How to Change the Time Zone in Windows 11

To change the time zone in Windows 11, go to Settings > Time & language > Date & time. Turn off Set time zone automatically, then choose your zone from the Time zone list. The clock on the taskbar updates right away.

Applies to: Windows 11.

Change the time zone in Settings

1. Right-click the clock on the taskbar and select Adjust date and time. Or press Windows + I and select Time & language > Date & time.
2. Turn off Set time zone automatically.
3. Open the Time zone list and choose your zone, such as (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada).
4. Under Additional settings, select Sync now to make sure the clock is exact.

The list is sorted by UTC offset, not by country. If your city isn’t listed, pick any zone with the same offset and the same daylight saving rules.

Let Windows set it automatically

Turn Set time zone automatically on. Windows uses your location to pick the zone, so location has to be allowed:

1. Go to Settings > Privacy & security > Location.
2. Make sure Location services is On.

Automatic time zone is handy when you travel, but it can pick the wrong zone near a border or on a VPN. If that happens, set the zone by hand.

Change it in Control Panel

1. Press Windows + R, type timedate.cpl, and press Enter.
2. On the Date and Time tab, select Change time zone.
3. Choose your zone and select OK twice.

This classic window also has an Additional Clocks tab, where you can add up to two extra clocks that appear when you hover over the taskbar clock.

Change it with a command

This is useful for IT support or scripts.

1. Right-click Start and select Terminal (Admin).
2. To see the exact names of all zones, run tzutil /l.
3. To set a zone, run tzutil /s "Eastern Standard Time", replacing the name with the one you want.

In PowerShell, Get-TimeZone shows your current zone, and Set-TimeZone -Id "Pacific Standard Time" changes it.

Daylight saving time

Make sure Adjust for daylight saving time automatically is on if your area uses daylight saving time. Windows then moves the clock forward and back for you. If your area doesn’t use daylight saving time, choose a zone that doesn’t use it either, such as (UTC-07:00) Arizona instead of Mountain Time.

If you can’t change the time zone

• Set time zone automatically is greyed out: it’s a setting for the whole PC, so only an administrator can change it. Sign in with an admin account, or ask the person who manages the PC.
• Automatic time zone picks the wrong zone: turn it off and choose the zone by hand, or check that Location services is on.
• Work or school PC: your organization may control the time zone. Ask your IT team.

If the time is still wrong

• Select Sync now on the Date & time page, and make sure Set time automatically is on.
• If the time is off by exactly a few hours, the time zone is wrong, not the clock. Check the zone first. If the hour is right but you would rather see 15:00 than 3:00 PM, switch Windows 11 to 24-hour time.
• If the time is wrong after every restart, the small battery on the PC’s motherboard may need replacing. On most laptops, that’s a job for a repair shop.
• If you also run Linux on the same PC, the two systems may store the time differently. Syncing the time in Windows after switching fixes it for that session.

Frequently asked questions

Does changing the time zone change the time on my files?

No. Windows stores file times in a universal format and shows them in your current time zone, so they just display differently.

Can I show clocks for other time zones?

Yes. Use the Additional Clocks tab described above, or display multiple clocks in Windows 11 another way.

How do I change the date or time itself?

Turn off Set time automatically, then select Change next to Set the date and time manually. The full steps are in changing the date and time in Windows 11.

Using Windows 10? The menus differ there, so follow the steps to change the time zone in Windows 10.

Once the zone is right, you can change the time format in Windows 11 to switch between 12-hour and 24-hour time, or show seconds on the taskbar clock.

All the date and time options are on Microsoft’s Set time, date, and time zone settings in Windows page.

Matt Jacobs

Matt Jacobs writes and maintains the guides on Support Your Tech, which he started in 2017. He spent most of his career keeping small-business PCs running and still takes the occasional consulting job, so the steps here come from fixing the same problems on other people’s computers. Every guide is checked on his own Windows 11, Windows 10, Mac, iPhone and iPad before it goes up.