Current time in Istanbul, Turkey
The current local time in Istanbul is shown below. Istanbul observes TRT.
Daylight saving time
Istanbul does not observe daylight saving time. The local offset is fixed year-round.
Sunrise & sunset today
Timezone facts
- Timezone
- Europe/Istanbul
- Standard abbreviation
- TRT
- Observes daylight saving
- No
- Country
- 🇹🇷 Turkey
- Business hours
- 09:00 – 18:00 local
Istanbul in context
Istanbul straddles the Bosporus strait between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, with around two-thirds of its 15.7 million residents on the European side and the remainder in the Asian districts across the water. The city is the largest in Europe by population, the largest in Turkey, and the only major settlement on Earth located on two continents. The Golden Horn inlet divides the European side between the historic peninsula and the more modern BeyoÄŸlu and ÅžiÅŸli districts to the north.
Timezone history of Istanbul
Turkey moved permanently onto UTC+3 in 2016, ending its previous practice of switching seasonally between Eastern European Time and Eastern European Summer Time. The change made Turkish Standard Time independent of European DST policy and aligned the country year-round with Moscow, the Gulf states, and East Africa. The result is that in winter, Istanbul sits one hour ahead of Athens directly across the Aegean; in summer the two cities are on the same clock, a small but commercially noticeable swing for cross-strait business.
Working hours in Istanbul
Istanbul business hours typically run 09:00 to 18:00 with an hour's lunch break, though the city's commute, often involving ferry crossings or congested bridges, can push effective working days longer. During Ramadan, many offices shorten hours by an hour or so, and meeting schedules accommodate the iftar meal at sunset. Public holidays combine secular national days, including Republic Day on 29 October, with the two Islamic festivals of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, which shift across the calendar year by around eleven days annually.