edt which time zone?

The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, and the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico.

Places that use:

On the second Sunday in March, at 2:00 a.m. EST, clocks are advanced to 3:00 a.m. EDT leaving a one-hour gap. On the first Sunday in November, at 2:00 a.m. EDT, clocks are moved back to 1:00 a.m. EST, which results in one hour being duplicated. Southern parts of the zone in Panama and the Caribbean, however, do not observe daylight saving time.

The boundaries of the Eastern Time Zone have moved westward since the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) took over time-zone management from railroads in 1938. The easternmost and northernmost counties in Kentucky were added to the zone in the 1940s, and in 1961 most of the state went Eastern. In 2000, Wayne County, on the Tennessee border, switched from Central to Eastern Time. Within the United States, the Eastern Time Zone is the most populous region, with nearly half of the country's population.

In March 2019, the Florida Legislature passed a bill requesting authorization from Congress for year-round daylight saving time, which would effectively put Florida on Atlantic Standard Time year-round (except for west of the Apalachicola River, which would be on Eastern Standard Time year-round). A similar bill was proposed for the Canadian province of Ontario by its legislative assembly in late 2020, which would have a similar effect on the province if passed.

For those in the United States, daylight saving time for the Eastern Time Zone was introduced by the Uniform Time Act of 1966, which specified that daylight saving time would run from the last Sunday of April until the last Sunday in October. The act was amended to make the first Sunday in April the beginning of daylight saving time beginning in 1987.

Later, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 extended daylight saving time in the United States, beginning in 2007. Since then, local times change at 2:00 a.m. EST to 3:00 a.m. EDT on the second Sunday in March, and return from 2:00 a.m. EDT to 1:00 a.m. EST on the first Sunday in November.

In Canada, daylight saving time begins and ends on the same days and at the same times as it does in the United States.

In Canada, the following provinces and territories are part of the Eastern Time Zone: Within Canada, as with the United States, the Eastern Time zone is the most populous time zone.

Most of Canada observes daylight saving time synchronously with the United States, with the exception of Saskatchewan, Yukon, and several other very localized areas.

The boundary between time zones is set forth in the Code of Federal Regulations, with the boundary between the Eastern and Central Time Zones being specifically detailed in 49 C.F.R. part 71.

Washington, D.C. and 17 states are located entirely within the Eastern Time Zone. They are:

Five states are divided between the Eastern and Central Time Zones. The following locations observe Eastern Time:

Additionally, Phenix City, Alabama, and several nearby communities in Russell County, Alabama, unofficially observe Eastern Time. This is due to their close proximity to Columbus, Georgia, which is on Eastern Time.

The Bahamas and Haiti officially observe both Eastern Standard Time during the winter months and Eastern Daylight Time during the summer months. Cuba generally follows the U.S. with Eastern Standard Time in the winter, and Eastern Daylight Time in the summer, but the exact day of change varies year to year. The Cayman Islands and Jamaica use Eastern Standard Time year-round.

The Turks and Caicos Islands followed Eastern Time with daylight saving until 2015, when the territory switched to the Atlantic Time Zone. The Turks and Caicos Islands switched back to the pre-2015 schedule in March 2018. A 2017 consultation paper highlighted the advantage for business and tourism of being in the same time zone as the eastern United States as an important factor in the decision.

In South America, the Brazilian states of Acre and the southwest part of Amazonas use Eastern Standard Time. In 2008, Brazil changed the zone of these regions to be closer to that of the Brazilian Capital; however, the change was unpopular and thus undone in 2013. Additionally, the countries of Panama, Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador (excluding the Galápagos Islands, which use Central Standard Time), also use Eastern Standard Time year-round.

Also known as: Eastern Time (ET) and Eastern Standard Time (EST)

Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) is 4 hours behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). This time zone is a Daylight Saving Time time zone and is used in: North America, Caribbean.

See full time zone map

Eastern Daylight Time is the easternmost time zone in the United States. It is also used in Canada.

It covers all or parts of 23 states in the US and three provinces or territories in Canada. It is also used in the Caribbean.

Almost half of the population in the USA live in the EDT time zone. The time zone spans from northern Canada to Haiti.

In North America, Eastern Standard Time shares a border with Atlantic Daylight Time (ADT) in the east and with Central Daylight Time (CDT) in the west.

Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) 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). Eastern Standard Time (EST) is used during the remainder of the year.

If you know anyone who lives in the Eastern parts of North America, Central America, or the Caribbean, you’ve probably seen the initialisms EDT, EST, and ET before.

All three of these initialisms refer to the Eastern Time Zone, the time zone that spans from eastern Canada down to Panama.

If you’re wondering why there are three different abbreviations for the same time zone, you’re not alone. Many people mix up these three initialisms every day.

So what exactly are the differences between EDT, EST, and ET?

The short answer is that EDT stands for Eastern Daylight Time, EST stands for Eastern Standard Time, and ET stands for Eastern Time.

This article will give you a complete guide to EDT vs EST vs ET and help you use these abbreviations correctly in your written communication.

The reason there are three different initialisms for the same time zone is because of Daylight Saving Time, which is a clock-changing practice observed in many countries around the world.

The purpose of Daylight Saving Time is to ensure that darkness falls later in the winter. On the first Sunday of November, the clock gets set back one hour, and on the second Sunday of March, the clock gets set forward one hour.

As a result, the time zone is called Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) half the year, after the clock is set forward, and Eastern Standard Time (EST) during the remainder of the year, after the clock is set back.

Meanwhile, ET (Eastern Time) is a flexible term that refers to either EDT or EST, whichever one is currently in use.

Let’s take a closer look at each of these acronyms and when it’s appropriate to use them.

EDT stands for Eastern Daylight Time. It’s four hours behind the Coordinated Universal Time, the global time standard used to synchronize clocks around the world.

In areas that observe Daylight Saving Time, EDT is the local time zone from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November.

It’s correct to use EDT in spring and summer.

EST stands for Eastern Standard Time. It’s five hours behind the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC-5).

In areas that observe Daylight Saving Time, EST is the local time zone from the first Sunday in November to the second Sunday in March.

It’s correct to use EST in autumn and winter.

ET stands for Eastern Time. It’s a catch-all term that refers to EST or EDT, whichever currently applies.

If you’re in an area that observes Daylight Saving Time and you’re not sure whether to use EDT or EST, it’s always safe to use ET. ET refers to EST when EST is the local time and EDT when EDT is the local time.

There are nine standard time zones in the United States. From east to west, they are: Atlantic Standard Time (AST), Eastern Standard Time (EST), Central Standard Time (CST), Mountain Standard Time (MST), Pacific Standard Time (PST), Alaskan Standard Time (AKST), Hawaiian-Aleutian Standard Time (HST), Samoa Standard Time, and Chamorro Standard Time.

The Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT/ET) includes the following US states:

Keep in mind that the borders between time zones don’t always correspond to the borders between states, so different people living in the same US state might live in different time zones.

It’s best practice to check the time zone of a specific city or county to make sure you’re using the correct one.

The Eastern Time Zone encompasses parts of the following countries:

Out of all the countries on the list above, these are the ones that observe Daylight Saving Time every year, and therefore use both Eastern Standard Time (EST) and Eastern Daylight Time (EDT):

Not all countries observe Daylight Saving Time. The following places are the ones that don’t switch their clocks every year, and are therefore in Eastern Standard Time (EST) all year long:

Is it EST or EDT right now? This is a common question that many people ask every year.

One way to remember the difference between EST and EDT is to remember that the D in EDT stands for Daylight.

The season with the most daylight is summer, when the sun rises early and sets late. Therefore, EDT is the time zone used in summer and spring, while EST is the time zone used in winter and autumn.

If you’re not sure whether to use EDT or EST, it’s always safe to stick with ET.