In this guide:
About Daylight Saving Time⚓
Daylight Saving Time (DST) is the practice of setting the clocks forward 1 hour from standard time during the summer months and back again in autumn, to make better use of natural daylight. Remember, "Spring forward, fall back."
Learn more about daylight saving at timeanddate.com
When is Daylight Saving 2021?
| Location | DST Begins (+1 hour) |
DST Ends (-1 hour) |
| New Zealand | September 26 | April 4 |
| Most of Australia | October 3 | April 4 |
| Most of Africa & Asia | No DST | |
| Most of Europe | March 28 | October 31 |
| Most of the United States & Canada | March 14 | November 7 |
In Arizona or Hawaii? - Keep in mind Arizona, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa and many other locations do not observe daylight saving time. Check out timeanddate.com to see if your country observes DST and if they do, when it occurs.
GMT vs. UTC...what's the difference?
Not a big one — GMT stands for Greenwich Mean Time, while UTC stands for Coordinated Universal Time and there is not a time difference between the two at all.
Learn more about GMT and UTC here.
Are Appointments in Acuity Affected by Daylight Saving?⚓
Your scheduled appointments are safe! Already scheduled appointments will not move on the calendar when daylight saving occurs. The time adjustment only happens while appointments are being scheduled.
Acuity is a real pro with daylight saving, taking it into account when appointments are being booked. There is nothing for you to worry about or do when that time of the year comes around—simply continue scheduling your appointments as you normally would.
Click here to read more about time zones and scheduling appointments.
Take a look at some example scenarios below to get an idea of how daylight saving and time zones work:
Business and Client are in the Same Time Zone
Business Name: Bob's Nail Salon
Location: New York, NY- Eastern US time
Client Name: Stacey Stevens
Location: Washington, DC- Eastern US time
Stacey will be driving up to New York to get a manicure. She schedules an appointment on the Bob's Nail Salon scheduling page on October 19th for an appointment scheduled to occur on November 15th at 4:00pm.
Daylight Saving ends on November 5th in the U.S.
What time will the appointment be for Stacey and Bob's Nail Salon?
Because Stacey and Bob's Nail Salon are in the same time zone, they both observe and end daylight saving at the same time.
The appointment will be on November 15th at 4:00pm EST (Eastern Standard Time) for both Stacey and Bob's Nail Salon.
Client is in a Different Time Zone
Business Name: Yoga-R-Us
Location: Denver, CO— Mountain US time
Client Name: Jane Jetson
Location: San Francisco, CA — Pacific US time
Jane goes to schedule a phone consultation appointment with Yoga-R-Us. She schedules the appointment to occur on March 13th at 9:00am PDT. One day after Daylight Saving begins.
What time is the appointment for the business?
Yoga-R-Us is in Mountain Time, meaning they will also move their clocks forward when Jane does. Mountain Time is 1 hour ahead of Pacific time. Both Jane and Yoga-R-Us are in time zones which start Daylight Saving on March 12th.
Because of that, the time difference between Pacific time and Mountain time remains 1 hour apart. Jane's March 13th appointment at 9:00am PDT is March 13th at 10:00am MDT for the business.
Client's Time Zone Ends DST before the Business Time Zone Does
Business Name: We're Here For You LLC
Location: Dallas, TX — Central US time
Client Name: Sir Richard Worthington III
Location: London, England — British time
We're Here For You LLC offers international counseling sessions. In the UK, daylight saving ends on October 29th. In the US, daylight saving ends on November 5th.
Sir Richard books a virtual counseling appointment with We're Here For You LLC. He picks his own time zone (GMT 0:00 London) on the scheduling page and books the appointment for November 1st at 5:00pm.
What time is the appointment for Sir Richard and what time is it for We're Here for You LLC?
Sir Richard moved his clock back one hour when daylight saving ended in London on October 29th. That means on November 1st he is in British Standard Time. The appointment is on November 1st at 5:00pm BST(British Standard Time) for Sir Richard.
We're Here For You LLC has not changed their clocks back one hour and is still in daylight saving time. Meaning they are currently in Central Daylight Savings Time (CDT).
Typically London is 6 hours ahead of Dallas, but when London went back 1 hour (when their daylight saving ended) that makes London only 5 hours ahead of Dallas while the U.S. is still observing daylight saving for another week.
The November 1st appointment at 5:00pm BST is translated over to November 1st at 12:00pm CDT for the business.
Troubleshooting Tips ⚓
There are a few things you will want to check if you think something is not right with your scheduled appointments after a time change:
Is your business in the correct time zone?
Make sure you have set your correct business time zone. Head to My Account to see the business timezone you have set for yourself. Double check to be certain it's the correct one.
If you have multiple calendars and different time zones for each, check the time zone for each calendar in its calendar settings. Learn more about time zones for calendars here »
Did the client choose the correct time zone?
If you require clients to choose their own time zone when booking an appointment, you can check what time the scheduled appointment is at for your client.
Click on the appointment to view its details. In the "Time Zone" section is the client's time zone and the time of the appointment for them.
Note: Once the client's time zone is chosen it cannot be edited or changed. If you need to change the client time zone of an already scheduled appointment, you must cancel the appointment and schedule it again (in the correct time zone, of course).
Is the appointment booked at the wrong time?
No worries! If you made a mistake scheduling, you can reschedule the appointment to the correct time. Check out this help article to learn more about rescheduling appointments here. Use this time zone converter to help figure out what time it is for your clients if they are in a different time zone from you.
Does your time zone observe daylight saving?
Less than 40% of the world observes daylight saving. Make sure the time zone you and your client are in does! Use this handy time zone converter to figure out what time it is for your clients if they are in a different time zone from you.
Calendar sync not working?
If you are syncing Acuity with external calendars, make sure that the time zone in your calendar program matches the business time zone you have set in Acuity under My Account.