What Time Zone Is Texas In? Central Time, Mountain Time, and the Exceptions

Texas spans two time zones, which catches many people off guard given that it is a single state. The vast majority of the Lone Star State — including Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, and Fort Worth — operates on Central Time. However, the far western tip of Texas around El Paso follows Mountain Time, one hour behind the rest of the state.

Central Time: Most of Texas

Roughly 98% of Texas's population lives in the Central Time Zone. The IANA identifier is America/Chicago, and the UTC offsets are:

• Central Standard Time (CST): UTC-6 (November through early March)
• Central Daylight Time (CDT): UTC-5 (early March through November)

Texas observes Daylight Saving Time on the same schedule as the rest of the US: clocks spring forward on the second Sunday of March and fall back on the first Sunday of November. In 2026, that means March 8 (spring forward) and November 1 (fall back).

Major cities on Central Time include Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio, Austin, Corpus Christi, Lubbock, Amarillo, Waco, and Midland-Odessa.

Mountain Time: El Paso and the Far West

El Paso County and Hudspeth County — plus the northwestern portion of Culberson County near Guadalupe Mountains National Park — observe Mountain Time. The IANA identifier is America/Denver, and the offsets are:

• Mountain Standard Time (MST): UTC-7
• Mountain Daylight Time (MDT): UTC-6

El Paso's alignment with Mountain Time makes geographic sense: the city sits directly across the border from Las Cruces, New Mexico, and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico — both on Mountain Time. Having El Paso on the same clock as its closest neighbors is far more practical than syncing it with Houston, nearly 750 miles to the east.

The Boundary: Where Does the Line Fall?

The time zone boundary in Texas runs roughly along the Pecos River valley. If you are driving west on Interstate 10 from San Antonio, you will cross from Central to Mountain Time somewhere between Fort Stockton and Van Horn. The town of Sierra Blanca, in Hudspeth County, is one of the first communities you hit on Mountain Time.

For practical purposes: if you are visiting Big Bend National Park, you are still on Central Time. If you are visiting Guadalupe Mountains National Park, check carefully — the park straddles the boundary.

Time Difference Within Texas

During standard time, El Paso is 1 hour behind Dallas. During DST (which both zones observe), the gap remains 1 hour. So a 9:00 AM meeting in Dallas is always 8:00 AM in El Paso, regardless of the time of year.

Use our time zone converter to check exact times between any two Texas cities — just select America/Chicago for most of the state and America/Denver for the El Paso area.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Texas ever 2 hours behind New York? No — most of Texas is always 1 hour behind New York (both on Central and Eastern Time respectively). El Paso is 2 hours behind New York since it is on Mountain Time.

Does Texas observe DST? Yes, the entire state observes Daylight Saving Time. Unlike Arizona, which opted out, Texas has no DST exceptions.

What time zone should I use for scheduling meetings with someone in Texas? Use America/Chicago unless you know they are in El Paso, in which case use America/Denver. See our guide on IANA identifiers for why this is more reliable than saying "CST."