Last updated: Oct. 18, 2026. Clock-change dates checked against NIST; game times checked against the Detroit Lions’ official schedule.
What time zone is Detroit in? Detroit is in the Eastern Time Zone. Right now the city is on Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), which is UTC-4. At 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026, clocks fall back one hour, and Detroit switches to Eastern Standard Time (EST), UTC-5, until daylight saving time returns on March 14, 2027.
That is the short answer. The longer one explains why Detroit keeps New York time rather than Chicago time, which corner of Michigan does not, and how to turn a Lions kickoff listed in ET into the right time wherever you are watching.
Jump to: Eastern or Central? · When clocks change · Michigan’s Central time counties · History · Lions kickoff converter · Conversion rules · FAQ
Is Detroit on Eastern or Central time?
Detroit is on Eastern time, the same as New York, Washington, D.C., and Toronto. It is not on Central Time, even though Chicago is just a few hours’ drive west. When it is noon in Detroit, it is 11 a.m. in Chicago.
The time zone has two names depending on the season:
- Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), UTC-4: from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November.
- Eastern Standard Time (EST), UTC-5: the rest of the year.
Many schedules simply say “ET,” which covers both. If you see a Detroit event listed at “7 p.m. ET,” that is 7 p.m. on Detroit clocks no matter the season. Windsor, Ontario, directly across the Detroit River, keeps the same clock time as Detroit, so a trip through the tunnel or over the Ambassador Bridge does not change your watch.
When do the clocks change in Detroit?
Detroit follows the federal daylight saving time schedule. According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), daylight saving time begins at 2 a.m. local time on the second Sunday in March and ends at 2 a.m. local time on the first Sunday in November.
| Change | Date | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| DST began | Sunday, March 8, 2026 | Clocks jumped from 2 a.m. to 3 a.m. |
| DST ends | Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026 | Clocks fall back from 2 a.m. to 1 a.m. |
| DST begins again | Sunday, March 14, 2027 | Clocks spring forward from 2 a.m. to 3 a.m. |
How to get ready for the Nov. 1 time change
- Saturday, Oct. 31, before bed: set oven, microwave, car and wall clocks back one hour. Phones and computers update on their own.
- Check Sunday plans: anything scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 1, including the 1 p.m. Lions kickoff, runs on the new standard-time clock.
- Recheck calls with other regions: Arizona and Hawaii do not change clocks, so your gap with them shifts by an hour.
- Expect earlier sunsets: evenings get dark about an hour earlier, so plan after-work walks and errands accordingly.
Is daylight saving time becoming permanent?
Not yet. The U.S. House passed the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent, on July 14, 2026. The bill went to a Senate committee and, as of mid-October 2026, had not become law, so the Nov. 1 change is still happening. If Congress ever passes it, this page will be updated.
Which parts of Michigan are on Central Time?
Almost all of Michigan uses Eastern time. The exception is four Upper Peninsula counties along the Wisconsin border:
- Gogebic County (Ironwood)
- Iron County (Iron River)
- Dickinson County (Iron Mountain)
- Menominee County (Menominee)
These counties keep Central Time, one hour behind Detroit. If you drive from the Lower Peninsula to Iron Mountain, your phone will drop an hour when you cross the county line. The rest of the U.P., including Marquette, Sault Ste. Marie and the Mackinac Bridge area, stays on Eastern time.
Why Detroit switched from Central to Eastern time
Detroit’s clock has a surprisingly messy history. Before standard time zones, the city ran on local “sun time,” set by the sun’s position over Detroit. When railroads introduced standard zones in 1883, Detroit was slow to follow. Michigan’s legislature put the state on Central Time in 1885, but many Detroiters kept using local time. Henry Ford, a lifelong watch tinkerer, reportedly built a watch with two dials so he could read both standard time and Detroit time.
Central Time became Detroit’s official time in 1905. It did not last. Residents who wanted more evening daylight pushed to join New York’s zone, and Detroit moved to Eastern time in 1915. Most of the rest of Michigan followed by 1931, leaving only the four western U.P. counties on Central Time.
Geography explains why the debate happened at all. Detroit sits near the western edge of the Eastern zone, so its sunrises and sunsets run later than New York’s. That is why Detroit’s summer sunsets come so late in the evening. For more on the city’s identity and history, see what Detroit is known for.
Lions kickoff times converted to your time zone
The Lions, like every Detroit team, list game times in Eastern time. Use this table to convert the rest of the 2026 regular season. Times come from the official Detroit Lions schedule as of Oct. 18, 2026; flex scheduling can still move later games.
| Date | Game | ET (Detroit) | CT | MT | PT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun., Oct. 25 | vs. Packers | 4:25 p.m. | 3:25 p.m. | 2:25 p.m. | 1:25 p.m. |
| Sun., Nov. 1 | vs. Vikings | 1 p.m. | Noon | 11 a.m. | 10 a.m. |
| Sun., Nov. 8 | at Dolphins | 1 p.m. | Noon | 11 a.m. | 10 a.m. |
| Sun., Nov. 15 | vs. Patriots (Munich) | 9:30 a.m. | 8:30 a.m. | 7:30 a.m. | 6:30 a.m. |
| Sun., Nov. 22 | vs. Buccaneers | 1 p.m. | Noon | 11 a.m. | 10 a.m. |
| Thu., Nov. 26 | vs. Bears (Thanksgiving) | 1 p.m. | Noon | 11 a.m. | 10 a.m. |
| Sun., Dec. 6 | at Falcons | 1 p.m. | Noon | 11 a.m. | 10 a.m. |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | vs. Titans | 1 p.m. | Noon | 11 a.m. | 10 a.m. |
| Sun., Dec. 20 | at Vikings | 8:20 p.m. | 7:20 p.m. | 6:20 p.m. | 5:20 p.m. |
| Mon., Dec. 28 | vs. Giants | 8:15 p.m. | 7:15 p.m. | 6:15 p.m. | 5:15 p.m. |
| Sun., Jan. 3 | at Bears | 4:25 p.m. | 3:25 p.m. | 2:25 p.m. | 1:25 p.m. |
Two dates need extra attention:
- Nov. 1 vs. Vikings: clocks fall back early that morning. Kickoff is 1 p.m. on the new, standard-time clock, so no adjustment is needed once your clocks are set.
- Nov. 15 in Munich: kickoff is 3:30 p.m. local time in Germany, which is 9:30 a.m. in Detroit. Set an alarm; this is the earliest Lions kickoff of the season.
As of Oct. 18, the Week 18 game at Green Bay does not have a date or time. For channels and streaming options, see our guides to the full Lions schedule and how to watch the Lions. Pistons fans can find tip-off times in our Pistons schedule.
Quick rules for converting Detroit time
- Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis: subtract one hour.
- Denver: subtract two hours.
- Los Angeles, Seattle: subtract three hours.
- Phoenix: Arizona does not use daylight saving time, so subtract three hours while Detroit is on daylight time and two hours from Nov. 1 until March 14, 2027.
- London: usually add five hours. From Oct. 25 to Oct. 31, 2026, add only four, because Europe changes its clocks one week before the U.S.
Frequently asked questions
What time is it in Detroit right now?
Detroit is on Eastern time. Until 2 a.m. on Nov. 1, 2026, that means EDT (UTC-4); after that, EST (UTC-5). When it is noon in New York, it is noon in Detroit.
Is Detroit the same time as New York?
Yes. Detroit and New York share the Eastern Time Zone and change their clocks on the same dates, so they always show the same time.
Is Detroit on Central Time?
No. Detroit has used Eastern Time since 1915. It was on Central Time for about a decade before that, which is why the question still comes up. Chicago, a few hours’ drive west, is on Central Time and one hour behind.
Is all of Michigan in the same time zone?
No. Gogebic, Iron, Dickinson, and Menominee counties in the western Upper Peninsula use Central Time. The rest of the state, including Detroit, Lansing, and Grand Rapids, uses Eastern Time.
Does Michigan observe daylight saving time?
Yes. Michigan follows the federal schedule. In 2026, clocks fall back at 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1, and spring forward again on Sunday, March 14, 2027.
The bottom line
Detroit runs on Eastern time, matching New York rather than Chicago, and it has since 1915. The next change to watch is 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026, when the city drops from EDT to EST. If you follow the Lions from another time zone, bookmark the converter above, and remember that the Nov. 15 Munich game starts at 9:30 a.m. Detroit time.
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