CST to EST converter

Enter a date and a time and see it converted from Central Time (Chicago) to Eastern Time (New York). Daylight saving is handled for you, so the result is right on any date of the year.

  • Free
  • No sign-up
  • Runs in your browser
tz-cst-to-est

Fill in the values above to see the result.

100% private — the calculation is done in your browser and nothing is sent to any server.

Next step

Keep going with your result in another tool. Nothing is uploaded.

How it works

Enter the time

Pick the date and the time; the source zone is already set.

Read the result

The converted time appears with its date and UTC offset.

Add more zones

Compare up to four target zones at once.

How to convert CST to EST

To convert CST to EST, add 1 hour all year. For example, when it is 12:00 noon in Central Time (Chicago) it is 1:00 PM in Eastern Time (New York) in winter. In the converter above the source and target zones are already selected: enter a date and a time and the result appears at once.

The two zones

Central Time covers Chicago, Dallas, Houston, New Orleans and Minneapolis. It is Central Standard Time (CST, UTC−6) in winter and Central Daylight Time (CDT, UTC−5) in summer.

Eastern Time covers New York, Washington, Miami, Atlanta, Boston and Toronto. It is Eastern Standard Time (EST, UTC−5) in winter and Eastern Daylight Time (EDT, UTC−4) in summer, so people often write ET for both.

The difference between CST and EST

Central time is always exactly one hour behind Eastern time, since both zones change on the same dates. Add one hour to go from Chicago to New York. Winter offset: 1 hour ahead. Summer offset: 1 hour ahead.

CST to EST quick reference

Conversion table
Source timeWinter (15 January)Summer (15 July)
6:00 AM7:00 AM7:00 AM
9:00 AM10:00 AM10:00 AM
12:00 PM1:00 PM1:00 PM
3:00 PM4:00 PM4:00 PM
6:00 PM7:00 PM7:00 PM
9:00 PM10:00 PM10:00 PM

When you need it

  • Setting meetings between Chicago, Dallas or Houston and the East Coast.
  • Converting the start time of a national TV broadcast.
  • Planning travel between Texas and the East.

Avoiding time zone mistakes

  • Always say the date as well as the time: a late evening in one zone is already tomorrow in another.
  • Prefer city names (New York, Los Angeles) to abbreviations; EST and EDT are different, and many people write EST all year.
  • For international meetings, send the time in UTC or add a link to a converter so everyone sees their own time.

Private by design

The conversion uses your browser's own time zone database, so nothing you enter is sent anywhere.

More time zone converters

Frequently asked questions

How many hours is EST from CST?
EST is 1 hour ahead of CST all year.
Does daylight saving change the difference?
For this pair the difference stays the same all year.
What time is 9:00 AM CST in EST?
It is 10:00 AM in winter and 10:00 AM in summer.
Which zone is used for the source?
The converter uses the zone selected as the source, here Central Time (Chicago), and applies its daylight saving rules for the date you enter.
Is this converter free?
Yes. There is no sign-up and no limit, and it runs in your browser, so nothing you type is sent to a server.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. It works in any modern mobile browser, and the result updates as you type.

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