No. India uses India Standard Time, UTC+5:30, all year. The gap to the US or the UK changes only when those countries change their clocks.
Should I schedule international meetings in UTC?
Adding UTC to the invite is a good habit when three or more zones are involved, because UTC never changes for daylight saving. Include each attendee’s local time as well.