What time is it in Chicago right now?
Current Chicago time, America/Chicago time zone (GMT-06:00), daylight saving status, and the live time difference with major world cities.
Saturday, November 7, 2026 · GMT-06:00 · Standard time
It is evening in Chicago, United States. Time zone: America/Chicago.
GMT-06:00
Not active
Typical office hours 08:00–17:00, Monday to Friday; CME Group futures trade on Central Time.
Chicago time difference with major cities
Live offset between Chicago and key global cities. Values update automatically and account for daylight saving time on both sides.
| City | Local time | Difference vs Chicago | Convert |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | 22:00 | +1h | Chicago to New York |
| London | 03:00 | +6h | Chicago to London |
| Tokyo | 12:00 | +15h | Chicago to Tokyo |
| Beijing | 11:00 | +14h | Chicago to Beijing |
| Sydney | 14:00 | +17h | Chicago to Sydney |
About time in Chicago
Chicago sets the pace for Central Time and is home to the derivatives markets that price much of the world’s commodities. The CME Group and the Chicago Board of Trade trade agricultural and financial futures on Central Time, so grain, energy, and interest-rate schedules the world over reference this zone. Chicago is also where U.S. time zones were effectively born: the railroads adopted standard time here in 1883, ending the chaos of thousands of local “sun times” that made train scheduling impossible across a continent. The city shifts between Central Standard Time (UTC-6) and Central Daylight Time (UTC-5) on the American schedule, sitting one hour behind New York and one hour ahead of Denver. Because Chicago sits at the geographic and temporal midpoint of the country, it is a natural meeting-time reference for U.S.-wide teams, and its futures-market hours make an accurate Central Time clock essential for traders and anyone coordinating with the U.S. heartland.
Location
Third-largest U.S. city on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan in the Midwest.
Daylight saving rules
Observes U.S. daylight saving time: forward on the second Sunday of March (CST → CDT, UTC-6 → UTC-5), back on the first Sunday of November.
What Chicago time is known for
- CME/CBOT futures hours
- Birthplace of U.S. standard railway time (1883)
- Central Time anchor
Common questions about Chicago time
What time is it in Chicago right now?
It is currently 21:00 in Chicago (Saturday, November 7, 2026), which is GMT-06:00.
What time zone is Chicago in?
Chicago uses the America/Chicago time zone, currently GMT-06:00. Chicago observes daylight saving time, so the offset changes twice a year.
Does Chicago observe daylight saving time?
Yes. Chicago is currently on standard time. Observes U.S. daylight saving time: forward on the second Sunday of March (CST → CDT, UTC-6 → UTC-5), back on the first Sunday of November.
What is the time difference between Chicago and New York?
Chicago is -1h compared with New York. Check the table above for the live value, which can shift when either city changes its clocks.