London to New York: when the five-hour difference changes

Usually five hours, sometimes four

London is usually five hours ahead of New York. Both cities change their clocks, but their transition dates do not always match. During the intervening weeks, a standing call can move by an hour for one participant. Select Europe/London and America/New_York with the meeting date instead of choosing a permanent GMT or EST offset.

Three examples to check before you send an invitation

On 28 August 2026, 16:30 in London is 11:30 in New York. On 20 March 2026, 16:30 in London is 12:30 in New York: the US has already moved its clocks forward, while the UK has not. On 28 November 2026, 16:30 in London is again 11:30 in New York. All three examples fall on the same local date in both cities.

These are dated examples, not a permanent timetable. For your own call, open the London-to-New-York converter below and replace the date and time. Check both local results before copying the meeting confirmation.

Keep recurring calls attached to the intended city

Suppose the organiser wants a call at 16:30 London time every Friday. Create the calendar series in the London zone. The New York participant should expect a local change during mismatch weeks. If 11:30 New York time is the requirement instead, anchor the series to New York and let the London time move.

Put the next exceptional date in the meeting notes. A message such as “Our 20 March call is 16:30 London / 12:30 New York” is easier to act on than a general warning about daylight saving. Ask participants to check the calendar invitation too.

Adding a colleague in another region

Add a third box for the colleague’s actual city. Do not assume that a European, Asian, or Australian participant changes clocks on the same dates as either organiser. Review working hours separately from the conversion: a correct local time can still be inconvenient. For a team with little overlap, rotate the difficult slot or use an asynchronous update.