How Many Time Zones Does Russia Have?
2026-02-01 · 8 min read
Russia spans 11 time zones, restored from 9 to 11 in 2014, and stretches from UTC+2 in Kaliningrad to UTC+12 in Kamchatka. At about 17.1 million square kilometers, Russia is the largest country on Earth by area.
The 11 Time Zones
- Kaliningrad Time (UTC+2): Kaliningrad
- Moscow Time (UTC+3): Moscow, Saint Petersburg
- Samara Time (UTC+4): Samara, Ulyanovsk
- Yekaterinburg Time (UTC+5): Yekaterinburg, Ufa
- Omsk Time (UTC+6): Omsk
- Krasnoyarsk Time (UTC+7): Krasnoyarsk, Novosibirsk
- Irkutsk Time (UTC+8): Irkutsk, Ulan-Ude
- Yakutsk Time (UTC+9): Yakutsk, Chita
- Vladivostok Time (UTC+10): Vladivostok, Khabarovsk
- Magadan Time (UTC+11): Magadan, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk
- Kamchatka Time (UTC+12): Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Anadyr
History of Changes
The Soviet period standardized regional timekeeping to support rail transport, military logistics, and central administration. In 2010, President Dmitry Medvedev reduced Russia from 11 zones to 9.
Russia abolished seasonal DST clock changes in 2011 and briefly stayed on permanent summer time. In 2014, President Vladimir Putin restored 11 zones and shifted the country to permanent standard time.
What It Means for Travelers
When it is 9:00 AM in Moscow, it is 6:00 PM in Kamchatka the same day. That nine-hour spread complicates domestic meetings, customer support windows, and TV broadcast timing.
The Trans-Siberian Railway corridor crosses all 11 zones, so long-distance trips require careful schedule planning even within one country.
Fun Facts
- Russia has more domestic time zones than any other country.
- China is similarly wide geographically but uses one official zone: UTC+8.
- France reaches 12 zones if overseas territories are counted.
Explore related pages: time in Moscow, Russia by country, and the timezone map.