All of South Africa keeps one time, UTC+2, all year round.
South Africa at a glance
| Capital | Pretoria |
|---|---|
| UTC offsets | UTC+2 |
| IANA time zones | 1 |
| Daylight saving time | Not observed |
| Abbreviations in use | SAST |
Time zone of South Africa
South Africa uses a single IANA time zone, Africa/Johannesburg.
| Time zone | Time now | UTC offset | Daylight saving time | Main cities |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Africa/Johannesburg | --:-- | UTC+2 | Not observed | Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban |
Clock changes in South Africa
South Africa does not use daylight saving time, and the tz database records none since 1970.
Current time in cities in South Africa
| City | Region | Time now | Time zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johannesburg | Gauteng | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| Cape Town | Western Cape | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| Durban | KwaZulu-Natal | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| Pretoria | Gauteng | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| Port Elizabeth | Eastern Cape | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| Pietermaritzburg | KwaZulu-Natal | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| Benoni | Gauteng | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| Bloemfontein | Free State | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| Thembisa | Gauteng | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
| East London | Eastern Cape | --:-- | Africa/Johannesburg |
Time in South Africa compared with the world
When it is 9:00 AM in South Africa, it is 2:00 AM in New York, 6:00 PM in Sydney and 11:00 PM (previous day) in Los Angeles.
| City | Time now | Difference now | In January | In July |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York (United States) | --:-- | 7 h behind | 7 h behind | 6 h behind |
| Los Angeles (United States) | --:-- | 10 h behind | 10 h behind | 9 h behind |
| London (United Kingdom) | --:-- | 2 h behind | 2 h behind | 1 h behind |
| Paris (France) | --:-- | 1 h behind | 1 h behind | Same time |
| Dubai (United Arab Emirates) | --:-- | 2 h ahead | 2 h ahead | 2 h ahead |
| Mumbai (India) | --:-- | 3 h 30 min ahead | 3 h 30 min ahead | 3 h 30 min ahead |
| Singapore | --:-- | 6 h ahead | 6 h ahead | 6 h ahead |
| Tokyo (Japan) | --:-- | 7 h ahead | 7 h ahead | 7 h ahead |
| Sydney (Australia) | --:-- | 9 h ahead | 9 h ahead | 8 h ahead |
| UTC | --:-- | 2 h behind | 2 h behind | 2 h behind |
Daylight across South Africa
On the same June day, daylight lasts 10 hours 32 minutes in Pretoria but 9 hours 53 minutes in Port Elizabeth, because of how far South Africa stretches from north to south.
Countries on the same time as South Africa
These countries read the same time as South Africa today. Those marked with daylight saving time will drift away when their clocks change.
- Burundi
- Egypt Daylight saving time
- Greece Daylight saving time
- Malawi
- Mozambique
- Romania Daylight saving time
- Rwanda
- South Sudan
- Sudan
- Ukraine Daylight saving time
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Daylight saving time
Plan around the time in South Africa
- Convert a time to or from South Africa: pick a date and time and see it in every city on your list.
- Add Pretoria to your world clock to keep it next to your own time.
- Find a meeting time that falls inside office hours in South Africa and the other cities you work with.
- Open a full-screen clock for your own time zone.
Frequently asked questions
How many time zones does South Africa have?
One: Africa/Johannesburg, at UTC+2 all year.
Does South Africa use daylight saving time?
No. The time stays at UTC+2 all year.
What is the time difference between South Africa and New York?
South Africa is 7 hours ahead of New York in January and 6 hours ahead of New York in July, because New York moves its clocks for daylight saving time and South Africa does not.
Time zone rules: IANA tz database, version 2026e. Place names and coordinates: GeoNames. Sunrise and sunset are calculated from the coordinates and can differ by a minute or two from local almanacs.