Current time in São Paulo

For decades, south-eastern Brazil moved clocks forward each October or November for the southern summer. The government ended the practice by decree in April 2019, citing studies that showed little energy saving as air-conditioning shifted peak demand to the afternoon. The last summer-time period ended in February 2019.

Brazil spans four time zones. Fernando de Noronha and other Atlantic islands use UTC−2, most of the populated south and east, including São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Brasília, use UTC−3, Manaus and much of the Amazon use UTC−4, and Acre in the far west uses UTC−5.

B3, the São Paulo stock exchange, runs its regular equities session around 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM BRT, and it shifts its schedule when US clocks change so that it keeps a steady overlap with New York. Because São Paulo never changes clocks, its gap with New York is two hours in the northern winter and one hour from March to early November. London is three hours ahead during GMT and four hours ahead during British Summer Time. A 10:00 AM call in São Paulo is 2:00 PM or 1:00 PM in London. The BRT to EST page lists every hour, and the world clock compares São Paulo with 68 other cities.

São Paulo sits almost exactly on the Tropic of Capricorn, at 23.5° south. In December the sun rises around 5:15 AM and sets near 6:50 PM, about 13 hours 35 minutes of daylight; around the June solstice it rises close to 6:50 AM and sets around 5:28 PM, about 10 hours 35 minutes. Without summer time, December dawns are very early, which was one argument used for and against keeping it.