Currently on BST (UTC+1). Next clock change: Sunday 25 October 2026 at 02:00, when clocks go back to GMT (UTC+0).
BST, British Summer Time, is the UK's daylight saving time: UTC+1, one hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time. It applies from 01:00 GMT on the last Sunday of March until 02:00 BST on the last Sunday of October. For the rest of the year the UK is on GMT (UTC+0). The clock above shows the UK's actual time. Its label reads BST or GMT, depending on today's date.
When BST starts and ends
- Sunday 29 March 2026: at 01:00 clocks go forward to 02:00. GMT (UTC+0) becomes BST (UTC+1), and the hour in between is skipped.
- Sunday 25 October 2026: at 02:00 clocks go back to 01:00. BST (UTC+1) becomes GMT (UTC+0), and the hour from 01:00 happens twice.
- Sunday 28 March 2027: at 01:00 clocks go forward to 02:00. GMT (UTC+0) becomes BST (UTC+1), and the hour in between is skipped.
- Sunday 31 October 2027: at 02:00 clocks go back to 01:00. BST (UTC+1) becomes GMT (UTC+0), and the hour from 01:00 happens twice.
- Sunday 26 March 2028: at 01:00 clocks go forward to 02:00. GMT (UTC+0) becomes BST (UTC+1), and the hour in between is skipped.
- Sunday 29 October 2028: at 02:00 clocks go back to 01:00. BST (UTC+1) becomes GMT (UTC+0), and the hour from 01:00 happens twice.
These dates match the UK government's published list. The rule is set by the Summer Time Act 1972: the last Sunday in March and the last Sunday in October.
BST and Europe
The UK left the EU but still changes its clocks at the same instant as EU countries, 01:00 UTC. So London stays one hour behind Paris and Berlin all year, and level with Dublin and Lisbon.
BST and North America
The US and Canada change their clocks on different dates: the second Sunday of March and the first Sunday of November. For a few weeks each year, London is 4 hours ahead of New York instead of the usual 5. In 2026 that happens from 25 October to 1 November, and in 2027 from 14 to 28 March and from 31 October to 7 November. Our London and New York page lists each period.
Other meanings of BST
The same letters are also used for Bangladesh Standard Time (UTC+6). In time zone software, Bangladesh's clock is identified as Asia/Dhaka, which avoids the confusion. Historically, "BST" also stood for British Standard Time: from 1968 to 1971 the UK stayed on UTC+1 all year, as an experiment that was not continued.
Related: BST vs GMT · BST vs EST · current time in London