Current UK Time
UK Time Dashboard
UK time explained
The UK observes two times through the year. In winter it uses Greenwich Mean Time (GMT); in summer it moves to British Summer Time (BST) for lighter evenings.
What is GMT?
Greenwich Mean Time is UTC+0 — the UK's standard time. It is named after the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London, and is a reference for global time zones.
What is BST?
British Summer Time is GMT+1. It runs from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October, when the UK observes daylight saving time.
Daylight saving time in the UK
Clocks go forward one hour in late March (start of BST) and back one hour in late October (return to GMT). The change always happens at 01:00 GMT. This clock updates automatically, so it always reflects the correct UK time.
Frequently asked questions
Is the UK in daylight saving time right now?
The badge above shows BST when the UK is observing daylight saving time (British Summer Time) and GMT when it is not. The clocks go forward in late March and back in late October.
What is BST?
British Summer Time (BST) is GMT+1. It applies from the last Sunday in March until the last Sunday in October, giving lighter evenings during the summer months.
What is GMT?
Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) is the UK's standard winter time and the reference point for many world time zones. It is UTC+0.
Why does the UK change clocks?
The UK changes clocks to make better use of daylight. Moving to BST in summer shifts an hour of daylight into the evening; returning to GMT in winter restores standard time.
What time zone is the UK in?
The UK is in the Europe/London time zone, which alternates between GMT (UTC+0) in winter and BST (UTC+1) in summer.