What Is the Time Difference Between India and the UK?

India is either 4 hours 30 minutes or 5 hours 30 minutes ahead of the UK, depending on the time of year. The half hour comes from India's own offset, and the change comes entirely from the UK side, because India never changes its clocks.

Why there are two answers

India uses India Standard Time (IST), UTC+5:30, all year, with no daylight saving. The UK uses Greenwich Mean Time (GMT, UTC+0) in winter and British Summer Time (BST, UTC+1) in summer.

So:

• In winter, when the UK is on GMT, India is 5 hours 30 minutes ahead.
• In summer, when the UK is on BST, India is 4 hours 30 minutes ahead.

British Summer Time starts on the last Sunday of March and ends on the last Sunday of October. In 2026 the clocks went back on 25 October, so the gap is now 5 hours 30 minutes. In 2027, BST runs from Sunday 28 March to Sunday 31 October, and the gap is 4 hours 30 minutes in between.

What that looks like in practice

Take a 9am start in London:

• In winter, it's 2:30pm in India.
• In summer, it's 1:30pm in India.

And the Indian working day starting at 9:30am corresponds to 4am in London in winter, 5am in summer. That leaves a useful overlap of about four to five hours in the middle of the day, roughly 9am to 1:30pm in London in winter. Teams that work across both countries tend to put their meetings in the London morning, which is the Indian afternoon.

The weeks that cause problems

The UK clock change happens on a weekend, and the trouble comes the Monday after. A recurring meeting set for 3pm IST might move to 2pm or 4pm IST when London changes, depending on how it was created in the calendar app. If it was created in London time, the Indian side sees it move. If it was created in IST, the London side does.

There's another trap. The US and the UK change their clocks on different dates, so for a few weeks each spring and autumn, a three-way call between India, London and New York can shift unexpectedly for one participant.

A quick memory aid

Think "five and a half in winter, four and a half in summer," and remember that UK summer time follows the last Sundays of March and October. If someone asks "what's the time difference between India and the UK" in the middle of the year, the answer is 4:30. In December, it's 5:30.

Check the live time

For an exact figure right now, see the current time in London, which shows the offset from IST, and use the time zone converter for any date, including the clock-change weekends.

The practical rule: when the UK changes its clocks, check every recurring call with India that week.