Time zone · Americas
MST
Mountain Standard Time
Mountain Standard Time (MST) stretches across ten zones in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, but don’t let the name fool you—most of them are currently running an hour ahead, on daylight saving time (MDT). Only a handful of places like Creston, Dawson Creek, and Fort Nelson skip the spring-forward routine, keeping the clock steady at UTC-07:00 year-round.
Friday, June 5, 2026
Current offset
UTC-07:00
Standard · MST
Daylight saving
Not observed
Year-round standard time
IANA zones
4
None observe daylight saving
DST offset
—
No summer variant
About MST
A fixed, year-round offset.
Mountain Standard Time (MST) stretches across ten zones in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, but don’t let the name fool you—most of them are currently running an hour ahead, on daylight saving time (MDT). Only a handful of places like Creston, Dawson Creek, and Fort Nelson skip the spring-forward routine, keeping the clock steady at UTC-07:00 year-round.
IANA zones · the technical identifiers
The 4 zones that resolve to MST.
For software, always store the IANA identifier — never the abbreviation alone. The database keeps these zones distinct because their rules can, and historically did, diverge.
Cities currently on MST
The same hour, city by city.
2 cities · all UTC-07:00
Where MST is used
2 countries.
Same offset · UTC-07:00
Other zones at UTC-07:00 right now.
These named zones share MST's offset today. When daylight saving rules differ, they drift apart for part of the year.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about MST, daylight saving, and how to handle it in software. Can't find what you need? Email [email protected].
- Why do most MST zones jump the gun on daylight saving?
- Six of the ten member zones—like Denver, Boise, and Ciudad Juárez—follow the spring-forward/fall-back schedule, so for about eight months a year, the region is actually on MDT, not MST.
- Are there any MST zones that never change their clocks?
- Yes, Creston, Dawson Creek, and Fort Nelson in Canada stay on standard time all year, avoiding the biannual time shuffle entirely.
- Does Mexico follow the same DST rules as the U.S. and Canada in this region?
- Mostly—but not perfectly. Ciudad Juárez aligns with U.S. DST dates, yet other Mexican zones outside MST may follow different national schedules, so it’s smart to double-check.
- How do I avoid confusion when scheduling across MST zones?
- Use city-based labels (e.g., America/Denver vs. America/Creston) and always check whether DST is active; small towns can be an hour apart even within the same region.
- What’s the time difference between Boise and Edmonton right now?
- Zero. Both are currently on UTC-06:00 (MDT), even though they’re in different countries and have different standard-time offsets during the winter.
- Is Mountain Time the same everywhere in North America?
- No. Unlike Eastern or Central time, Mountain’s patchwork of DST rules and local exceptions—especially in British Columbia and northern border areas—makes it a bit more unpredictable.
- When does MST officially “start” again after daylight saving ends?
- In most DST-observing zones, you’ll see the clock roll back on the first Sunday of November at 2 a.m. local time, flipping from UTC-06:00 (MDT) to UTC-07:00 (MST).
- Can two cities in MST be an hour apart?
- Right now, only the three holdout zones (Creston, Dawson Creek, Fort Nelson) are on UTC-07:00, while the other seven are on UTC-06:00—so yes, a one-hour gap exists within the same region.
Free · Developer API
Time, as JSON.
Every IANA time zone with live offsets, DST status, and the countries and cities that use them — clean, dependable JSON. Sign up free and get an API key in seconds.
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