Current Time in Bangkok
Thailand — Asia/Bangkok
About Time in Bangkok
Bangkok operates on Indochina Time (IANA: Asia/Bangkok) at UTC+7 year-round. Thailand does not observe daylight saving time, and the country has used UTC+7 continuously since 1920. Indochina Time is shared with Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.
Bangkok is 12 hours ahead of New York during EST and 11 hours ahead during EDT. It is 7 hours ahead of London during GMT, 2 hours behind Tokyo, and 1 hour behind Singapore/Hong Kong. At longitude 100.5 E, Bangkok is well-positioned for UTC+7, with solar noon occurring at about 12:00 PM local time — one of the best natural alignments of any major city in the world.
Bangkok's UTC+7 timezone places it in a convenient middle position between South Asian and East Asian markets. When Bangkok opens for business at 9:00 AM ICT, it is 10:00 AM in Singapore and Hong Kong but only 7:30 AM in Mumbai. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) operates from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM and 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM ICT, with a long midday break that reflects traditional Thai lunch culture.
Time Facts
Thailand's traditional calendar uses the Buddhist Era (BE), which is 543 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar — so 2024 CE is 2567 BE. Combined with UTC+7, this means Bangkok's date can be both a different day AND a different year than Western cities.
Bangkok's official name in Thai is the longest city name in the world (168 characters), but its timekeeping is straightforward: UTC+7 with no daylight saving adjustments, making it one of the simplest major-city timezones to work with.
The Grand Palace in Bangkok opens to visitors at 8:30 AM ICT daily — a schedule chosen because the morning is the coolest part of the day in this tropical city, where midday temperatures regularly exceed 35 C (95 F).
Bangkok's famous street food vendors, a UNESCO-recognized culinary tradition, typically operate from about 5:00 AM ICT (for breakfast) with many shifting to dinner service from 5:00 PM to midnight — timed to the city's tropical daylight pattern.
Business Hours
Standard business hours in Bangkok are 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM ICT (01:30-10:30 UTC), with government offices often opening at 8:00 AM.