The USA spans six time zones, from the East Coast to Hawaii, so Germany and the United States are 6 to 12 hours apart. Because both sides put their clocks forward in summer, the gap usually stays the same. But not always: for a few weeks a year the difference is one hour smaller, and that is exactly when phone appointments fall apart.
US time zones at a glance
| Time zone | Example cities | Difference to Germany |
|---|---|---|
| Eastern Time (UTC−5, summer −4) | New York, Washington, Miami, Boston | −6 h |
| Central Time (UTC−6, summer −5) | Chicago, Houston, Dallas, New Orleans | −7 h |
| Mountain Time (UTC−7, summer −6) | Denver, Salt Lake City | −8 h |
| Arizona (UTC−7, no DST) | Phoenix, Tucson | −8 h in winter, −9 h in summer |
| Pacific Time (UTC−8, summer −7) | Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Las Vegas | −9 h |
| Alaska Time (UTC−9, summer −8) | Anchorage | −10 h |
| Hawaii (UTC−10, no DST) | Honolulu | −11 h in winter, −12 h in summer |
These values apply as long as Germany and the USA are both on standard time or both on summer time. When it is 18:00 in Germany, it is noon in New York and 9 a.m. in Los Angeles.
Why the gap shrinks twice a year
Under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the USA has, since 2007, switched to summer time on the 2nd Sunday in March and back on the 1st Sunday in November, at 2 a.m. local time. The EU changes on the last Sunday in March and the last Sunday in October. This creates two gaps in which the USA is already or still on summer time but Germany is not:
| Year | Spring: only 5 h to New York | Autumn: only 5 h to New York |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 8 March to 28 March | 25 October to 31 October |
| 2027 | 14 March to 27 March | 31 October to 6 November |
| 2028 | 12 March to 25 March | 29 October to 4 November |
In these weeks, 12:00 in Berlin is 7:00 in New York and 4:00 in Los Angeles. If you fixed a recurring appointment in German time, you suddenly join an hour early or late. Tip: create recurring appointments in the calendar with the organiser's time zone. The calendar then shifts the appointment automatically for everyone else.
Special cases: Arizona and Hawaii
Arizona has not observed daylight saving time since 1968, with the exception of the Navajo Nation in the north-east of the state. Phoenix is on UTC−7 all year. In winter Arizona therefore shares a clock with Denver, in summer with Los Angeles. The difference to Germany is 8 hours in winter and 9 in summer.
Hawaii does not change its clocks either and stays at UTC−10. The difference to Germany is 11 hours in winter and 12 in summer. If you call from Germany at 20:00, you reach Honolulu at 8 a.m. in summer.
Good times for calls and meetings
Shared office hours with the East Coast are short: with 9-to-5 working hours on both sides, only 15:00 to 17:00 German time remain, i.e. two hours. In the transition weeks in March there are three hours (14:00 to 17:00). With the West Coast there is no overlap at all with 9-to-5; only if one side starts at 8 or stays until 18:00 does a slot at 17:00 German time become possible, which is 8 a.m. in California.
The meeting planner shows the overlap for any date, including the transition weeks. More tips in Scheduling meetings across time zones.
Flights to the USA: arrival and jet lag
Flights west catch up with time, so to speak. Take off from Frankfurt at 10 a.m., fly eight and a half hours, and you land in New York at 12:30 local time. Your body says 18:30, but the day is far from over. Most people find adjusting westwards easier than eastwards; Avoiding jet lag explains why.
Conclusion
New York is 6 hours behind Germany for almost the entire year, Chicago 7, Denver 8 and Los Angeles 9 hours. For a few weeks in March and from late October to early November it is one hour less. Arizona and Hawaii do not change their clocks, so their gap grows by one hour during the German summer. For a specific date, the time zone converter converts all US time zones at once.
Sources: Energy Policy Act of 2005, Sec. 110 (start and end of daylight saving time in the USA); IANA Time Zone Database; Directive 2000/84/EC. As of October 2026.