Most of Texas runs on CST/CDT but El Paso uses Mountain Time. Complete guide to Texas time zones with city-by-city breakdown.
Texas is bigger than many countries — and uniquely, it spans TWO time zones. While 99% of Texas runs on Central Time (CST/CDT), the far west corner of El Paso operates on Mountain Time. This geographic quirk matters enormously for businesses, gaming servers, and remote workers dealing with Texas scheduling. This guide breaks down every Texas timezone scenario by city.
Texas Has Two Time Zones
Central Time (CST/CDT): The vast majority of Texas — including Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth, and Lubbock — uses Central Time. Mountain Time (MST/MDT): El Paso and Hudspeth County in extreme west Texas use Mountain Time — the same zone as Denver and New Mexico. The IANA identifiers are America/Chicago (Central Texas) and America/El_Paso (West Texas).
Texas Cities & Their Time Zones
| City | Time Zone | UTC Offset (Winter) | UTC Offset (Summer) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | CST/CDT | UTC−6 | UTC−5 |
| Dallas | CST/CDT | UTC−6 | UTC−5 |
| San Antonio | CST/CDT | UTC−6 | UTC−5 |
| Austin | CST/CDT | UTC−6 | UTC−5 |
| Fort Worth | CST/CDT | UTC−6 | UTC−5 |
| Lubbock | CST/CDT | UTC−6 | UTC−5 |
| El Paso | MST/MDT | UTC−7 | UTC−6 |
| Presidio | MST/MDT | UTC−7 | UTC−6 |
⚠️ ⚠️ El Paso Exception — Critical for West Texas Business
If you're scheduling a meeting with someone in El Paso, be aware they are on Mountain Time — 1 hour behind Dallas and Houston. A 10 AM Dallas call is 9 AM in El Paso. This is especially tricky because El Paso is geographically in Texas but shares its timezone with New Mexico and Colorado, not the rest of the Lone Star State.
Texas DST Dates 2025
Texas observes Daylight Saving Time like the rest of the continental US (with the El Paso/Hudspeth exception following Mountain Time DST, not Central).
Texas DST 2025
| Zone | Spring Forward | Fall Back | Offset Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Texas (CST→CDT) | Mar 9, 2025 at 2:00 AM | Nov 2, 2025 at 2:00 AM | UTC−6 → UTC−5 |
| West Texas / El Paso (MST→MDT) | Mar 9, 2025 at 2:00 AM | Nov 2, 2025 at 2:00 AM | UTC−7 → UTC−6 |
Expert Tip — Game Servers in Texas
Texas hosts major gaming data centers for Xbox (San Antonio), AWS US-East-2 (Central Texas), and several Valve (Steam) CDN nodes. These servers operate on Central Time. Peak server load for Texas-hosted games is 6–11 PM CDT. Houston and Dallas gamers typically see <20ms ping to these servers, making Texas one of the best low-latency gaming regions in North America.
Data Sources
- [1]IANA tz database (America/Chicago, America/El_Paso) — iana.org
- [2]Texas Legislature — Uniform Time Act compliance
- [3]US Department of Transportation — timezone boundaries
Frequently Asked Questions
What time zone is Texas in?+
Most of Texas is in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT, UTC-6/UTC-5). However, the far western city of El Paso uses Mountain Time (MST/MDT, UTC-7/UTC-6).
Does El Paso Texas use Mountain Time?+
Yes. El Paso and the surrounding Hudspeth County in far west Texas operate on Mountain Time (MST in winter, MDT in summer), not Central Time like the rest of Texas.
Does Texas observe Daylight Saving Time?+
Yes. Texas observes Daylight Saving Time. Most of Texas switches between CST (UTC-6) in winter and CDT (UTC-5) in summer. El Paso switches between MST (UTC-7) and MDT (UTC-6).
What time zone is Houston Texas in?+
Houston is in the Central Time Zone. It uses Central Standard Time (CST, UTC-6) in winter and Central Daylight Time (CDT, UTC-5) during Daylight Saving Time from March to November.
What time zone is Dallas Texas in?+
Dallas is in the Central Time Zone — Central Standard Time (CST, UTC-6) in winter and Central Daylight Time (CDT, UTC-5) in summer.