Mexico enjoys long daylight throughout the year

Mexico’s geographical location gives the country a privileged mix of daylight and dark, regardless of the season.  This is in contrast to countries situated further away from the equator, where daylight hours can be substantially curtailed during the winter months.

One of the reasons why so many people enjoy overwintering in Mexico is because the country offers pleasantry warm or temperate climates, and also because the daylight here remains fairly constant —thus by living here during the winter you can avoid the ‘long nights’ —and enjoy plenty of sunshine, too.

How Mexico’s daylight hours vary during the year

Mexico’s privileged daylight hours can be well illustrated by way of an example.

The table below shows the hours for sunrise and sunset on the longest and shortest days of the year —and the total daylight hours on those days— for three locations in Mexico:

• Tijuana (one of Mexico’s northernmost cities, situated on the border with the US), and
• Mexico City (on a similar latitude to Mérida, in the Yucatán), and
• Tapachula (Mexico’s southernmost city on the border with Guatemala).

Times shown take into account Mexico’s abandonment of annual clock changes.

Enjoying long daylight on the shortest day of the year

The hours recorded in the table above for the ‘winter low’ are for December 21—the shortest day of the year in Mexico. These show that:

• In the northern-most areas of Mexico, even the shortest days of the year give more than 10 hours of daylight.
• In the southern-most areas (nearer to the equator) you can enjoy over eleven-and-a-quarter hours of daylight on the shortest day of the year.
• Mexico City (and Mérida) enjoy virtually eleven hours of daylight, even on the year’s shortest day.

A good balance on the longest days of the year

On June 21 —the longest day of the year in Mexico— you’ll enjoy between 13 and 14 hours of daylight in the peak of summer, regardless of where you’re situated in the country.

Mexico’s geographical location in relation to the equator offers an equitable  balance of night and day all year long, with each month and season offering plenty of daylight every day of the year—which can be supportive to one’s moods, general health, and well-being.

Mexico’s light is also extraordinary

As well as offering an equitable balance of daylight and dark, when you pause to consider the quality of the light here, you come to realize that Mexico’s light is truly extraordinary.

Its quality is especially noticeable in the mountain highlands, although it’s exceptional even at lower elevations, and along the coasts.

Mexico is said to be one of the most ‘colorful countries in the world’ and the quality of the light undoubtably contributes to the sparkling tapestry of colors that may be appreciate here.

Writers describing Mexico often remark, for example, on the sharp and crisp ‘azure blue’ skies, especially in the central highlands.  They’ve noticed how the subtleties and hues of the light in Mexico are quite special.

The exceptional light is complemented by sensational fragrances during the rainy season as the groundwater swells and the flora blossom and bloom.

When the ground becomes parched during the dry season, dust particles rise high up into the atmosphere and contribute to the composition of the most magnificent sunsets you’ll experience anywhere.

Mexico for living and leisure

Mexico is one of the most visited countries in the world, offering beautiful beach locations, picturesque colonial mountain towns, fascinating archaeology, and an abundance of wild, natural habitats to traverse and enjoy. It also offers opportunities for living and lifestyle, that you can also discover and explore here on Mexperience.

• Explore complete guides to aspects of living in Mexico
• Learn about leisure and travel opportunities in Mexico
• Read insightful articles about living and lifestyle in Mexico
• Sign-up to our free email Mexico Newsletter published monthly

To give that some time-zone perspective, its longitudinal land mass covers a distance-equivalent starting on the Pacific coast in California USA, and ending near Pensacola, Florida—thus spanning some 1,700 miles.

Mexico’s four time zones

Mexico has four time zones, two of which are exclusive to two states.  The four time zones in Mexico are listed below. Click/tap on the map to link to UTC references.

• Zona Noroeste — Northeast time zone (Orange)
• Zona Pacifico — Pacific time zone (Burgundy)
• Zona Centro — Central time zone (Blue)
• Zona Sureste — Southeastern time zone (Green)

Mexico’s Time Zones by State

The table below summarizes the four time zones, and which Mexican State(s) adhere to that time zone.

* The State of Chihuahua is officially part of the Mexico’s Pacific Time zone, but in practice its clocks are aligned with Mexico’s Central Time Zone.

** The State of Sonora never moved its clocks and remained synchronized with time in the US State of Arizona, that also never moves its clocks.

Learn more about time and time zones in Mexico

Mexico has several time zones and most states move their clocks forward in the spring and back in the autumn.

• Learn about Mexico’s Seasonal Clock Changes
• Learn about Mexico’s time and Time Zones
• Learn about seasons in Mexico

Mexico’s congressional representatives and Senate voted to eliminate the practice of changing the clocks in the spring and fall, with exceptions for Mexican municipalities bordering the US.

The US, Canada, and Europe move their clocks

Although Mexico ceased the practice of moving its clocks every spring and fall, its closest allies and trading partners —the USA and Canada— as well as other countries around the world continue to move their clocks each spring and fall.

Even when Mexico used to move its clocks, there was usually a wider time difference than normal for some weeks every year, because different countries moved their spring and fall clocks on different dates.

Baja California State and Mexican Municipalities along the US border

Baja California (but not Baja California Sur) continues to move its clocks in the spring and fall in alignment with US Pacific Time.

Important Mexican municipalities along the US border continue to move their clocks in the spring and fall to remain synchronized with their sister towns and cities in the US.

The Mexican State of Sonora, in alignment with its US neighboring State of Arizona, never moved its clocks.

Check Time&Date.com for details of clock times in your locality.

The effects of Spring clock changes in other countries

When the United States, Canada, and Europe move its clocks forward by one hour in the spring:

• US Pacific Time, that is normally 2 hours behind Mexico’s Central Time, will be 1 hour behind.
• US Mountain Time, that is normally 1 hour behind Mexico’s Central Time, will be on the same time as Mexico City.
• US Central Time, that is normally aligned with time in Mexico’s Central Time, will be 1 hour ahead.
• US Eastern Time, that is normally 1 hour ahead of Mexico’s Central Time, will be 2 hours ahead.
• The UK and Ireland will be 7 hours ahead of Mexico’s Central Time instead of 6.
• Central Europe will be 8 hours ahead of Mexico’s Central Time instead of 7.

The effects of Fall clock changes in other countries

When the United States, Canada, and Europe move its clocks back by one hour in the fall:

• US Pacific Time, that was 1 behind Mexico’s Central Time when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 2 hours behind Mexico’s Central Time.
• US Mountain Time, that was on the same time as Mexico’s Central Time when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 1 hour behind Mexico’s Central Time.
• US Central Time, that was 1 ahead of Mexico’s Central Time when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be aligned with Mexico’s Central Time time.
• US Eastern Time, that was 2 hours ahead of Mexico’s Central Time when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 1 hour ahead.
• The UK and Ireland will be 6 hours ahead of Mexico’s Central Time instead of 7.
• Central Europe will be 7 hours ahead of Mexico’s Central Time instead of 8.

Learn more about time and time zones in Mexico

Mexperience helps you to learn about Mexico’s time zones and the effects of annual clock changes:

• Discover Mexico’s Four Time Zones by State
• Learn about Mexico’s annual clock-time changes
• Learn about seasons in Mexico

Previous solar eclipses

The last time a solar eclipse path crossed over North America was on August 21^st, 2017.  Back then, northern US states experienced the event—but the path came nowhere near Mexico.

The last time Mexico experienced a solar eclipse was on July 11^th 1991, the ribbon of which draped across southern and central areas of the country (including the capital) and touched parts of the Baja California peninsula.

The 2024 solar eclipse across Mexico

The ‘totality’ ribbon of the solar eclipse that will cross Mexico on April 8, 2024 —11,960 days after the last one in 1991— will pass over several states in northern Mexico and create a partial solar eclipse in varying degrees across almost all of Mexico’s land territory.

The eclipse is happening during Mexico’s dry season, so the skies in Mexico’s northern (mostly desert) regions are likely to offer a unique opportunity to view the totality of the eclipse amidst crystal clear skies. Parts of the Mexican states of Coahuila, Durango, Nayarit, and Sinaloa will be under a total or near total ribbon of the solar eclipse in 2024.

Mazatlán, Torreón near the totality line

This zoom-able map on Google shows the totality (red) and near totality (yellow) lines—inside of which you can experience near or absolute darkness around midday.

The ‘totality ribbon’ is about 115 miles (185km) wide. Purists in all matters eclipse assert that nothing less than 100% will do, and if you’re seeking that absolute totality in Mexico this year, note that the central totality line in 2024 doesn’t cross any large Mexican towns or cities precisely—Mexico’s northern deserts are vast, and mostly uninhabited.

However, if you’re in Mazatlán, a short drive south of there to Playa Las Garzas will get you on target, and if you’re in the northern city of Torreón, a drive north on highway 49(D), to near the small town of La Esperanza, will also get you to the magic line.

This map on Time and Date shows helpful shaded areas across all of Mexico that will experience the total and partial eclipse in varying degrees, along with times.

Further resources

The information box that follows shares some links you may find helpful for further research and exploration about the solar eclipse in Mexico.

Mexico abandons practice of clock changes after October 2022

In 2022, Mexico’s congressional representatives and Senate voted to eliminate the practice of changing the clocks in the spring and fall, with exceptions for municipalities bordering the US.

Daylight Savings Time in Mexico’s Central and Pacific time zones —which encompass most of the country including Mexico City— used to start on the first Sunday in April, several weeks later than in the U.S. where the clocks go forward one hour on the second Sunday in March.

Usually this creates a time difference for three weeks, although in some years the gap stretches to four weeks because of the calendar effect.

There were —and even after abandonment of the clock change regime— there remains an exception, that being most municipalities on Mexico’s northern border which move their clocks forward at the same time as the U.S. to make life easier for people who cross the border daily to study or work. (Sonora state, which borders Arizona, does not move its clocks.)

Daylight savings time has never been particularly popular in Mexico, a country with plenty of sunlight all year round, although after nearly a quarter of a century of it being applied —since 1996— complaints and efforts to overturn it had mostly died out until, in 2022, the Mexican Congress voted to abandon the clock-change and its Senate ratified the law.

The principal argument in favor of the measure is that it saves electricity by extending the hours of light in the evenings. This was always debatable and in Mexico as elsewhere in the world, many people are unconvinced that it is true. Mexican households saw no noticeable effect on their individual utility bills.

Mexico has dithered with different ways of applying daylight savings, including using it for just five months —May through September instead of April through October— in 2001. This Solomonic solution, aimed at addressing widespread dissatisfaction with the clock change, was short-lived.

The airline industry said it would cause havoc at Mexican airports—which it didn’t. The Mexico City mayor of the time —who became the Mexican president— took the case to the Supreme Court arguing that the executive branch didn’t have the authority to decree the change in the capital. The Supreme Court agreed and said only the Congress could authorize it—which it did. And thus, since 2002 Daylight Savings Time was observed in Mexico for seven months each year.

When the US extended daylight savings time to eight months a year in 2007, Mexico did not try to follow suit. But the Mexican stock markets —now there are two— open and close an hour earlier in local time until Mexico’s clocks catch up so that trading hours coincide with those in the US.

Horario de verano still has its fans in Mexico, particularly among office workers who get to go home while it’s still light. There are even people who say they wish daylight savings applied all year round.

Learn more about clocks and time zones in Mexico

Mexico has four time zones.  Most of the country does not move its clocks each year, although certain municipalities along the northern border move their clocks in synch with their sister cities in the US.

• Mexico abandons seasonal clock-time changes
• Mexico’s time zones
• Long daylight hours and the extraordinary light
• Mexico (no) clock-time changes after 2022

In 2022, the Mexican Chamber of Deputies and Senate approved a change in the law that abandoned the practice of the country “springing forward” and “falling back” each year.

The law also allowed for specific exceptions for Baja California state, and border municipalities in the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas to continue applying daylight savings to keep their border cities in sync with the US side.

Although Mexico won’t move its clocks this year, time changes will be apparent during spring and summer months for those in Mexico and dealing with the US and Europe as they do change their clocks.

Spring ‘forward’ clock change effects on Mexico

The United States moves its clocks forward by one hour on Sunday March 10, and Europe moves its clocks forward by one hour on Sunday, March 31, 2024.

When the clocks in those other countries are moved forward in the spring:

• US Pacific Time, that is normally 2 hours behind Mexico City, will be 1 hour behind.
• US Mountain Time, that is normally 1 hour behind Mexico City, will be on the same time as Mexico City.
• US Central Time, that is normally aligned with time in Mexico City, will be 1 hour ahead.
• US Eastern Time, that is normally 1 hour ahead of Mexico City, will be 2 hours ahead.
• The UK and Ireland will be 7 hours ahead of Mexico instead of 6.
• Central Europe will be 8 hours ahead of Mexico instead of 7.

Fall ‘back’ clock change effects on Mexico

Europe moves its clocks back again by one hour on Sunday October 27, and the United States moves its clocks back by one hour on Sunday November 3, 2024.

When the clocks in those other countries are moved back in the fall:

• US Pacific Time, that was 1 behind Mexico City when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 2 hours behind.
• US Mountain Time, that was on the same time as Mexico City when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 1 hour behind.
• US Central Time, that was 1 ahead of Mexico City when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be aligned with Mexico City time.
• US Eastern Time, that was 2 hours ahead of Mexico City when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 1 hour ahead.
• The UK and Ireland will be 6 hours ahead of Mexico instead of 7.
• Central Europe will be 7 hours ahead of Mexico instead of 8.

Learn more about time and time zones in Mexico

Mexico has four time zones; most of the country does not change its clocks in the spring and the fall.

• Learn about Mexico’s Time and Time Zones
• Learn about seasons in Mexico
• Find times by Mexican town, city or state with Time & Date

In 2022, the Mexican Chamber of Deputies and Senate approved a change in the law that abandoned the practice of the country “springing forward” and “falling back” each year.

The law also allowed for specific exceptions for Baja California state, and border municipalities in the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas to continue applying daylight savings to keep their border cities in sync with the US side.

Although Mexico won’t move its clocks this year, time changes will be apparent during spring and summer months for those in Mexico and dealing with the US and Europe as they do change their clocks.

Spring ‘forward’ clock change effects on Mexico

The United States moves its clocks forward by one hour on Sunday March 12, and Europe moves its clocks forward by one hour on Sunday, March 26, 2023.

When the clocks in those other countries are moved forward in the spring:

• US Pacific Time, that is normally 2 hours behind Mexico City, will be 1 hour behind.
• US Mountain Time, that is normally 1 hour behind Mexico City, will be on the same time as Mexico City.
• US Central Time, that is normally aligned with time in Mexico City, will be 1 hour ahead.
• US Eastern Time, that is normally 1 hour ahead of Mexico City, will be 2 hours ahead.
• The UK and Ireland will be 7 hours ahead of Mexico instead of 6.
• Central Europe will be 8 hours ahead of Mexico instead of 7.

Fall ‘back’ clock change effects on Mexico

Europe moves its clocks back again by one hour on Sunday, October 29, and the United States moves its clocks back by one hour on Sunday November 5, 2023.

When the clocks in those other countries are moved back in the fall:

• US Pacific Time, that was 1 behind Mexico City when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 2 hours behind.
• US Mountain Time, that was on the same time as Mexico City when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 1 hour behind.
• US Central Time, that was 1 ahead of Mexico City when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be aligned with Mexico City time.
• US Eastern Time, that was 2 hours ahead of Mexico City when the clocks moved forward, will revert to be 1 hour ahead.
• The UK and Ireland will be 6 hours ahead of Mexico instead of 7.
• Central Europe will be 7 hours ahead of Mexico instead of 8.

Learn more about time and time zones in Mexico

Mexico has four time zones; most of the country does not change its clocks in the spring and the fall.

• Learn about Mexico’s Time and Time Zones
• Learn about seasons in Mexico
• Find times by Mexican town, city or state with Time & Date

Fall Clock Changes in Mexico 2022
(“Fall Back”)

DST in most of Mexico and Baja California Sur will end on Sunday October 30th 2022, when the clocks will be moved back again by one hour at 2 a.m.

The state of Baja California (not to be confused with Baja California Sur) and Mexican cities immediately bordering the US (including Juárez, Reynosa, and Matamoros) clocks move back one hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday November 6th, 2022.

Learn more about time and time zones in Mexico

Mexico has several time zones and most states move their clocks forward in the spring and back in the autumn.

• Learn about Mexico’s Time and Time Zones
• Learn about Mexico’s annual clock-time changes
• Learn about seasons in Mexico

Members of the Chamber of Deputies voted overwhelmingly in favor of eliminating the practice —only eight voted against— so one can infer that the decision is expected to be widely popular.  On October 25th, 2022, the Mexican Senate approved a change in the law eliminates the practice of “springing forward” and “falling back,” and the time will return to what it was before daylight savings was introduced in 1996.

Clock-changes were never that popular in Mexico

People living in Mexico will know that the time change, with clocks going forward an hour in the spring and back an hour in the fall, has never been popular here.

Many doubted the assertion that it reduced overall demand for electricity and were certain that it did nothing to lower their electricity bills. In any event, Mexico’s geography endows the country with good daylight all year round, regardless of any clock changes.

A survey conducted by the Interior Ministry reported that 71% of people oppose daylight savings time and 29% support it.

In proposing its elimination this year, government officials cited studies that found the energy savings to be negligible —less than 1% of demand— and that people took at least two weeks to adjust to the change, affecting the amount of sleep they got. Some studies, they said, even suggested other health problems could be associated with the changes.

However accurate these studies may be —previous studies cited in favor of daylight savings by past governments had suggested no related health problems and significant energy savings— few people are likely to be crying out for a clock change in the spring.

Border cities will stay in synch with the US

There are some exceptions to the new rule. The state of Sonora, which borders Arizona, was already exempt from daylight savings, as was Quintana Roo, home to such popular tourist resorts as Cancún and Playa del Carmen.

This time, Baja California state, and border municipalities in the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas will be able to continue applying daylight savings to keep their border cities in sync with the US side.

Stock markets, traders, and school children

People who work in financial markets may not be so happy. Since the US extended daylight savings to eight months of the year, around 2007, the two exchanges of the Mexican stock market moved their opening and closing times for those additional four weeks to operate at the same time as US markets. That means a 7:30 a.m. start and 2 p.m. close for the first week of November and the last three weeks of March.

Without Daylight Savings Time in Mexico, those opening times could be extended to eight months of the year, and that may even stretch to 12 months if the bill passed by the US Senate to keep Daylight Savings Time all year round in the US beginning in November 2023 is ever passed by the lower house and signed into law.

On the other hand, parents will no longer have to take their children to school in the dark during April and October—the tail ends of the daylight savings period.

Readjusting to no clock-time change

Past arguments about how eliminating Daylight Savings Time could mess up commerce, tourism, airline schedules, etc. have become somewhat irrelevant.

With the advent of the smartphone, younger generations these days, and many of the older generations, hardly use clocks and watches. They get the time and the date from their smart phones and apps—the same ones that tell them how far they walked in the last week, what their oxygen levels are, and when it’s time to have a salad.

Those of us who still manually adjust the date on our watches at the end of February or any other month with only 30 days, will still have to do that. We may not, however, need to wander around the house at 2 a.m. or preferably sometime within the next few days, hunting down forgotten analog clocks that need moving back or forward an hour.

Ultimately, the Mexican expression, a todo se acostumbra uno menos a no comer —you can get used to anything except not eating— will likely apply.

Since 1996, Mexico has been adjusting its clocks in the spring and fall to account for Daylight Saving Time (DST).

Spring Clock Changes in Mexico 2022
(“Spring Forward”)

The state of Baja California (not to be confused with Baja California Sur) and  Mexican cities immediately bordering the US (including Juárez, Reynosa, and Matamoros) clocks move forward one hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday March 13th, 2022.

DST in most of Mexico and the state of Baja California Sur will start on Sunday April 3rd, 2022, when the clocks will be moved forward by one hour at 2 a.m.

Fall Clock Changes in Mexico 2022
(“Fall Back”)

DST in most of Mexico and Baja California Sur will end on Sunday October 30th 2022, when the clocks will be moved back again by one hour at 2 a.m.

The state of Baja California (not to be confused with Baja California Sur) and Mexican cities immediately bordering the US (including Juárez, Reynosa, and Matamoros) clocks move back one hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday November 6th, 2022.

Learn more about Mexico’s Four Time Zones

Learn more about time and time zones in Mexico

Mexico has several time zones and most states move their clocks forward in the spring and back in the autumn.

• Learn about Mexico’s Time and Time Zones
• Learn about Mexico’s annual clock-time changes
• Learn about seasons in Mexico

Spring Clock Changes in Mexico 2022
(“Spring Forward”)

The state of Baja California (not to be confused with Baja California Sur) and  Mexican cities immediately bordering the US (including Juárez, Reynosa, and Matamoros) clocks move forward one hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday March 13th, 2022.

DST in most of Mexico and the state of Baja California Sur will start on Sunday April 3rd, 2022, when the clocks will be moved forward by one hour at 2 a.m.

Learn more about time and time zones in Mexico

Mexico has several time zones and most states move their clocks forward in the spring and back in the autumn.

• Learn about Mexico’s Time and Time Zones
• Learn about Mexico’s annual clock-time changes
• Learn about seasons in Mexico

2022: See clock time changes for 2022

Most of Mexico moves its clocks backward one hour on the last Sunday in October 2021. Some parts of Mexico move their fall clocks backward one hour on the first Sunday in November 2021 (in line with the U.S.).

Fall Clock Changes in Mexico in 2021 (“Fall Backward”)

DST in most of Mexico (except the states of Sonora and Quintana Roo) and Baja California Sur will end on Sunday October 31st 2021, when the clocks will be moved back again by one hour at 2 a.m.

The state of Baja California (not to be confused with Baja California Sur) and Mexican cities immediately bordering the US (including Juárez, Reynosa, and Matamoros) clocks move back one hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday November 7th, 2021.

Learn more about Mexico’s Four Time Zones