Time in Tennessee (TN), United States 🇺🇸
The current local time in Tennessee, United States is anchored on Nashville. The state uses the America/Chicago time zone (UTC -05:00).
Tennessee local time
Thursday, 22 October 2026 CDT
State information
Tennessee
State of United States
Population: 6,910,840
Code: TN
Time zone
IANA: America/Chicago
UTC offset: -05:00
Daylight saving: Yes — forward 8 March, back 1 November
Country: United States
How time works in Tennessee
Tennessee is split between two zones. East Tennessee, including Knoxville and Chattanooga, uses Eastern Time; Middle and West Tennessee, including Nashville and Memphis, use Central Time.
Time difference across United States
How the clock in Tennessee compares with other United States regions on this site. Where the January and July figures differ, only one side observes daylight saving time.
| Region | Time zone | January | July |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | Pacific/Honolulu | −4 h | −5 h |
| Alaska | America/Anchorage | −3 h | −3 h |
| California | America/Los_Angeles | −2 h | −2 h |
| Nevada | America/Los_Angeles | −2 h | −2 h |
| Oregon | America/Los_Angeles | −2 h | −2 h |
| Washington | America/Los_Angeles | −2 h | −2 h |
| Arizona | America/Phoenix | −1 h | −2 h |
| Colorado | America/Denver | −1 h | −1 h |
| Utah | America/Denver | −1 h | −1 h |
| Illinois | America/Chicago | Same time | Same time |
| Louisiana | America/Chicago | Same time | Same time |
| Minnesota | America/Chicago | Same time | Same time |
| Texas | America/Chicago | Same time | Same time |
| Florida | America/New_York | +1 h | +1 h |
| Georgia | America/New_York | +1 h | +1 h |
| Massachusetts | America/New_York | +1 h | +1 h |
| Michigan | America/Detroit | +1 h | +1 h |
| New York | America/New_York | +1 h | +1 h |
| Pennsylvania | America/New_York | +1 h | +1 h |
Public holidays in Tennessee in 2026
14 public holidays apply in Tennessee, 2 of them regional (marked below) and not observed across all of United States.
| Date | Holiday | |
|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 Jan | New Year's Day | |
| Mon 19 Jan | Martin Luther King Jr. Day | |
| Mon 16 Feb | President's Day | |
| Fri 3 Apr | Good Friday | Regional |
| Mon 25 May | Memorial Day | |
| Fri 19 Jun | Juneteenth | |
| Fri 3 Jul | Independence Day (substitute day) | |
| Sat 4 Jul | Independence Day | |
| Mon 7 Sept | Labour Day | |
| Mon 12 Oct | Columbus Day | |
| Wed 11 Nov | Veterans Day | |
| Thu 26 Nov | Thanksgiving Day | |
| Thu 24 Dec | Christmas Eve | Regional |
| Fri 25 Dec | Christmas Day |
Tennessee vs. major cities
How far Tennessee is from the world's main business centres right now, what time it is there when the working day starts in Tennessee, 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 Tennessee | Shared office hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York · United States | +1 h | 10:00 | 09:00–16:00 |
| Los Angeles · United States | −2 h | 07:00 | 11:00–17:00 |
| São Paulo · Brazil | +2 h | 11:00 | 09:00–15:00 |
| London · United Kingdom | +6 h | 15:00 | 09:00–11:00 |
| Paris · France | +7 h | 16:00 | 09:00–10:00 |
| Johannesburg · South Africa | +7 h | 16:00 | 09:00–10:00 |
| Dubai · United Arab Emirates | +9 h | 18:00 | None |
| Delhi · India | +10:30 h | 19:30 | None |
| Singapore · Singapore | +13 h | 22:00 | None |
| Beijing · China | +13 h | 22:00 | None |
Shared office hours are shown in Tennessee 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.
Clock changes in Tennessee
Tennessee has alternated between UTC -06:00 in standard time and UTC -05:00 in daylight saving time since at least 1970. Clocks currently go forward on the second Sunday in March and back on the first Sunday in November, a rule in place since 2007.
| Date | Change | Local clock | New offset |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, 8 March 2026 | Forward 1 hour | 02:00 → 03:00 | UTC -05:00 |
| Sunday, 1 November 2026 | Back 1 hour | 02:00 → 01:00 | UTC -06:00 |
| Sunday, 14 March 2027 | Forward 1 hour | 02:00 → 03:00 | UTC -05:00 |
| Sunday, 7 November 2027 | Back 1 hour | 02:00 → 01:00 | UTC -06:00 |
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.
Source: IANA tz database, as shipped with the Unicode ICU library.
Other cities in the same time zone
Tennessee time questions
- What time zone is Tennessee in?
- Most of Tennessee uses the America/Chicago time zone: UTC -06:00, -05:00 during DST. Some areas differ — see the notes on this page.
- Does Tennessee observe daylight saving time?
- Yes. In 2026 clocks go forward on Sunday, 8 March 2026 at 02:00 and go back on Sunday, 1 November 2026 at 02:00.
- How many public holidays does Tennessee have in 2026?
- 14 public holidays apply in Tennessee in 2026, including 2 that are not on the national list: Good Friday (Friday 3 April), Christmas Eve (Thursday 24 December).
Explore Tennessee
More on Tennessee: the country overview, the exact IANA zone, and tools for Nashville.