Current time in Omaha, NE
Central Time UTC−6 · IANA zone America/Chicago
Time zone details
| Time zone | Central Time (CT) |
|---|---|
| Standard time | CST, UTC−6 (early Nov – mid Mar) |
| Daylight time | CDT, UTC−5 (mid Mar – early Nov) |
| DST clock change | Forward 1 h, 2nd Sunday of March · Back 1 h, 1st Sunday of November |
| Sunrise today | — |
| Sunset today | — |
| Day length | — |
| Coordinates | 41.26° N, 95.93° W |
Time difference from Omaha
| City | Local time now |
|---|---|
| New York | +1 h |
| Denver | −1 h |
| Phoenix | −1 / −2 h |
| Los Angeles | −2 h |
| Anchorage | −3 h |
| Honolulu | −4 / −5 h |
Omaha's clock is identical to the rest of the Central Time Zone: Des Moines, Kansas City, Minneapolis, and Chicago all show the same time.
About time in Omaha
Omaha is the seat of Douglas County on the west bank of the Missouri River; Council Bluffs, Iowa, directly opposite, keeps the same Central clock, so the river crossing involves no time change.
Union Pacific has been headquartered in Omaha since the railroad's founding in 1862, and its Harriman Dispatching Center downtown coordinates freight movements across a network that spans the Central, Mountain, and Pacific zones — a modern echo of the railroads' role in creating standard time in 1883.
Nebraska itself is split: the Panhandle in the west observes Mountain Time, but Omaha sits at the state's far eastern edge, deep inside Central territory, and its clocks match Iowa's rather than Scottsbluff's.
Frequently asked questions
What time zone is Omaha in?
Omaha is in the Central Time Zone (CT). Clocks show Central Standard Time (CST, UTC−6) in winter and Central Daylight Time (CDT, UTC−5) from the second Sunday of March through the first Sunday of November.
How far ahead of Los Angeles is Omaha?
Omaha runs 2 hours ahead of Los Angeles in both winter and summer, because the Central and Pacific zones change clocks on identical dates.
Does Omaha use daylight saving time?
Yes. Omaha moves clocks ahead one hour at 2:00 AM on the second Sunday of March and back one hour at 2:00 AM on the first Sunday of November — in 2026, March 8 and November 1.