Madrid

Spain • Central European Time

Time Zone

Madrid uses Central European Time (CET / CEST), currently running at UTC+1 (winter) / UTC+2 (summer). Clocks advance to CEST in late March and return to CET in late October, in sync with the rest of continental Europe.

Business & Commerce

Madrid, Spain's capital, operates on Central European Time (CET, UTC+1) in winter and Central European Summer Time (CEST, UTC+2) from late March through late October — the same schedule as France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands. Spain's adoption of CET was a post-WWII decision to align with Germany rather than the UK, despite Spain's geographic position being broadly at the same longitude as London. The practical consequence is that Spanish business culture runs later on the clock than most of Europe: the conventional lunch break falls between 2:00 and 3:00 PM, dinner routinely starts at 9:00 or 10:00 PM, and the business day extends correspondingly. Bolsa de Madrid, Spain's main exchange, is part of the BME group. At CET/CEST, Madrid is one hour ahead of London and typically five to six hours ahead of New York.