Current Time in Belfast, Northern Ireland
The live time in Belfast (County Antrim and County Down), with the GMT or BST status, the next clock change and sunrise and sunset through the year.
About time in Belfast
Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland. It uses UK time, the same as Great Britain, and because the Republic of Ireland uses Greenwich Mean Time in winter and Irish Standard Time in summer, clocks match on both sides of the border all year. Belfast is almost six degrees west of Greenwich, so the sun rises later than anywhere else on the UK mainland.
- The clocks match the Republic of Ireland all year.
- Belfast is among the westernmost UK cities, so sunrise is later.
- The Titanic Quarter is built on the former shipyard.
About 345,000 people live in Belfast. At 54.60 degrees north and 5.93 degrees west of Greenwich, true solar noon here falls about 24 minutes after clock noon. The clock itself always matches the rest of the UK.
Sunrise and sunset in Belfast through the year
Times for the 15th of each month in UK local time (GMT or BST). Calculated from the city's latitude and longitude.
| Month | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 08:37 | 16:29 | 7h 51m |
| February | 07:46 | 17:30 | 9h 45m |
| March | 06:39 | 18:26 | 11h 47m |
| April | 06:22 | 20:26 | 14h 04m |
| May | 05:18 | 21:22 | 16h 04m |
| June | 04:46 | 22:01 | 17h 15m |
| July | 05:06 | 21:51 | 16h 45m |
| August | 05:58 | 20:56 | 14h 58m |
| September | 06:55 | 19:41 | 12h 46m |
| October | 07:51 | 18:26 | 10h 35m |
| November | 07:53 | 16:22 | 8h 29m |
| December | 08:39 | 15:57 | 7h 18m |
Belfast time compared with the world
| City | Time now | Gap to the UK |
|---|---|---|
| New York | --:-- | |
| Los Angeles | --:-- | |
| Chicago | --:-- | |
| Toronto | --:-- | |
| Dubai | --:-- | |
| India (Mumbai) | --:-- | |
| Karachi | --:-- | |
| Singapore | --:-- | |
| Sydney | --:-- | |
| Lagos | --:-- | |
| Johannesburg | --:-- | |
| Paris | --:-- |
Time in nearby cities
Frequently asked questions
What time zone is Belfast in?
Belfast is in the UK time zone. It uses Greenwich Mean Time (GMT, UTC+0) in winter and British Summer Time (BST, UTC+1) in summer, the same as the rest of the UK.
When do the clocks change in Belfast?
The clocks go forward at 01:00 on the last Sunday of March and back at 02:00 on the last Sunday of October. In 2026 that is Sunday, 29 March 2026 and Sunday, 25 October 2026.
How much daylight does Belfast get in summer and winter?
Around 17h 17m at the June solstice and 7h 15m at the December solstice, based on its latitude of 54.6 degrees north.
Is Belfast on the same time as London?
Yes. All UK clocks show the same time. Because Belfast is 5.9 degrees west of Greenwich, solar noon here is about 24 minutes after clock noon (GMT), but the clocks do not differ.