Current time in Rome

Ora solare and ora legale

Rome uses Central European Time (CET, UTC+1) in winter and Central European Summer Time (CEST, UTC+2) in summer. Italians have their own names for the two: standard time is the ora solare, “solar time”, and summer time is the ora legale, “legal time”. Vatican City and San Marino keep the same clock, as do Paris, Berlin and Madrid. London is one hour behind all year.

Summer time every year since 1966

Clocks go forward at 02:00 on the last Sunday of March and back at 03:00 on the last Sunday of October. Italy first tried summer time in 1916 and used it on and off through both world wars; it has applied it every year without interruption since 1966. Proposals to keep the ora legale all year are raised regularly, with the argument that lighter evenings reduce electricity use, but Italy follows the common European dates.

When the Italian day began at sunset

For centuries Italians counted the hours from sunset, a system known as Italian hours, and public clocks had to be reset as the seasons moved. Some Roman clock faces still show only six hours, including the one on the Quirinal Palace. French-style hours counted from midnight took over around 1800. Railways later ran on Rome mean time, and on 1 November 1893 Italy adopted Central European Time.

Rome: time zone at a glance

Time zone

Europe/Rome

Standard time

UTC+1

Daylight saving time

UTC+2

Clock changes in 2026

Sunday, March 29, 2026: forward 1 hour

Sunday, October 25, 2026: back 1 hour

Clock changes in 2027

Sunday, March 28, 2027: forward 1 hour

Sunday, October 31, 2027: back 1 hour

Dates reflect the rules in force when this page was last updated. Governments can change them at short notice.

Plan a meeting in Rome

Use the actual meeting date. Seasonal clock changes can alter the time difference.

How accurate is this clock?

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