Time difference between Toronto and Madrid

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 Toronto goes forward on the second Sunday in March and back on the first Sunday in November and Madrid goes forward on the last Sunday in March and back on the last Sunday in October.

Both change their clocks and both are in the northern hemisphere, but not on the same weekend — Toronto goes forward on the second Sunday in March and Madrid on the last Sunday in March. For the days in between, the gap is neither party's expected figure, and a standing meeting silently moves by an hour. That mismatch is a common cause of a missed international call.

About Toronto and Madrid

Toronto keeps the same clock as New York and changes on the same dates, so the two cities are never apart. Canada follows the US daylight-saving schedule rather than the European one, which is why Toronto and London drift for the same weeks New York and London do.

Spain is on Central European Time and sits west of Britain — Madrid is at the same longitude as Cardiff and keeps clocks an hour ahead of it. Franco moved the country onto German time in 1940 and it stayed, which is the reason Spanish dinner is at ten.

What 6 hours actually costs you

The window is 2 hours wide and that is all there is. 9:00 AM–11:00 AM in Toronto is 3:00 PM–5:00 PM in Madrid, and anything outside it puts somebody at their desk when they are not meant to be. A pair this tight is worth putting in a calendar rather than agreeing each time.

When they can both be at their desks

Nine-to-five in both cities overlaps for 2 hours — 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM in Toronto, the same moment as 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM in Madrid.

Toronto

Madrid

00061218

How far apart Toronto and Madrid are

The shortest path over the Earth's surface between the two is 6,036 km (3,751 miles). Flown along that line, an airliner at cruising speed takes roughly 7 hours 45 minutes in the air — actual routings add to it, and whether a nonstop service exists depends on the airlines rather than the distance.

Over that distance you cross 6 hours of clock, which is where jet lag comes from: the body shifts by about an hour a day, so 6 hours takes most people 6 days or so to absorb. Flying east to Madrid is the harder direction — you lose the hours and have to fall asleep earlier than your body wants.

Toronto to Madrid, hour by hour

On the usual gap of 6 hours.

Frequently asked questions