What is the time zone of Florida?
Florida is divided into two time zones. Vast majority lies in the Eastern Time zone, including all major cities such as Jacksonville, Miami, Tampa and Orlando. Daylight savings is observed, so there are two different clocks depending on the time of year.
- (EST) Eastern Standard Time: – 5:00 UTC/GMT (behind)
- (EDT) Eastern Daylight Time: – 4:00 UTC/GMT (behind)
About 17% of Florida lies in the Central Time zone, covering the 10 most western counties. They also observe daylight savings so there are two different clocks depending on the time of year.
- (CST) Central Standard Time: – 6:00 UTC/GMT (behind)
- (CDT) Central Daylight Time: – 5:00 UTC/GMT (behind)
Although Florida observes dual zones, the time is aligned with the neighboring states. This means that you don’t need to change your clock when entering Georgia(eastern time) or Alabama (central time). You will always remain in the same time zone.
Zone boundary
The Florida boundary line between two time zones lies west of the city of Tallahassee and the Apalachicola National Forest (see detailed map). It covers the counties of Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington, Bay, Jackson and Calhoun. Gulf county is divided as the time zone follows the river.
The official border is defined in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) §71.5. (f):
Florida Daylight Savings Time (DST)
The state of Florida is using daylight savings as documented in the Uniform Time Act of 1966. It is less effective than in other states because the relatively small natural variation of day length between summer and winter given its southern location.
During daylight savings the time changes from Standard time to Daylight time, so CST becomes CDT and EST becomes EDT depending on the location. The total period of daylight savings lasts for 34 weeks which is about 65% of the year.
It starts on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November. In March the clock is moved forward from 02.00 am to 03.00 am (so you will lose an hour of sleep during the night). While in November it’s reversed as the clock is moved backward from 03.00 am to 02.00 am and you will gain an extra hour of sleep. One way of remembering the movement sequence is that clocks “spring forward and fall back”.
Florida time news, bills and legislation
No active debates are held in Florida to change either the time zone or daylight savings.
Other US states
You can check out information and maps of other US states by clicking on the below links.