What is the time difference between São Paulo and Chicago?

Chicago is 2 hours behind São Paulo. 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 Chicago from São Paulo?

Between 11:00–18:00 in São Paulo, which is 09:00–16:00 in Chicago. That is the only stretch where both cities are inside a 09:00–18:00 day.

Does São Paulo observe daylight saving time?

No. São Paulo stays on UTC-3 all year, so its clocks never move.

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.

If it is midday in São Paulo, what time is it in Chicago?

It is 10:00 in Chicago, 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 São Paulo and Chicago use?

São Paulo uses America/Sao_Paulo, currently UTC-3, and Chicago uses America/Chicago, currently UTC-5 (CDT). Those identifiers are the ones to use in code — abbreviations are ambiguous and offsets change.

Convert São Paulo time to Chicago time

Chicago is 2 hours behind São Paulo right now, so midday in São Paulo lands in the morning in Chicago.

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

The whole day mapped across: read down the left for São Paulo, across for Chicago.

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

Daylight saving time

Chicago changes its clocks; São Paulo does not. The difference between them therefore shifts by an hour twice a year.

São Paulo

Does not observe daylight saving time

Standard: UTC-3

Chicago

Observes daylight saving time

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

When you can actually talk

You have 7 hours of shared working time: 11:00–18:00 in São Paulo, which is 09:00–16:00 in Chicago.

São Paulo 11:00–18:00Chicago 09:00–16:00

Reference

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

	São Paulo	Chicago
IANA zone	America/Sao_Paulo	America/Chicago
Abbreviation	UTC-3	CDT
Standard offset	UTC-3	UTC-6
Daylight offset	—	UTC-5
Clock changes this year	0	2
Country	Brazil	United States

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

Common questions

What is the time difference between São Paulo and Chicago?: Chicago is 2 hours behind São Paulo. 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 Chicago from São Paulo?: Between 11:00–18:00 in São Paulo, which is 09:00–16:00 in Chicago. That is the only stretch where both cities are inside a 09:00–18:00 day.
Does São Paulo observe daylight saving time?: No. São Paulo stays on UTC-3 all year, so its clocks never move.
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.
If it is midday in São Paulo, what time is it in Chicago?: It is 10:00 in Chicago, 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 São Paulo and Chicago use?: São Paulo uses America/Sao_Paulo, currently UTC-3, and Chicago uses America/Chicago, currently UTC-5 (CDT). Those identifiers are the ones to use in code — abbreviations are ambiguous and offsets change.