Time Zone Meeting Planner
Compare time zones side by side, see when everyone is within working hours and pick the best meeting time in seconds.
Tap or click any column to choose a meeting time. Scroll sideways on small screens.
What Is a Time Zone Meeting Planner?
A time zone meeting planner is a free online tool that compares the local time in several cities at once and shows when people in different parts of the world are awake and available at the same moment. Instead of searching for each city clock or doing time zone math in your head, you add the places you care about and read the answer from a colour coded timeline.
Our time zone meeting planner runs directly in your browser. You pick a date, choose a reference time zone, add the cities of everyone invited and set normal working hours. The tool then converts every hour of the day for every city and highlights the hours when everybody is inside working hours. It is built for remote teams, freelancers, students, event hosts and anyone who needs to schedule a call across borders without confusion.
How to Use the Time Zone Meeting Planner
Finding a good meeting time takes less than a minute when you follow these steps:
- Choose the meeting date. The date matters because daylight saving time can change the gap between two cities during the year.
- Select a reference time zone. The 24 columns of the timeline show the hours of this time zone, usually your own or the host time zone.
- Add every city or time zone. Use the Add menu to include up to eight locations. Your own time zone is detected automatically.
- Set working hours. The default is 09:00 to 18:00. Change it if your team uses a different schedule.
- Read the colours. Green means working hours, amber means early morning or late evening, and grey means off hours or night time.
- Click a column to select a time. The Selected meeting time box shows the exact date and time in every city. Press Copy details and paste it into an email, chat message or calendar invite.
How the Best Meeting Time Is Found
The planner checks each hour of the day in your reference time zone. For every hour it converts the moment into local time for each city using the official IANA time zone database that is built into modern browsers. Because the conversion is done for the exact date you choose, daylight saving rules are applied automatically.
If an hour falls inside working hours in every city, it appears in the Everyone available row and in the Best time to meet box. When no hour works for everybody, which is common for teams that span Asia and the Americas, the tool gives each hour a simple score. A working hour counts as zero, an early or late hour counts as one and an off hour counts as three. The hours with the lowest total score are shown as the closest options, so you can choose the least inconvenient time.
Why Scheduling Across Time Zones Is Difficult
The world has more than 24 time zones. Some countries use half hour offsets, such as India at UTC+5:30, and a few use 45 minute offsets, such as Nepal at UTC+5:45. This makes simple whole hour calculations unreliable.
Daylight saving time adds another layer. Many countries in Europe and North America move their clocks forward in spring and back in autumn, but they do it on different dates. For a few weeks each year the time difference between two cities can be one hour different from normal. Many countries in Asia and Africa do not use daylight saving time at all, so the gap with them changes during the year as well.
Finally, the calendar date can differ between cities. A call that starts on Monday morning in Sydney may still be Sunday evening in New York. A time zone meeting planner shows these differences clearly so you do not send an invite for the wrong day.
Tips for Scheduling International Meetings
- Always write the time zone. Share the time with a city name or UTC offset, for example 14:00 London time or 14:00 UTC+0.
- Check the date, not just the hour. Use the planner for the exact meeting date, especially near daylight saving changes.
- Prefer shoulder hours to night hours. An early start or a late evening call is easier than a call in the middle of the night.
- Rotate the inconvenient slot. If one region always joins very early or very late, alternate the meeting time fairly between regions.
- Check local weekends and holidays. Some countries, including Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia, have a Friday and Saturday weekend, while many others use Saturday and Sunday.
- Share notes or a recording. People who cannot attend live can catch up without delaying decisions.
- Keep the meeting short. Shorter calls are easier to fit into overlapping working hours.
Who Can Use This Time Zone Meeting Planner?
- Remote and distributed teams that need a regular stand-up or planning call.
- Freelancers and agencies who work with clients in other countries.
- Recruiters and job seekers arranging interviews across regions.
- Teachers and students joining online classes, tutoring sessions or study groups.
- Webinar and event hosts who want a start time that suits most of their audience.
- Families and friends who live in different countries and want to find a good time to talk.
Common Time Zones and UTC Offsets
The table below lists typical offsets for popular cities. Rules can change, so always rely on the planner for the exact offset on your chosen date.
| City | Standard time | Daylight saving time |
|---|---|---|
| UTC | UTC+0 | Not used |
| London | UTC+0 | UTC+1 |
| Paris and Berlin | UTC+1 | UTC+2 |
| Dubai | UTC+4 | Not used |
| Kolkata | UTC+5:30 | Not used |
| Dhaka | UTC+6 | Not used |
| Singapore | UTC+8 | Not used |
| Tokyo | UTC+9 | Not used |
| Sydney | UTC+10 | UTC+11 |
| New York | UTC-5 | UTC-4 |
| Los Angeles | UTC-8 | UTC-7 |
Benefits of Using an Online Meeting Planner
Doing time zone conversions by hand is slow and easy to get wrong. A planner saves time, removes guesswork and makes meetings fairer for everyone. You see all cities side by side, you can compare several possible hours at once and you can copy a clear summary to share with your team. The tool is free, needs no registration and works on phones, tablets and computers, so you can plan a meeting wherever you are.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the time zone meeting planner free to use?
Yes. The planner is completely free, with no sign-up and no usage limits.
How do I find a meeting time that works for everyone?
Add every city, set the working hours and look at the Everyone available row and the Best time to meet box. Hours marked with a green tick are inside working hours for all selected cities.
Does the tool handle daylight saving time?
Yes. All conversions are calculated for the exact date you select using the time zone database in your browser, so daylight saving changes are applied automatically.
How many cities can I compare at once?
You can compare up to eight cities or time zones at the same time.
What if there is no overlap in working hours?
The planner shows the closest options with the lowest inconvenience score. You can also choose a different reference date, change the working hours or rotate the meeting time between regions.
Can I change the working hours?
Yes. Use the Work starts and Work ends menus to match your own schedule. The colours and best times update immediately.
Can I use the 12 hour clock?
Yes. Switch between the 24 hour and 12 hour formats with the Time format buttons above the timeline.
Does the planner store my data?
The tool runs in your browser. Your chosen cities and preferences are saved only on your own device so they are ready next time. Nothing you select is sent to our servers.
Why does the time on my calendar look different?
Your calendar may use a different time zone setting or a different daylight saving date. Always confirm the date, the time and the time zone name when you send an invite.
Does it work on mobile phones?
Yes. The page is fully responsive. On small screens you can scroll the timeline sideways and tap any column to select a time.