Europe · Central Europe · Sovereign state
Current time in Poland
A single time zone at UTC+02:00. Currently observing daylight saving time.
Thursday, October 15, 2026
About Poland's time
A single time zone.
Poland uses a single time zone, Central European Time, switching between CET (UTC+1) in winter and CEST (UTC+2) in summer. The whole country, which spans about 10° of longitude, runs on the same clock.
Next clock change
2026 Sunday · clocks fall back
Clocks fall back by one hour · next week.
Daylight saving schedule
Major cities
Cities of Poland.
History
How Poland keeps time.
In 1915, during World War I, German-occupied Warsaw switched from Warsaw Mean Time (UTC+1:24) to Central European Time. Around independence in 1918, Poland moved to Eastern European Time (UTC+2), then settled on Central European Time (UTC+1) in 1922. During World War II, occupied Poland followed German time, including summer time.
After liberation in 1944–45, Poland returned to CET under Soviet influence. Poland had used summer time in 1945–1949 and 1957–1964, and reintroduced it in 1977, aligning its DST schedule with Western European practices for convenience in trade and communications.
Poland follows the EU-wide daylight saving rules. In 2019 the European Parliament voted to end seasonal clock changes, but the proposal was never adopted by EU governments, so Poland still switches between CET and CEST.
Did you know?
Things about Poland's time.
Poland’s single time zone covers about 10° of longitude (from roughly 14°E to 24°E), so solar noon comes about 40 minutes earlier in the far east than in the far west.
Because Poland sits comfortably within the UTC+1 band, clock time matches solar time quite closely in central and western regions—unlike, say, Spain or western France, where solar noon is famously late. Poles’ daily rhythms (work, meals, TV) are largely in sync with the sun.
Poland keeps in step with most of central Europe, making calls to Germany, the Czech Republic, or Austria straightforward. Remote workers in Poland find it easy to overlap core business hours with offices from Paris to Berlin.
Convert
Poland to the world's clocks.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about Poland's time zone, daylight saving rules, and how to handle it in software. Can't find what you need? Email [email protected].
- Does Poland observe daylight saving time?
- Yes. Poland follows the EU schedule: clocks go forward one hour on the last Sunday in March (to CEST, UTC+2) and fall back on the last Sunday in October (to CET, UTC+1).
- How many time zones does Poland have?
- Poland has a single time zone, Central European Time. The entire country, from Gdańsk on the Baltic coast to Zakopane in the Tatra Mountains, runs on the same clock.
- What is the time difference between Poland and London?
- Poland is typically 1 hour ahead of London (UTC+1 vs. UTC+0) in winter and 2 hours ahead during summer when the UK is on BST and Poland is on CEST.
- Is Poland in the same time zone as Germany?
- Yes. Poland and Germany share the same time zone (CET/CEST), so there is no time difference between Warsaw and Berlin at any point in the year.
- How does Poland’s time zone affect travel within Europe?
- Poland is conveniently in sync with major hubs like Berlin, Amsterdam, and Stockholm, making scheduling flights, trains, or video calls across central Europe simple. Neighbors to the east, such as Lithuania and Ukraine, are one hour ahead.
- Will Poland stop changing clocks?
- The European Parliament voted in 2019 to end seasonal clock changes, but EU governments never adopted the proposal, so Poland still changes its clocks twice a year.
Source: IANA tzdb2026d · Reviewed
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Its default time zone, zone and city counts and DST summary, from one endpoint.
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