Time difference between Tokyo and Melbourne

The gap is not the same all year

Every converter gives one number for this pair. That number is right for most of the year and wrong for part of it, because Tokyo does not change its clocks and Melbourne goes forward on the first Sunday in October and back on the first Sunday in April.

Tokyo stays put all year while Melbourne moves, so the gap changes twice a year from Melbourne's side alone. A recurring meeting set in Tokyo's calendar will drift by an hour without anyone touching it.

About Tokyo and Melbourne

Japan is UTC+9 with no daylight saving anywhere, and has not had it since the occupation ended in 1952. The whole country runs one zone and the business day starts early, so the useful overlap with Europe is Japan's late afternoon.

Melbourne keeps the same clock as Sydney, UTC+10 in winter and UTC+11 in summer, and changes on the same dates. The pair are the reason "Australian Eastern Time" needs the Standard or Daylight qualifier to mean anything between October and April.

What 1 hour actually costs you

This is an easy pair. 7 hours of the working day are shared, which is enough for a standing meeting at a time neither side has to think about. 9:00 AM–4:00 PM in Tokyo lands inside office hours at both ends.

When they can both be at their desks

Nine-to-five in both cities overlaps for 7 hours — 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM in Tokyo, the same moment as 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM in Melbourne.

Tokyo

Melbourne

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How far apart Tokyo and Melbourne are

The shortest path over the Earth's surface between the two is 8,190 km (5,089 miles). Flown along that line, an airliner at cruising speed takes roughly 10 hours 20 minutes in the air — actual routings add to it, and whether a nonstop service exists depends on the airlines rather than the distance.

A gap of 1 hour is small enough that most people adjust within a day or two, and short enough that it rarely disrupts a trip.

Tokyo to Melbourne, hour by hour

On the usual gap of 1 hour.

Frequently asked questions