Productivity 7 min read

How to Schedule Meetings Across Time Zones

Find overlapping work hours for international teams without the timezone math headaches.

The Quick Answer

To find a good meeting time for people in different time zones:

  1. List each person's time zone and their typical working hours
  2. Find the overlap — hours when everyone is within their working window
  3. Pick the fairest slot — rotate meeting times so one team isn't always inconvenienced

For teams spanning 8+ hours, overlap may be limited to 1-2 hours. For extreme spreads (12+ hours), consider async communication or alternating meeting times.

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Time Zone Overlap Finder

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Common Team Combinations

Here's what typical overlap looks like for popular team distributions:

Team Locations Time Difference Typical Overlap (Standard Hours)
US West Coast ↔ Western Europe 8-9 hours 8-10 AM PT / 5-7 PM CET
US East Coast ↔ Western Europe 5-6 hours 9 AM-12 PM ET / 3-6 PM CET
US East Coast ↔ India 9.5-10.5 hours 8-10 AM ET / 6:30-8:30 PM IST
Western Europe ↔ Singapore 7 hours 8-10 AM CET / 3-5 PM SGT
Western Europe ↔ Australia (Sydney) 9-10 hours 8-9 AM CET / 6-7 PM AEDT
US West Coast ↔ Japan 17 hours Limited — requires early/late flexibility

These assume standard 9 AM–5 PM working hours. Actual overlap depends on your team's flexibility.

How to Calculate Overlap Manually

If you need to work it out yourself:

Step 1: Convert Everyone to UTC

UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) is the reference point. Example conversions:

  • New York (ET): UTC-5 (or UTC-4 during Daylight Saving)
  • London (GMT/BST): UTC+0 (or UTC+1 during British Summer Time)
  • Berlin (CET): UTC+1 (or UTC+2 during summer)
  • Mumbai (IST): UTC+5:30 (no daylight saving)
  • Tokyo (JST): UTC+9 (no daylight saving)
  • Sydney (AEST): UTC+10 (or UTC+11 during summer)

Step 2: Map Working Hours to UTC

Take each person's local 9 AM–5 PM and convert:

Location Local Hours UTC Equivalent
New York 9 AM–5 PM 14:00–22:00 UTC
London 9 AM–5 PM 09:00–17:00 UTC
Mumbai 9 AM–5 PM 03:30–11:30 UTC

Step 3: Find the Intersection

The overlap is the range where all converted hours coincide.

Example: New York (14:00–22:00 UTC) and London (09:00–17:00 UTC) overlap from 14:00–17:00 UTC, which is 9 AM–12 PM in New York and 2–5 PM in London.

Strategies When Overlap Is Limited

1. Core Hours Agreement

Define 2-3 hours when everyone must be available, even if outside normal hours. Compensate with flexible schedules otherwise.

2. Rotating Meeting Times

If the overlap is inconvenient for one group (e.g., 7 AM or 8 PM), rotate weekly so no single team bears the burden consistently.

3. Async-First Communication

Reserve synchronous meetings for decisions requiring real-time discussion. Use recorded video updates, shared documents, and threaded discussions for everything else.

4. Hub-and-Spoke Meetings

Instead of one global meeting, run two regional syncs with a "connector" who attends both and shares notes.

Daylight Saving Time Traps

Daylight Saving Time (DST) shifts can disrupt meeting schedules:

  • US changes clocks in March and November
  • Europe changes clocks in late March and late October
  • Australia changes clocks in October and April (opposite seasons)
  • India, Japan, Singapore, China do not observe DST

During DST transitions, your usual meeting time might shift by 1 hour for some participants. Check your calendar apps handle this automatically, and communicate changes explicitly.

Tips for Better Global Meetings

Before the Meeting

  • Send the agenda early — gives everyone time to prepare async, especially if the meeting is at an awkward hour for some
  • Include local times in the invite — don't assume people will convert correctly
  • Use a shared calendar tool that handles timezone conversion automatically

During the Meeting

  • Record the session — participants who couldn't attend live can catch up
  • Take collaborative notes — helps async participants and creates a reference
  • Be mindful of fatigue — an 8 PM meeting is more draining than 10 AM; keep them shorter

After the Meeting

  • Share notes and action items within 24 hours
  • Use async follow-ups for questions that don't need immediate answers

FAQ

What's the best time for a meeting between the US and Europe?

For US East Coast and Western Europe (CET/CEST), the sweet spot is typically 9-11 AM Eastern / 3-5 PM Central European. For US West Coast and Europe, the overlap shrinks to around 8-10 AM Pacific / 5-7 PM Central European.

How do I schedule a meeting between three or more time zones?

List all participants' time zones and working hours, then find the window where all overlap. The more zones you add, the smaller the overlap. Tools that visualize this help significantly.

What if there's no overlap at all?

If working hours don't overlap (common with US West Coast and Asia), consider:

  • Asking some participants to flex their hours occasionally
  • Alternating meetings so different teams take turns at inconvenient times
  • Switching to async communication for most collaboration

How do I handle Daylight Saving Time changes?

Calendar apps usually handle DST automatically if you set the event with specific timezones. Still, communicate explicitly when transitions happen (March/November for the US, late March/October for Europe) since meeting times will shift for some participants.

Should I use UTC for scheduling?

Using UTC as a reference helps avoid confusion, especially in international teams. State times like "15:00 UTC (11 AM ET / 5 PM CET)" so everyone knows exactly when to join.

What time zones don't observe Daylight Saving Time?

India (IST), Japan (JST), China (CST), Singapore (SGT), and most of Africa and South America don't change clocks seasonally. This makes scheduling easier with these regions.

How do I be fair to team members in difficult time zones?

Rotate meeting times periodically. If your 10 AM is someone else's 11 PM, alternate so they're not always the ones sacrificing sleep.

What's the difference between GMT and UTC?

Functionally, they're the same for scheduling. UTC is the standard used by computers and doesn't observe DST. GMT is the time zone name for the UK in winter.

Related Tools

Related Tools

Time Zone Overlap Finder

Find overlapping working hours across multiple time zones