Time in Shanghai, China 🇨🇳
The current local time in Shanghai, China is shown below — the city is in the Asia/Shanghai time zone (UTC +08:00).
Shanghai local time
Thursday, 22 October 2026 GMT+8
Shanghai at a glance
- Time zone
Asia/Shanghai· China Standard Time- UTC offset now
- +08:00 GMT+8
- Daylight saving
- No · UTC +08:00 all year
- Coordinates
- 31.23° N, 121.47° E
- Population
- 24,870,000
- Country
- China · ISO CN
- Dialing code
- +86
- Currency
- Chinese Yuan (CNY)
- Work week
- Monday to Friday
- Drives on the
- Right
Shanghai right now
Time difference
Shanghai 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
- New Year's Day Fri, Jan 1, 2027
- Spring Festival Fri, Feb 5, 2027
- Spring Festival Sat, Feb 6, 2027
- Spring Festival Sun, Feb 7, 2027
Sun today
Sunrise 06:02 · Sunset 17:17
Day length 11h 14m · twilight and monthly table →
Shanghai time vs. UTC
A 09:00–17:00 working day in Shanghai doesn't overlap with 09:00–17:00 UTC. Open this page in your browser and the second row switches to your own time zone.
| Shanghai | 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 | 16:00 | 17:00 | 18:00 | 19:00 | 20:00 | 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 |
- Office hours 09–17
- Awake, off work
- Night 22–07
Shanghai vs. major cities
How far Shanghai is from the world's main business centres right now, what time it is there when the working day starts in Shanghai, 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 Shanghai | Shared office hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York · United States | −12 h | 21:00 (prev. day) | None |
| Los Angeles · United States | −15 h | 18:00 (prev. day) | None |
| São Paulo · Brazil | −11 h | 22:00 (prev. day) | None |
| London · United Kingdom | −7 h | 02:00 | 16:00–17:00 |
| Paris · France | −6 h | 03:00 | 15:00–17:00 |
| Johannesburg · South Africa | −6 h | 03:00 | 15:00–17:00 |
| Dubai · United Arab Emirates | −4 h | 05:00 | 13:00–17:00 |
| Delhi · India | −2:30 h | 06:30 | 11:30–17:00 |
| Singapore · Singapore | Same time | 09:00 | 09:00–17:00 |
| Tokyo · Japan | +1 h | 10:00 | 09:00–16:00 |
Shared office hours are shown in Shanghai 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 Shanghai
The closest places to Shanghai 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Taipei · Taiwan | 690 km (430 mi) south | Same time |
| Busan · South Korea | 830 km (520 mi) northeast | +1 h |
| Seoul · South Korea | 870 km (540 mi) northeast | +1 h |
| Beijing | 1,070 km (660 mi) northwest | Same time |
| Guangzhou | 1,210 km (750 mi) southwest | Same time |
| Shenzhen | 1,210 km (750 mi) southwest | Same time |
| Hong Kong · Hong Kong | 1,230 km (760 mi) southwest | Same time |
| Osaka · Japan | 1,360 km (850 mi) east | +1 h |
Distances are great-circle distances. A plus sign means the other city is ahead of Shanghai.
Clock time vs. sun time in Shanghai
Shanghai's standard offset, UTC +08:00, is based on the 120° E meridian; the city itself lies at 121.47° E, 1.5° east of it. Its clocks are therefore within 6 minutes of local solar time. Solar noon — when the sun is highest — falls between 11:38 (around 5 November) and 12:09 (around 5 February) on the clock.
How dates and times are written in Shanghai
- Short date
- 2026/10/22 · YYYY/MM/DD
- Long date
- 2026年10月22日
- Time
- 15:30 · 24-hour clock
- Week starts on
- Monday
Examples show 22 October 2026 at 15:30 using the Unicode CLDR conventions for zh-CN, China's most common locale. Businesses and English-language sources may use other formats.
Clock changes in Shanghai
Since 1970, Shanghai has gone through 3 distinct time-keeping periods, observing daylight saving time in 6 of 57 years. Since 1992 it has stayed on UTC +08:00 all year.
No clock changes are scheduled in 2026 or 2027: Shanghai stays on UTC +08:00 all year.
Time zone history since 1970 (3 periods)
| Years | Offset | Daylight saving |
|---|---|---|
| 1970–1985 | UTC +08:00 all year | No daylight saving time |
| 1986–1991 | UTC +08:00, DST UTC +09:00 | Daylight saving dates varied from year to year |
| 1992–2026 | UTC +08:00 all year | No daylight saving time |
Source: IANA tz database, as shipped with the Unicode ICU library.
Daylight in Shanghai through the year
The longest day in Shanghai is 22 June with 14h 11m of daylight; the shortest is 22 December with 10h 7m. Day length swings by 4 h 4 min over the year. The earliest sunrise is at 04:50 on 9 June and the latest sunset at 19:03 on 25 June — not on the solstice itself, because solar noon drifts through the year.
Frequently asked questions
What time zone is Shanghai in?
Shanghai uses the Asia/Shanghai time zone: UTC +08:00 all year round.
Does Shanghai observe daylight saving time?
No. Shanghai does not currently change its clocks; it last observed daylight saving time in 1991.
When is the longest day of the year in Shanghai?
Around 22 June, with 14h 11m of daylight. The shortest day is around 22 December, with 10h 7m.
What is the dialing code for Shanghai?
To call Shanghai from abroad, dial your international access code, then China's country code +86, then the local number without its leading trunk prefix.
What are normal working days in Shanghai?
The standard work week in China 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 Shanghai on a different time?
Of the 189 cities we track, the closest one keeping a different clock is Busan, South Korea, about 830 km (520 mi) to the northeast. It is 1 h ahead of Shanghai.
How are dates and times written in Shanghai?
Following the zh-CN conventions in the Unicode CLDR, a short date is written YYYY/MM/DD (2026/10/22) and times usually use the 24-hour clock (15:30). Calendars start the week on Monday.
Explore more for Shanghai
Everything else we track for Shanghai: daylight, weather, the country overview, and the exact time-zone references.