Also known as: Central Time (CT) and Central Standard Time (CST)
Central Daylight Time (CDT) is 5 hours behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). This time zone is a Daylight Saving Time time zone and is used in: North America.
See full time zone map
What Is Central Daylight Time?
Central Daylight Time (CDT) is the second easternmost time zone in the United States and is also used in Canada.
It covers all or parts of 20 states in the US and three provinces or territories in Canada.
About a third of the population in the USA live in the CDT time zone. It spans from northern Canada and south to Mexico.
In North America, Central Daylight Time shares a border with Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) in the east and with Mountain Daylight Time (MDT) in the west.
CDT or CST?
Central Daylight Time (CDT) is a North American time zone in use from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November during Daylight Saving Time (DST). Central Standard Time (CST) is used during the remainder of the year.
CDT Is the Central Time Zone
In everyday usage, CDT is often referred to as Central Time (CT) or the Central Time Zone. This can add a bit of confusion as the term Central Time does not differentiate between standard time and Daylight Saving Time, so Central Time switches between CST and CDT in areas that use DST during part of the year.
Most North American time zones also have generic terms, including Pacific Time (PT), Mountain Time (MT), Eastern Time (ET), and Atlantic Time (AT).
Converting Central Time to Other US Time Zones
- Central Daylight Time (CDT) is 1 hour behind Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).
To convert CDT to EDT, you have to add one hour. - Central Daylight Time (CDT) is 1 hour ahead of Mountain Daylight Time (MDT).
To convert CDT to MDT, you have to subtract one hour. - Central Daylight Time (CDT) is 2 hours ahead of Pacific Daylight Time (PDT).
To convert CDT to PDT, you have to subtract two hours.
Time Zone Converter: UTC to CDT
Where and When is CDT Observed?
North America
US states using CDT in the summer and CST in the winter:
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Florida - North-West parts Show
Bay, Calhoun, Escambia, Holmes, Jackson, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Walton and Washington counties and norther Gulf county
- Illinois
- Indiana - these few north-western counties near Chicago (Lake, Porter, La Porte, Newton, Jasper, Starke) and these south-western counties in Indiana near Evansville Show
Gibson, Posey, Vanderburgh, Warrick, Perry, Spencer
- Iowa
- Kansas - except these western counties Show
Greeley, Hamilton, Sherman and Wallace - MST/MDT
- Kentucky - Western part Show
Adair, Allen, Ballard, Barren, Breckinridge, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Clinton, Crittenden, Cumberland, Daviess, Edmonson, Fulton, Graves, Grayson, Green, Hansock, Hart, Henderson, Hickman, Hopkins, Livingston, Logan, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, McLean, Metcalfe, Monroe, Muhlenberg, Ohio, Russell, Simpson, Todd, Trigg, Union, Warren and Webster counties
- Louisiana
- Michigan - A few western counties Show
Dickinson, Gogebic, Iron, and Menominee
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Nebraska - Eastern parts Show
All except Arthur, Banner, Box Butte, Chase, Cheyenne, Dawes, Deuel, Dundy, Garden, Grant, Hooker, Keith, Kimball, Morrill, Perkins, Scotts Bluff, Sheridan, and Sioux counties and the western part of Cherry county which are on MST/MDT
- North Dakota - North and Eastern parts Show
counties of Barnes, Benson, Bottineau, Burke, Burleigh, Cass, Cavalier, Dickey, Divide, Eddy, Emmons, Foster, Grand Forks, Griggs, Kidder, Lamoure, Logan, McHenry, McIntosh, McLean, Mountrail, Nelson, Oliver, Pembina, Pierce, Ramsey, Ransom, Renville, Richland, Rolette, Sargent, Sheridan, Steele, Stutsman, Towner, Traill, Walsh, Ward, Wells, Williams and northern parts of McKenzie and Dunn, westernmost part of Morton and Fort Yates in Sioux
- Oklahoma
- South Dakota - Eastern parts Show
counties of Aurora, Beadle, Bon Homme, Brookings, Brown, Brule, Buffalo, Campbell, Charles Mix, Clark, Clay, Codington, Davison, Day, Deuel, Douglas, Edmunds, Faulk, Grant, Gregory, Hamlin, Hand, Hanson, Hughes, Hutchinson, Hyde, Jerauld, Jones, Kingsbury, Lake, Lincoln, Lyman, Marshall, McCook, McPherson, Mellette, Miner, Minnehaha, Moody, Potter, Roberts, Spink, Sanborn, Sully, Todd, Tripp, Turner, Union, Yankton, Walworth and eastern parts of Stanley
- Tennessee - Western part Show
counties of Bedford, Benton, Bledsoe, Cannon, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester, Clay, Coffee, Crockett, Cumberland, Davidson, Decatur, DeKalb, Dickson, Dyer, Fayette, Fentress, Franklin, Gibson, Giles, Grundy, Hardeman, Hardin, Haywood, Henderson, Henry, Hickman, Houston, Humphreys, Jackson, Lake, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, McNairy, Macon, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Maury, Montgomery, Moore, Obion, Overton, Perry, Pickett, Putnam, Robertson, Rutherford, Sequatchie, Shelby, Smith, Stewart, Sumner, Tipton, Trusdale, Van Buren, Warren, Wayne Weakley, White, Willamson, Wilson
- Texas - All, but a few counties in west Show
El Paso and Hudspeth and part of Culberson
- Wisconsin
Canadian provinces using CDT in the summer and CST in the winter:
- Manitoba
- Ontario - most parts west of 90 West. (Parts east of 90 West is on EST/EDT)
- Saskatchewan - only Creighton and Denare Beach
Mexican states using CDT in the summer and CST in the winter:
- Nuevo León
- Tamaulipas
Other Central Daylight Time Zones
Time zones can have similar names and abbreviations but have a different UTC offset:
- Australian Central Daylight Time (ACDT): UTC +10:30
- Central European Summer Time (CEST): UTC +2
Other Time Zones in UTC -5
Some time zones exist that have the same offset as CDT, but can be found under a different name:
- ACT – Acre Time
- CIST – Cayman Islands Standard Time
- COT – Colombia Time
- CST – Cuba Standard Time
- EASST – Easter Island Summer Time
- ECT – Ecuador Time
- EST – Eastern Standard Time
- PET – Peru Time
- R – Romeo Time Zone
