Did we gain or lose an hour? Did time change last night? Here's what to know about Daylight Saving Time 2026

Daylight saving time has officially ended in the US for 2026. The clocks went back one hour at 2am on Sunday the 1st of November. The country's back on standard time. That means most Americans got an extra hour's sleep overnight. It also means earlier sunsets and more daylight in the morning. Although President Trump has been keen to get rid of the biannual clock changes, Congress hasn't yet passed a bill to make the change permanent. The inouts are taken from reports by USA TODAY, CBS News and El Paso Times.

Did we gain or lose an hour when the clocks went back?

Americans gained an hour when DST ended. At 2am local time on 1st November clocks moved back to 1am, giving people an extra hour. The switch occurs every year on the first Sunday in November. Presently the system is for DST to start on the second Sunday in March and end on the first Sunday in November.


The change also affects the times of sunrise and sunset. Mornings become brighter earlier but darkness comes in earlier in the evening.

For example in Boston the sun rose at 7: 16 am and set at 5:39 pm on Saturday 31st October. After the clocks changed it was forecast to rise at 6:17am and set at 4:37pm on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

Why are the Americans still changing their clocks?

The biannual time change goes on because Congress hasn't passed legislation to replace the current system. The Uniform Time Act of 1966 is the framework for daylight saving time. Congress can change the rules and the US Department of Transportation is responsible for administering them.

The Sunshine Protection Act (which would make Daylight Saving Time permanent) passed the House in July by a vote of 301 to 117. It has not yet cleared the Senate.

Trump has on numerous occasions called for an end to the clock changes. In a Truth Social post of October 26 he took issue with the Senate for allowing the bill to die.



"The US Senate is letting the Daylight Saving Bill die, when a vast majority of the country want it," Trump said. "Most people want light in the evening, but all want to stop changing their clocks."

"TAKE A VOTE!" he said.

Some Republicans are still not convinced. Sen Tom Cotton of Arkansas has pointed out that a previous experiment with year round DST was actually repealed following complaints about the extremely late winter sunrises.

When will daylight saving time be back in 2027?

Unless Congress changes the law, daylight saving time will be back on Sunday 14th March 2027 at 2am local time. The clocks will go forward one hour. The majority of the US observes daylight saving time, with the exception of Hawaii and most of Arizona. The Navajo Nation (which does extend into Arizona) does observe the time change. A number of US territories (Puerto Rico, Guam etc) remain on standard time year round. Phones and other devices should update automatically if they're set to allow automatic time changes. The Nov 1 change means most Americans have gained an hour but the familiar spring and autumn changes are still in place (unless of course Congress does something about it).