Paris, France Time Now
Time Zone
Quick Answer
Paris uses CET (UTC+1) in winter, CEST (UTC+2) in summer.
6 hours ahead of New York, 1 hour ahead of London.
Paris Time Zone — CET/CEST
Paris operates on Central European Time (CET, UTC+1) during winter and Central European Summer Time (CEST, UTC+2) during summer. All of metropolitan France uses a single time zone. Interestingly, despite being geographically close to the Greenwich Meridian, France uses CET rather than GMT — a historical decision dating back to WWII.
Paris vs London Time
Paris is always 1 hour ahead of London. Despite being at nearly the same longitude, France and the UK use different time zones. The Eurostar train from London to Paris takes about 2 hours 15 minutes, plus you “lose” an hour crossing the Channel due to the time zone difference. For business, Parisians have a full working day overlap with London.
France's 12 Time Zones
While metropolitan France uses CET/CEST, the French Republic spans 12 time zones when including overseas territories — more than any other country. These include French Polynesia (UTC-10), Martinique (UTC-4), Réunion (UTC+4), and New Caledonia (UTC+11). This tool covers metropolitan France only.