Time in Istanbul, Türkiye 🇹🇷
The current local time in Istanbul, Türkiye is shown below — the city is in the Europe/Istanbul time zone (UTC +03:00).
Istanbul local time
Thursday, 22 October 2026 GMT+3
Istanbul at a glance
- Time zone
Europe/Istanbul- UTC offset now
- +03:00 GMT+3
- Daylight saving
- No · UTC +03:00 all year
- Coordinates
- 41.01° N, 28.98° E
- Population
- 15,462,452
- Country
- Türkiye · ISO TR
- Dialing code
- +90
- Currency
- Turkish Lira (TRY)
- Work week
- Monday to Friday
- Drives on the
- Right
Istanbul right now
Time difference
Istanbul 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
- Republic Day Thu, Oct 29, 2026
- New Year's Day Fri, Jan 1, 2027
- End of Ramadan (Eid al-Fitr) Tue, Mar 9, 2027
- National Sovereignty and Children's Day Fri, Apr 23, 2027
Sun today
Sunrise 07:23 · Sunset 18:15
Day length 10h 52m · twilight and monthly table →
Istanbul time vs. UTC
A 09:00–17:00 working day in Istanbul overlaps with 09:00–17:00 UTC from 12:00 to 17:00 Istanbul time. Open this page in your browser and the second row switches to your own time zone.
| Istanbul | 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
Istanbul vs. major cities
How far Istanbul is from the world's main business centres right now, what time it is there when the working day starts in Istanbul, 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 Istanbul | 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 Istanbul 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 Istanbul
The closest places to Istanbul 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Ankara | 350 km (220 mi) east | Same time |
| Bucharest · Romania | 450 km (280 mi) northwest | −1 h / Same time |
| Sofia · Bulgaria | 500 km (310 mi) northwest | −1 h / Same time |
| Athens · Greece | 560 km (350 mi) southwest | −1 h / Same time |
| Belgrade · Serbia | 810 km (500 mi) northwest | −2 h / −1 h |
| Beirut · Lebanon | 980 km (610 mi) southeast | −1 h / Same time |
| Kyiv · Ukraine | 1,060 km (660 mi) north | −1 h / Same time |
| Budapest · Hungary | 1,070 km (660 mi) northwest | −2 h / −1 h |
Distances are great-circle distances. A plus sign means the other city is ahead of Istanbul.
Clock time vs. sun time in Istanbul
Istanbul's standard offset, UTC +03:00, is based on the 45° E meridian; the city itself lies at 28.98° E, 16.0° west of it. In standard time its clocks run about 1 h 4 min ahead of the sun. Solar noon — when the sun is highest — falls between 12:48 (around 5 November) and 13:19 (around 5 February) on the clock. Mornings stay dark later and evenings stay light longer than the clock suggests.
How dates and times are written in Istanbul
- Short date
- 22.10.2026 · DD.MM.YYYY
- Long date
- 22 Ekim 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 tr-TR, Türkiye's most common locale. Businesses and English-language sources may use other formats.
Clock changes in Istanbul
Since 1970, Istanbul has gone through 7 distinct time-keeping periods, observing daylight saving time in 37 of 57 years. Since 2016 it has stayed on UTC +03:00 all year.
No clock changes are scheduled in 2026 or 2027: Istanbul stays on UTC +03:00 all year.
Time zone history since 1970 (7 periods)
| Years | Offset | Daylight saving |
|---|---|---|
| 1970–1972 | UTC +02:00 all year | No daylight saving time |
| 1973–1977 | UTC +02:00, DST UTC +03:00 | Daylight saving dates varied from year to year |
| 1978–1982 | UTC +03:00 all year | No daylight saving time |
| 1983 | UTC +03:00, DST UTC +04:00 | Forward on the last Sunday in July, back on the first Sunday in October |
| 1984 | UTC +02:00 all year | No daylight saving time |
| 1985–2015 | UTC +02:00, DST UTC +03:00 | Daylight saving dates varied from year to year |
| 2016–2026 | UTC +03:00 all year | No daylight saving time |
Source: IANA tz database, as shipped with the Unicode ICU library.
Daylight in Istanbul through the year
The longest day in Istanbul is 21 June with 15h 8m of daylight; the shortest is 22 December with 9h 13m. Day length swings by 5 h 54 min over the year. The earliest sunrise is at 05:32 on 11 June and the latest sunset at 20:41 on 22 June — not on the solstice itself, because solar noon drifts through the year.
Frequently asked questions
What time zone is Istanbul in?
Istanbul uses the Europe/Istanbul time zone: UTC +03:00 all year round.
Does Istanbul observe daylight saving time?
No. Istanbul does not currently change its clocks; it last observed daylight saving time in 2015.
When is the longest day of the year in Istanbul?
Around 21 June, with 15h 8m of daylight. The shortest day is around 22 December, with 9h 13m.
What is the dialing code for Istanbul?
To call Istanbul from abroad, dial your international access code, then Türkiye's country code +90, then the local number without its leading trunk prefix.
What are normal working days in Istanbul?
The standard work week in Türkiye runs Monday to Friday, with the weekend on Saturday and Sunday. Keep this in mind when scheduling calls from countries with a different weekend.
Why is sunset so late in Istanbul?
Istanbul lies at 28.98° E, 16.0° west of the 45° E meridian its UTC +03:00 offset is based on, so its clocks run about 1 h 4 min ahead of the sun. Solar noon falls between 12:48 and 13:19 through the year instead of around 12:00, and the latest sunset is at 20:41 on 22 June.
What is the nearest city to Istanbul on a different time?
Of the 189 cities we track, the closest one keeping a different clock is Bucharest, Romania, about 450 km (280 mi) to the northwest. It is 1 h behind Istanbul in January and the same time as it in July.
How are dates and times written in Istanbul?
Following the tr-TR 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 Istanbul
Everything else we track for Istanbul: daylight, weather, the country overview, and the exact time-zone references.