World Time Zone Map — Compare Time Zones Across Cities
World clock map + time zone meeting planner. Pin cities, compare local times and UTC offsets, and find the best overlap window for cross-timezone calls. Free, no signup.
How to Use the Time Zone Map
This tool combines an interactive world map with a coupled timeline so you can read time zones the way they actually exist — as geographic regions, not abstract offsets. Here's how to get the most out of it.
Pin the cities you care about
Click anywhere on the map to add a location, or use the search box to find a city by name. You can pin up to 10 cities at a time. Each pin shows the current local time and time zone abbreviation. Your own time zone is added automatically when you first open the page.
Compare times on the timeline
Below the map, every pinned city has its own row on the 24-hour timeline. Hours are color-coded: green for working hours, yellow for awake hours, gray for sleep hours. Drag the vertical cursor to see how the world looks at any other moment — every clock and the day/night line update in real time.
Find the best meeting time
The Best Overlap band at the bottom of the timeline highlights hours when every pinned city is simultaneously in working hours. If no perfect overlap exists, it shows the next-best hours where everyone is at least awake.
Interactive Map Features
Live Day/Night Terminator
A real-time shadow shows where it's currently night on Earth, calculated from the actual position of the sun. When you scrub the timeline, the shadow moves with it — useful for understanding what "9 AM in New York" looks like everywhere else.
Time Zone Boundary Overlay
Toggle the boundary layer to see the IANA time zone regions colored on the map. Hover any region to read its IANA name, current UTC offset, and DST status. This is especially useful for countries with multiple time zones, like the United States, Russia, or Australia.
One-Click City Pinning
Click anywhere on the map and we'll detect the time zone for that exact point — no need to search. This works well for remote locations that don't have a famous city name attached.
Common Use Cases
Time Zone Meeting Planner — Schedule Across Time Zones
If your team spans three or more time zones, mental math breaks down quickly. Pin every team member's city, compare their UTC offsets on the timeline, look at the Best Overlap band, and pick a time that's working hours for everyone. Share the link so everyone sees the exact same world clock view.
Coordinating With International Clients
When you're working with clients in Mumbai, London, and São Paulo simultaneously, the timeline view shows you at a glance which of them are currently online and which would be at home asleep if you called.
Planning Travel and Jet Lag
Pin your departure city and your destination. Drag the timeline cursor to your flight arrival time to see what time of day it will be when you land. The day/night shading shows whether you should expect daylight on arrival.
Understanding Global Events
When a product launch, sports broadcast, or news event is scheduled for "9 AM UTC," pin the cities of your audience and see immediately when each will tune in.
Design & Data
Map vs Timeline — Why Both?
Most time zone tools pick one. Pure timeline tools like everytimezone.com or worldtimebuddy.com are great for fast hour-by-hour comparison but lose all geographic context — you can't see why Sydney and Tokyo are close, or where the International Date Line falls. Map-only tools like the legacy world time zone map show geography but make comparing specific hours awkward. The map answers spatial questions ("how does the world look right now?"), the timeline answers temporal ones ("when does our window of overlap happen?"). Coupling them with a draggable cursor means changing one updates the other, so you never lose context.
Time Zone Data Accuracy
All conversions use the IANA Time Zone Database via the browser's built-in Intl.DateTimeFormat API. This is the same source that powers modern operating systems and accounts for daylight saving time transitions, historical time zone changes, and country-specific irregularities. When DST is active, the time zone abbreviation in each pin updates accordingly (for example, EST becomes EDT from March to November in the US). The day/night terminator is computed from the sun's astronomical position using standard solar geometry — the same calculations used by NOAA. Time zone boundary shapes come from the open-source timezone-boundary-builder project, which is maintained from official government sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this tool free?
Yes — completely free, no signup, no ads. Use it as a world clock map, a time zone converter, or a meeting planner across time zones, all at no cost.
How many cities can I compare?
Up to 10 pinned cities at once. Beyond that the timeline becomes hard to read; if you need more, share two separate links.
Does it account for daylight saving time (DST)?
Yes. All conversions use the IANA Time Zone Database, which handles every DST transition automatically — including countries that have abolished DST in recent years. UTC offsets shown in each city card update the moment a DST change happens.
Can I share my view with someone?
Yes. Click Share to copy a link that encodes your pinned cities and settings — a ready-made time zone meeting planner link your teammates can open to see the exact same world clock view.
Can I export an image?
Yes. Click Export PNG to download a snapshot of the map with all your pins and times, sized for either standard sharing or social media.
How do I add a city to the map?
Three ways: click anywhere on the map and confirm the detected time zone; use the Add City button to search by city name; or type coordinates directly. Your own time zone is added automatically on your first visit.
What does the Best Overlap band mean?
The green Best Overlap band on the timeline marks hours when every pinned city is simultaneously within working hours (default 09:00–18:00) — this is your ideal meeting window for cross-timezone scheduling. The yellow OK band shows hours where everyone is at least awake. If there is no green band, schedule in yellow. You can adjust the working-hours window using the clock icon above the timeline.
Does it work on mobile?
Yes — the tool is fully responsive. On smaller screens the city cards scroll horizontally above the map, and the timeline scrolls horizontally as well. Pinch-to-zoom works on the map.