What is the time difference between Chicago and Denver?

Denver is 1 hour behind Chicago. That figure is current — it changes by an hour when either city starts or ends daylight saving, and the exact dates are listed above.

When is the best time to call Denver from Chicago?

Between 10:00–18:00 in Chicago, which is 09:00–17:00 in Denver. That is the only stretch where both cities are inside a 09:00–18:00 day.

Does Chicago observe daylight saving time?

Yes. Chicago runs on UTC-6 in winter and UTC-5 in summer. The next change is on 2026-11-01, when clocks go back by 60 minutes.

Does Denver observe daylight saving time?

Yes. Denver runs on UTC-7 in winter and UTC-6 in summer. The next change is on 2026-11-01, when clocks go back by 60 minutes.

If it is midday in Chicago, what time is it in Denver?

It is 11:00 in Denver, on the same calendar date. That holds for the current offsets; it shifts by an hour around the daylight saving dates listed above.

Which time zones do Chicago and Denver use?

Chicago uses America/Chicago, currently UTC-5 (CDT), and Denver uses America/Denver, currently UTC-6 (MDT). Those identifiers are the ones to use in code — abbreviations are ambiguous and offsets change.

Convert Chicago time to Denver time

Denver is 1 hour behind Chicago right now, so midday in Chicago lands in the morning in Denver.

Convert a time

From

Date

Time

Converted time

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The converter needs JavaScript to run. Everything below — offsets, daylight saving dates and the hour-by-hour table — is part of the page and works without it.

Hour by hour

Every hour of a day in Chicago, and what the clock reads in Denver at that same moment.

Chicago	Denver
00:00	23:00previous day
01:00	00:00
02:00	01:00
03:00	02:00
04:00	03:00
05:00	04:00
06:00	05:00
07:00	06:00
08:00	07:00
09:00	08:00
10:00	09:00
11:00	10:00
12:00	11:00
13:00	12:00
14:00	13:00
15:00	14:00
16:00	15:00
17:00	16:00
18:00	17:00
19:00	18:00
20:00	19:00
21:00	20:00
22:00	21:00
23:00	22:00

Daylight saving time

Both cities change their clocks, but not necessarily on the same date — which is why the difference between them shifts for a few weeks each year.

Chicago

Observes daylight saving time

Standard: UTC-6
Daylight: UTC-5
Next change: 2026-11-01 −60m

Denver

Observes daylight saving time

Standard: UTC-7
Daylight: UTC-6
Next change: 2026-11-01 −60m

When you can actually talk

You have 8 hours of shared working time: 10:00–18:00 in Chicago, which is 09:00–17:00 in Denver.

Chicago 10:00–18:00Denver 09:00–17:00

Reference

The zone identifiers and offsets behind everything above.

	Chicago	Denver
IANA zone	America/Chicago	America/Denver
Abbreviation	CDT	MDT
Standard offset	UTC-6	UTC-7
Daylight offset	UTC-5	UTC-6
Clock changes this year	2	2
Country	United States	United States

Example, not the current time. Live times appear once the page loads.

Common questions

What is the time difference between Chicago and Denver?: Denver is 1 hour behind Chicago. That figure is current — it changes by an hour when either city starts or ends daylight saving, and the exact dates are listed above.
When is the best time to call Denver from Chicago?: Between 10:00–18:00 in Chicago, which is 09:00–17:00 in Denver. That is the only stretch where both cities are inside a 09:00–18:00 day.
Does Chicago observe daylight saving time?: Yes. Chicago runs on UTC-6 in winter and UTC-5 in summer. The next change is on 2026-11-01, when clocks go back by 60 minutes.
Does Denver observe daylight saving time?: Yes. Denver runs on UTC-7 in winter and UTC-6 in summer. The next change is on 2026-11-01, when clocks go back by 60 minutes.
If it is midday in Chicago, what time is it in Denver?: It is 11:00 in Denver, on the same calendar date. That holds for the current offsets; it shifts by an hour around the daylight saving dates listed above.
Which time zones do Chicago and Denver use?: Chicago uses America/Chicago, currently UTC-5 (CDT), and Denver uses America/Denver, currently UTC-6 (MDT). Those identifiers are the ones to use in code — abbreviations are ambiguous and offsets change.