CLT — Chile Standard Time
CLT is Chile Standard Time, 4 hours behind UTC. It is a fixed offset: unlike a time zone, it does not change with the season — the zones that use it switch to a different abbreviation instead.
Current time in CLT
03:46
Sunday, 2 August 2026
CLT = UTC-4 · 4 hours behind UTC
Shown for 2 Aug 2026 07:46 UTC. The clock goes live as soon as scripts load.
UTC offset
UTC-4
Type
Standard time
Seasonal counterpart
CLST
The letters the same zones use for the other half of the year
Meanings
1
Unambiguous
Is CLT in force right now?
A zone only carries this abbreviation for part of the year. This is which of them were on it at 2 Aug 2026 07:46 UTC; the list is re-derived against your own clock when scripts load.
On CLT now
- America/Santiago — Santiago
Using a different abbreviation
- Every zone listed here was on CLT.
CLT alternates with CLST across the year.
Writing “CLT” for a date in the other half of the year is the most common time zone mistake in meeting invitations.
Convert CLT to other time zones
City clocks reflect whatever their zone is doing; where a city observes daylight saving time, its difference from CLT changes twice a year. Use the time zone converter for a specific date.
Time zones and cities that use CLT
Chile Standard Time · UTC-4
Why CLT is not an identifier
CLT is shorthand, not a standard. There is no registry of time zone abbreviations, no authority that assigns them, and nothing preventing two regions from adopting the same three letters — which is what makes codes like IST and CST unusable without context.
For anything a machine will read — a calendar invitation, a database column, an API response — use the IANA identifier of the zone (America/Santiago, for example) or an explicit UTC offset alongside the date. The identifier survives a change in the law; CLT and its 4 hours offset do not.
Abbreviations on the same clock
Frequently asked questions
What does CLT stand for?
CLT stands for Chile Standard Time. It is 4 hours behind UTC, written UTC-4.
What is CLT in UTC?
CLT is UTC-4. To convert an CLT time to UTC, add 4 hours.
What is the difference between CLT and CLST?
CLT is the standard-time form; CLST is what those same zones use during daylight saving time, one hour ahead. A summer date written "CLT" is usually a mistake for CLST.
Which time zone should I use instead of CLT?
Use an IANA identifier — America/Santiago for Chile Standard Time — or state the UTC offset with the date. Abbreviations are not identifiers: they are not unique, they are not registered anywhere, and half of them change with the season. Calendar software resolves this automatically when you pick a city rather than typing letters.