Time in Bucharest, Romania 🇷🇴
The current local time in Bucharest, Romania is shown below — the city is in the Europe/Bucharest time zone (UTC +03:00 · EEST).
Bucharest local time
Thursday, 22 October 2026 EEST
Bucharest at a glance
- Time zone
Europe/Bucharest· Eastern European Time- UTC offset now
- +03:00 EEST
- Daylight saving
- Yes · UTC +02:00 / +03:00
- Coordinates
- 44.43° N, 26.10° E
- Population
- 1,716,961
- Country
- Romania · ISO RO
- Dialing code
- +40
- Currency
- Romanian Leu (RON)
- Work week
- Monday to Friday
- Drives on the
- Right
Bucharest right now
Time difference
Bucharest is shown here relative to your device's time zone.
Planning a call? Compare hours side by side in the time zone converter.
Upcoming public holidays
- St Andrew's Day Mon, Nov 30, 2026
- National holiday Tue, Dec 1, 2026
- Christmas Day Fri, Dec 25, 2026
- Boxing Day Sat, Dec 26, 2026
Sun today
Sunrise 07:40 · Sunset 18:22
Day length 10h 42m · twilight and monthly table →
Bucharest time vs. UTC
A 09:00–17:00 working day in Bucharest overlaps with 09:00–17:00 UTC from 12:00 to 17:00 Bucharest time. Open this page in your browser and the second row switches to your own time zone.
| Bucharest | 00:00 | 01:00 | 02:00 | 03:00 | 04:00 | 05:00 | 06:00 | 07:00 | 08:00 | 09:00 | 10:00 | 11:00 | 12:00 | 13:00 | 14:00 | 15:00 | 16:00 | 17:00 | 18:00 | 19:00 | 20:00 | 21:00 | 22:00 | 23:00 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UTC | 21:00 | 22:00 | 23:00 | 00:00 | 01:00 | 02:00 | 03:00 | 04:00 | 05:00 | 06:00 | 07:00 | 08:00 | 09:00 | 10:00 | 11:00 | 12:00 | 13:00 | 14:00 | 15:00 | 16:00 | 17:00 | 18:00 | 19:00 | 20:00 |
- Office hours 09–17
- Awake, off work
- Night 22–07
Bucharest vs. major cities
How far Bucharest is from the world's main business centres right now, what time it is there when the working day starts in Bucharest, and which hours of a 09:00–17:00 day the two places share. Daylight saving changes are applied automatically.
| City | Difference | At 09:00 in Bucharest | Shared office hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York · United States | −7 h | 02:00 | 16:00–17:00 |
| Los Angeles · United States | −10 h | 23:00 (prev. day) | None |
| São Paulo · Brazil | −6 h | 03:00 | 15:00–17:00 |
| London · United Kingdom | −2 h | 07:00 | 11:00–17:00 |
| Paris · France | −1 h | 08:00 | 10:00–17:00 |
| Johannesburg · South Africa | −1 h | 08:00 | 10:00–17:00 |
| Dubai · United Arab Emirates | +1 h | 10:00 | 09:00–16:00 |
| Delhi · India | +2:30 h | 11:30 | 09:00–14:30 |
| Singapore · Singapore | +5 h | 14:00 | 09:00–12:00 |
| Beijing · China | +5 h | 14:00 | 09:00–12:00 |
Shared office hours are shown in Bucharest time. Compare any set of cities hour by hour in the time zone converter, or pick a slot that suits everyone with the event planner.
Cities near Bucharest
The closest places to Bucharest among the cities we track, measured in a straight line from the city centre. Some of them keep a different clock, so check the time difference before crossing a border or booking a call.
| City | Distance | Time difference |
|---|---|---|
| Sofia · Bulgaria | 300 km (180 mi) southwest | Same time |
| Istanbul · Türkiye | 450 km (280 mi) southeast | +1 h / Same time |
| Belgrade · Serbia | 450 km (280 mi) west | −1 h |
| Budapest · Hungary | 640 km (400 mi) northwest | −1 h |
| Athens · Greece | 740 km (460 mi) south | Same time |
| Kyiv · Ukraine | 750 km (460 mi) northeast | Same time |
| Ankara · Türkiye | 750 km (460 mi) southeast | +1 h / Same time |
| Kraków · Poland | 780 km (480 mi) northwest | −1 h |
Distances are great-circle distances. A plus sign means the other city is ahead of Bucharest.
Clock time vs. sun time in Bucharest
Bucharest's standard offset, UTC +02:00, is based on the 30° E meridian; the city itself lies at 26.10° E, 3.9° west of it. In standard time its clocks run about 16 min ahead of the sun, and 1 h 16 min ahead during daylight saving time. Solar noon — when the sun is highest — falls between 12:00 (around 29 October) and 13:23 (around 23 July) on the clock.
How dates and times are written in Bucharest
- Short date
- 22.10.2026 · DD.MM.YYYY
- Long date
- 22 octombrie 2026
- Time
- 15:30 · 24-hour clock
- Week starts on
- Monday
Examples show 22 October 2026 at 15:30 using the Unicode CLDR conventions for ro-RO, Romania's most common locale. Businesses and English-language sources may use other formats.
Clock changes in Bucharest
Since 1970, Bucharest has gone through 2 distinct time-keeping periods, observing daylight saving time in 48 of 57 years. The current pattern, in place since 1979, is UTC +02:00 with UTC +03:00 in daylight saving time. Clocks currently go forward on the last Sunday in March and back on the last Sunday in October, a rule in place since 1996.
| Date | Change | Local clock | New offset |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, 29 March 2026 | Forward 1 hour | 03:00 → 04:00 | UTC +03:00 |
| Sunday, 25 October 2026 | Back 1 hour | 04:00 → 03:00 | UTC +02:00 |
| Sunday, 28 March 2027 | Forward 1 hour | 03:00 → 04:00 | UTC +03:00 |
| Sunday, 31 October 2027 | Back 1 hour | 04:00 → 03:00 | UTC +02:00 |
When clocks go forward, sunrise and sunset both happen an hour later by the clock — darker mornings, lighter evenings — and the night of the change is an hour shorter. When they go back, the reverse applies.
Time zone history since 1970 (2 periods)
| Years | Offset | Daylight saving |
|---|---|---|
| 1970–1978 | UTC +02:00 all year | No daylight saving time |
| 1979–2026 | UTC +02:00, DST UTC +03:00 | Forward on the last Sunday in March, back on the last Sunday in October (since 1996) |
Source: IANA tz database, as shipped with the Unicode ICU library.
Daylight in Bucharest through the year
The longest day in Bucharest is 21 June with 15h 32m of daylight; the shortest is 22 December with 8h 50m. Day length swings by 6 h 43 min over the year. The earliest sunrise is at 05:31 on 13 June and the latest sunset at 21:05 on 22 June — not on the solstice itself, because solar noon drifts through the year.
Frequently asked questions
What time zone is Bucharest in?
Bucharest uses the Europe/Bucharest time zone (EET / EEST): UTC +02:00 in standard time and UTC +03:00 during daylight saving time.
Does Bucharest observe daylight saving time?
Yes. In 2026 clocks in Bucharest go forward on Sunday, 29 March 2026 at 03:00 and back on Sunday, 25 October 2026 at 04:00.
When is the longest day of the year in Bucharest?
Around 21 June, with 15h 32m of daylight. The shortest day is around 22 December, with 8h 50m.
What is the dialing code for Bucharest?
To call Bucharest from abroad, dial your international access code, then Romania's country code +40, then the local number without its leading trunk prefix.
What are normal working days in Bucharest?
The standard work week in Romania runs Monday to Friday, with the weekend on Saturday and Sunday. Keep this in mind when scheduling calls from countries with a different weekend.
What is the nearest city to Bucharest on a different time?
Of the 189 cities we track, the closest one keeping a different clock is Istanbul, Türkiye, about 450 km (280 mi) to the southeast. It is 1 h ahead of Bucharest in January and the same time as it in July.
How are dates and times written in Bucharest?
Following the ro-RO conventions in the Unicode CLDR, a short date is written DD.MM.YYYY (22.10.2026) and times usually use the 24-hour clock (15:30). Calendars start the week on Monday.
Explore more for Bucharest
Everything else we track for Bucharest: daylight, weather, the country overview, and the exact time-zone references.