Convert EST to ACST
ACST is 14 hours 30 minutes ahead of EST. EST is UTC−5 and ACST is UTC+9:30.
Right now: EST · ACST
Best time to schedule a meeting
Standard 9–5 working hours do not overlap at all between EST and ACST. Someone has to take an early or late call — or use asynchronous communication instead.
| EST | ACST | Suitable? |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 AM | 11:30 PM | outside 9–5 |
| 10:00 AM | 12:30 AM (next day) | outside 9–5 |
| 11:00 AM | 1:30 AM (next day) | outside 9–5 |
| 12:00 PM | 2:30 AM (next day) | outside 9–5 |
| 1:00 PM | 3:30 AM (next day) | outside 9–5 |
| 2:00 PM | 4:30 AM (next day) | outside 9–5 |
| 3:00 PM | 5:30 AM (next day) | outside 9–5 |
| 4:00 PM | 6:30 AM (next day) | outside 9–5 |
| 5:00 PM | 7:30 AM (next day) | outside 9–5 |
EST to ACST conversion table
| EST | ACST |
|---|---|
| 12:00 AM | 2:30 PM |
| 1:00 AM | 3:30 PM |
| 2:00 AM | 4:30 PM |
| 3:00 AM | 5:30 PM |
| 4:00 AM | 6:30 PM |
| 5:00 AM | 7:30 PM |
| 6:00 AM | 8:30 PM |
| 7:00 AM | 9:30 PM |
| 8:00 AM | 10:30 PM |
| 9:00 AM | 11:30 PM |
| 10:00 AM | 12:30 AM (next day) |
| 11:00 AM | 1:30 AM (next day) |
| 12:00 PM | 2:30 AM (next day) |
| 1:00 PM | 3:30 AM (next day) |
| 2:00 PM | 4:30 AM (next day) |
| 3:00 PM | 5:30 AM (next day) |
| 4:00 PM | 6:30 AM (next day) |
| 5:00 PM | 7:30 AM (next day) |
| 6:00 PM | 8:30 AM (next day) |
| 7:00 PM | 9:30 AM (next day) |
| 8:00 PM | 10:30 AM (next day) |
| 9:00 PM | 11:30 AM (next day) |
| 10:00 PM | 12:30 PM (next day) |
| 11:00 PM | 1:30 PM (next day) |
About EST
Eastern Standard Time (EST) is UTC−5. It is used in New York, Toronto, Miami and Atlanta in winter.
Eastern Standard Time is UTC−5 and applies in New York, Toronto, Miami and Atlanta only from November to March. For the other eight months those cities are on EDT, UTC−4. Americans routinely write "EST" year-round to mean "east coast time", so a date given as EST in July is usually meant as EDT and is an hour earlier than written — one of the most common scheduling errors there is. Note also that Panama and Jamaica are on UTC−5 all year and never switch.
About ACST
Australian Central Standard Time (ACST) is UTC+9:30. It is used in Adelaide and Darwin in winter.
Australian Central Standard Time is UTC+9:30, half an hour behind the eastern states rather than a whole hour, which surprises people every time. South Australia moves to daylight saving in October and the Northern Territory does not, so Adelaide and Darwin share this offset for half the year and are an hour apart for the other half.
Does this gap change with the seasons?
This gap is seasonal. The abbreviations themselves are fixed offsets, but the region on EST switches to EDT (UTC−4) from March to November. So the 14.5-hour figure on this page is correct for the part of the year when both places are actually on these abbreviations, and changes by an hour outside it.
ACST does not shift, so the whole change comes from one side. A recurring meeting fixed in ACST will appear to move by an hour for everyone on the other side, twice a year, without anyone changing anything.
This is the reason scheduling systems store an IANA zone such as Region/City rather than an offset or an abbreviation: the zone knows its own rules and the offset does not.
Frequently asked questions
What time is 9:00 AM EST in ACST?
9:00 AM EST is 11:30 PM ACST.
Is ACST ahead of EST?
ACST is 14 hours 30 minutes ahead of EST.
Which time zone does this use?
EST is UTC−5 and ACST is UTC+9:30. Both abbreviations denote a single fixed offset, so this conversion never shifts with daylight saving — what changes is which abbreviation a place is using at the time.