Israel and US Winter Time 2026: Transition Dates and Time Differences
Israel transitions to winter time on October 25, 2026, while the US shifts a week later on November 1. This creates a temporary one-week shift in time differences between the two nations.
Israel will transition to winter time in 2026 on the night between Saturday and Sunday, October 25, 2026. At 02:00, the clock hands will be turned back one hour, returning to 01:00. In the United States, however, the transition in most states will take place a week later.
Winter Time 2026 in the United States
In Israel, people are accustomed to the moment when winter officially arrives, with everyone turning their clocks back one hour. In the United States, this happens slightly later and not at the exact same moment across the entire country. In 2026, most of the United States will end daylight saving time on Sunday, November 1, exactly one week after Israel transitions to winter time.
According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), American daylight saving time in 2026 runs from March 8 to November 1. At 02:00 local time in each zone, the clocks will be turned back one hour to 01:00.
Time Zones Across the US
Unlike Israel, the United States spans multiple time zones. Therefore, even though the transition day is nearly identical nationwide, there is no single moment when all Americans shift their clocks together. The rule is simple: at 02:00 local time in each time zone, clocks return to 01:00.
From the perspective of Israeli time, the transition will effectively progress from east to time zones further west: in the Eastern Time Zone, home to New York and Washington, the shift will occur when it is roughly 08:00 in the morning in Israel; in the Central Time Zone, around 09:00 in Israel; in the Mountain Time Zone, around 10:00; and in the Pacific Time Zone, where California is located, around 11:00 AM Israeli time.
States Exempt from Winter Time
Not all of the United States participates in the time change. The US Department of Transportation, the federal agency overseeing time zones and daylight saving rules, dictates that Hawaii and most of Arizona do not observe daylight saving time at all. Consequently, their residents will not turn their clocks back on November 1.
An exception exists within Arizona: the lands of the Navajo Nation do observe daylight saving time and will therefore transition to standard time along with the rest of the participating regions in the United States.
Impact on Time Differences with Israel
Israel's transition on October 25 creates a one-week window—from October 25 to November 1—during which Israel will already be on winter time while most of the United States remains on daylight saving time.
The impact is felt immediately in phone calls, flights, and meeting coordination: the time difference between Israel and New York, which typically stands at seven hours during this period, will temporarily shrink to six hours. If it is 18:00 in Israel, it will be 12:00 noon in New York instead of 11:00.
On November 1, when Americans also turn their clocks back an hour, standard time gaps will resume: Israel will once again be seven hours ahead of New York, eight hours ahead of Chicago, nine hours ahead of Denver, and ten hours ahead of Los Angeles.
