Texas spans a large geographic area and, somewhat unusually for a single US state, uses two different time zones. The vast majority of Texas — including Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, and nearly every major city — observes the Central Time Zone. However, El Paso and Hudspeth counties in far west Texas observe Mountain Time.
Central Time Zone: Where Most of Texas Falls
The Central Time Zone covers 252 of Texas’s 254 counties. Cities observing Central Time include Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Austin, Lubbock, Amarillo, Corpus Christi, Midland, Odessa, Waco, Tyler, Beaumont, Laredo, McAllen, and Brownsville.
Texas switches between: Central Daylight Time (CDT) — UTC-5 — from March 8 through November 1, 2026; and Central Standard Time (CST) — UTC-6 — from November 1, 2026 through March 8, 2027. The IANA time zone identifier is America/Chicago.
Mountain Time Zone: El Paso and Hudspeth Counties
El Paso County and Hudspeth County observe Mountain Time (IANA: America/Denver). El Paso switches between Mountain Daylight Time (MDT, UTC-6) from March through November and Mountain Standard Time (MST, UTC-7) from November through March.
Consequently, El Paso is always one hour behind Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Austin. When it is noon in Dallas, it is 11 a.m. in El Paso.
Texas Time Zone Compared to Other US Cities
During Central Daylight Time (summer): Texas is 1 hour behind New York (EDT), same time as Chicago (CDT), 1 hour ahead of Denver (MDT), 2 hours ahead of Los Angeles (PDT), 6 hours behind London (BST), and the same time as Mexico City (CDT).
Texas Daylight Saving Time 2026 Schedule
DST start (spring forward): Sunday, March 8, 2026, at 2:00 a.m. — clocks advanced from CST (UTC-6) to CDT (UTC-5). DST end (fall back): Sunday, November 1, 2026, at 2:00 a.m. — clocks fall back from CDT (UTC-5) to CST (UTC-6).
Arizona (except the Navajo Nation) does not observe DST, which means that from March through November, Arizona is on the same time as Texas despite being in the Mountain Time zone.
Related guides: What time is it in Texas | Texas area codes | Dallas Texas ZIP codes
Frequently Asked Questions
What time zone is Texas in?
Most of Texas is in the Central Time Zone (CDT in summer, CST in winter). El Paso and Hudspeth counties in far west Texas use Mountain Time, which is one hour behind Central Time.
Is Texas in CST or CDT right now in 2026?
As of June 2026, Texas is observing Central Daylight Time (CDT), which is UTC-5. CDT runs from March 8 through November 1, 2026.
Is El Paso Texas in the same time zone as the rest of Texas?
No. El Paso County and Hudspeth County use Mountain Time (MDT in summer, MST in winter), one hour behind the rest of Texas.
Does Texas observe daylight saving time?
Yes. Texas clocks sprang forward on March 8, 2026, and will fall back on November 1, 2026.
What is the time difference between Texas and New York?
Texas (Central Time) is one hour behind New York (Eastern Time) at all times of year.
