Time zone converter: USA to India
India runs on a single national time zone, but the United States has four mainland zones, all of which observe daylight saving. The US-India offset therefore depends entirely on which US city you're starting from and whether the US is currently on DST. This guide gives you the exact numbers and the most useful conversions.
The US time zones
- Eastern Time (ET) — UTC−5 in winter (EST), UTC−4 in summer (EDT). New York, Atlanta, Miami, Toronto.
- Central Time (CT) — UTC−6 / UTC−5. Chicago, Dallas, Houston.
- Mountain Time (MT) — UTC−7 / UTC−6. Denver, Salt Lake City. Most of Arizona stays on MST year-round.
- Pacific Time (PT) — UTC−8 / UTC−7. Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver.
The India side
India Standard Time (IST) sits at UTC+5:30 and never changes. The half-hour offset is unusual but constant. Major Indian cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata all share IST.
Offsets at a glance
| US city | vs IST in summer (DST) | vs IST in winter |
|---|---|---|
| New York (ET) | 9.5 h behind | 10.5 h behind |
| Chicago (CT) | 10.5 h behind | 11.5 h behind |
| Denver (MT) | 11.5 h behind | 12.5 h behind |
| Los Angeles (PT) | 12.5 h behind | 13.5 h behind |
| Phoenix (MST, no DST) | 12.5 h behind | 12.5 h behind |
New York to India
| New York (EST / EDT) | India (IST) | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| 07:00 | 17:30 / 16:30 | End of India working day |
| 09:00 | 19:30 / 18:30 | Best mutual window (India evening) |
| 11:00 | 21:30 / 20:30 | Late evening for India |
| 15:00 | 01:30 / 00:30 (next day) | Avoid |
| 20:00 | 06:30 / 05:30 (next day) | Edge of India morning |
Los Angeles to India
| Los Angeles (PST / PDT) | India (IST) | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| 07:00 | 20:30 / 19:30 | India evening — best window |
| 09:00 | 22:30 / 21:30 | India late evening |
| 11:00 | 00:30 (next day) / 23:30 | Avoid |
| 17:00 | 06:30 (next day) / 05:30 | Edge of India morning |
| 19:00 | 08:30 (next day) / 07:30 | India morning, LA evening |
Notes for distributed teams
US-India is one of the most common offshore arrangements in software, support and back-office work. The offset is large enough that you cannot share a full working day, but small enough that one short live overlap per day is always reachable. The two patterns most teams settle on:
- India 19:00–21:00 IST ↔ US East 09:00–11:00 ET. Lets the US side start fresh and the Indian side join briefly from home in the evening.
- India 09:00 IST ↔ US East 23:30 ET (previous day). Almost never used live; this is the gap that asynchronous handover bridges.
FAQ
How many hours ahead of New York is India?
9.5 hours in US summer (EDT) and 10.5 hours in US winter (EST). India is at UTC+5:30 year-round.
Why does India use a half-hour offset?
India spans 30 degrees of longitude; UTC+5:30 was chosen as a compromise that gave reasonable solar time across both eastern and western India under a single national clock.
What's the best meeting time for a US-India team?
India 19:30 IST ↔ US East 09:00–10:00 ET. Workable for years.