Current Time in São Paulo
Brazil — America/Sao_Paulo
About Time in São Paulo
Sao Paulo operates on Brasilia Time (IANA: America/Sao_Paulo) at UTC-3 year-round. Brazil abolished daylight saving time in 2019, ending a practice that had been observed in southeastern Brazil (including Sao Paulo) since 1931. The clocks no longer change.
Sao Paulo is 2 hours ahead of New York during EST and 1 hour ahead during EDT. It is 3 hours behind London during GMT. Being fixed at UTC-3 while the US and Europe shift clocks means Sao Paulo's time difference with these regions changes twice a year. Sao Paulo is 12 hours behind Tokyo. The city's timezone, Brasilia Time, is the reference timezone for the Brazilian capital and the country's most populous region.
As the financial capital of Latin America, Sao Paulo's Brasilia Time is the dominant timezone for South American business. B3 (the Brazilian stock exchange, formerly BM&F Bovespa) operates from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM BRT, and its trading session overlaps significantly with the NYSE (which opens at noon BRT). Brazil spans four time zones, but Brasilia Time (UTC-3) covers the vast majority of the population and all major economic centers.
Time Facts
Brazil abolished daylight saving time in 2019 after President Bolsonaro signed a decree ending the practice — studies had shown that modern air conditioning use eliminated the energy savings that had originally justified the clock change.
Sao Paulo's Carnival, the world's largest festival, kicks off at 9:00 PM BRT on the Friday before Ash Wednesday, with samba school parades running through the night until well past dawn at the Sambodromo.
Brazil spans four time zones (UTC-5 to UTC-2), but the three westernmost cover relatively small populations — over 90% of Brazilians live in the Brasilia Time (UTC-3) zone.
Sao Paulo's position at 23.5 S latitude (almost exactly on the Tropic of Capricorn) means its seasonal daylight variation is the reverse of Northern Hemisphere cities — the longest day is in December (about 13.5 hours) and the shortest in June (about 10.5 hours).
Business Hours
Standard business hours in Sao Paulo are 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM BRT (12:00-21:00 UTC).