What is the time difference between Dubai and Shanghai?

Shanghai is 4 hours ahead of Dubai. 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 Shanghai from Dubai?

Between 09:00–14:00 in Dubai, which is 13:00–18:00 in Shanghai. That is the only stretch where both cities are inside a 09:00–18:00 day.

Does Dubai observe daylight saving time?

No. Dubai stays on UTC+4 all year, so its clocks never move.

Does Shanghai observe daylight saving time?

No. Shanghai stays on UTC+8 all year, so its clocks never move.

If it is midday in Dubai, what time is it in Shanghai?

It is 16:00 in Shanghai, on the same calendar date. That holds for the current offsets; it does not change through the year, because neither city moves its clocks.

Which time zones do Dubai and Shanghai use?

Dubai uses Asia/Dubai, currently UTC+4 (GST), and Shanghai uses Asia/Shanghai, currently UTC+8. Those identifiers are the ones to use in code — abbreviations are ambiguous and offsets change.

Convert Dubai time to Shanghai time

Right now Shanghai runs 4 hours ahead of Dubai. That gap is not fixed: it moves when either city changes its clocks.

Convert a time

From

Date

Time

Converted time

—

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 Dubai, and what the clock reads in Shanghai at that same moment.

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

Daylight saving time

Both cities keep one offset all year. Whatever difference holds today still holds in six months.

Dubai

Does not observe daylight saving time

Standard: UTC+4

Shanghai

Does not observe daylight saving time

Standard: UTC+8

When you can actually talk

You have 5 hours of shared working time: 09:00–14:00 in Dubai, which is 13:00–18:00 in Shanghai.

Dubai 09:00–14:00Shanghai 13:00–18:00

Reference

The underlying data, in case you need to put it in a calendar invitation or a configuration file.

	Dubai	Shanghai
IANA zone	Asia/Dubai	Asia/Shanghai
Abbreviation	GST	UTC+8
Standard offset	UTC+4	UTC+8
Daylight offset	—	—
Clock changes this year	0	0
Country	United Arab Emirates	China

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

Common questions

What is the time difference between Dubai and Shanghai?: Shanghai is 4 hours ahead of Dubai. 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 Shanghai from Dubai?: Between 09:00–14:00 in Dubai, which is 13:00–18:00 in Shanghai. That is the only stretch where both cities are inside a 09:00–18:00 day.
Does Dubai observe daylight saving time?: No. Dubai stays on UTC+4 all year, so its clocks never move.
Does Shanghai observe daylight saving time?: No. Shanghai stays on UTC+8 all year, so its clocks never move.
If it is midday in Dubai, what time is it in Shanghai?: It is 16:00 in Shanghai, on the same calendar date. That holds for the current offsets; it does not change through the year, because neither city moves its clocks.
Which time zones do Dubai and Shanghai use?: Dubai uses Asia/Dubai, currently UTC+4 (GST), and Shanghai uses Asia/Shanghai, currently UTC+8. Those identifiers are the ones to use in code — abbreviations are ambiguous and offsets change.