KST — Korean Standard Time
KST is Korean Standard Time, 9 hours ahead of 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 KST
16:46
Sunday, 2 August 2026
KST = UTC+9 · 9 hours ahead of UTC
Shown for 2 Aug 2026 07:46 UTC. The clock goes live as soon as scripts load.
UTC offset
UTC+9
Type
Standard time
Seasonal counterpart
None
The zones using it do not change their clocks
Meanings
1
Unambiguous
Is KST 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 KST now
- Asia/Seoul — Busan
Using a different abbreviation
- Every zone listed here was on KST.
Convert KST to other time zones
City clocks reflect whatever their zone is doing; where a city observes daylight saving time, its difference from KST changes twice a year. Use the time zone converter for a specific date.
Time zones and cities that use KST
Why KST is not an identifier
KST 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 (Asia/Seoul, for example) or an explicit UTC offset alongside the date. The identifier survives a change in the law; KST and its 9 hours offset do not.
Abbreviations on the same clock
Frequently asked questions
What does KST stand for?
KST stands for Korean Standard Time. It is 9 hours ahead of UTC, written UTC+9.
What is KST in UTC?
KST is UTC+9. To convert an KST time to UTC, subtract 9 hours.
Which time zone should I use instead of KST?
Use an IANA identifier — Asia/Seoul for Korean 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.