Eastern to Pacific Time Converter

How to use the eastern to pacific time converter

1. Select the month, day, and year for the Eastern Time you want to convert.
2. Enter the hour in 24-hour format (0 to 23) and the minute (0 to 59).
3. The converter immediately displays the equivalent Pacific Time, adjusting for daylight saving if needed.
4. Check the offset row to confirm whether standard time (EST/PST) or daylight time (EDT/PDT) was used.

How the conversion works

Eastern Time and Pacific Time are both three hours apart year-round because they shift to and from daylight saving on the same dates. During standard time, Eastern Standard Time (EST) is UTC-5 and Pacific Standard Time (PST) is UTC-8, a difference of exactly three hours. During daylight saving time, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) is UTC-4 and Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) is UTC-7, still three hours apart.

To convert, subtract three hours from the ET hour. If the result is negative, add 24 and move the date back one day. For example, 2:00 AM EST on March 10 becomes 11:00 PM PST on March 9. This eastern to pacific time converter applies that arithmetic automatically once you enter the date and time.

US daylight saving rules since 2007

The United States has observed the current DST schedule since the Energy Policy Act of 2005 took effect in 2007. Clocks spring forward on the second Sunday in March at 2:00 AM local time and fall back on the first Sunday in November at 2:00 AM local time. Before 2007, DST started on the first Sunday in April and ended on the last Sunday in October.

This converter uses the post-2007 rules for years 2007 through 2100 and the pre-2007 rules for years 1900 through 2006. Arizona (except the Navajo Nation) and Hawaii do not observe DST, but this tool follows the standard US Eastern and Pacific zone rules used by most states.

Common conversions reference

The table below shows typical ET to PT conversions during both standard and daylight saving periods. Because the gap is always three hours, you can use these as quick references without opening the calculator.

Practical uses for ET to PT conversion

Scheduling across coasts is the most common reason people need an eastern to pacific time converter. A meeting set for 10:00 AM in New York happens at 7:00 AM in Los Angeles, which may be too early for West Coast participants. Business hours also differ: when East Coast offices close at 5:00 PM EST, it is only 2:00 PM PST, leaving three hours of overlap.

Broadcast schedules, live sports, and online events frequently list times in ET. Converting to PT ensures viewers on the West Coast tune in at the right moment. Travelers flying between zones also benefit from knowing the exact local arrival time.

Related time tools

If you work with non-US zones, the central time to ist converter handles Central Time to India Standard Time conversions. For reading 24-hour clocks, the military time converter translates between 12-hour and 24-hour formats. When you need fractional hours for payroll or billing, the time converter to decimal chart turns hours and minutes into a single decimal number.

Worked examples

Each result below was produced by the same code the tool runs, so you can check your own numbers against them.