How to fix Outlook displaying the wrong 2nd Time Zone time

Question

Per Contact Support -- reaching out here for assistance.

Daylight Savings Time happened this past weekend (clocks moved ahead 1 hour). Outlook is improperly showing the time for the 2nd time zone in the calendar. It accurately shows the primary time zone time (Central US UTC-6). The secondary time zone (Eastern US, UTC-5) time is displaying as +2 hours from central daylight time.

NOTE: If it were not daylight savings time, it should show the time Central is now showing, but instead it is adding 2 FULL HOURS.

Answer 1

Hi @Random User,

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A forum.

I understand you’re seeing incorrect time differences in Outlook after the recent Daylight Savings Time change, where the secondary Eastern Time zone shows a +2‑hour offset instead of the expected 1‑hour difference from Central.

This specific behavior - Eastern appearing two hours ahead of Central right after the DST shift - is almost always caused by a display quirk in Classic Outlook’s Week view when using dual time zones and when the primary zone (Central) is west of the secondary (Eastern). During the DST transition week, Outlook can apply the wrong offset across the entire Week view, even though your actual calendar items are stored correctly.

Here are two quick checks to ensure everything else is aligned:

1/ Verify Windows time settings

• Settings > Time & language > Date & time
• Confirm:
  • Time zone = (UTC‑06:00) Central Time (US & Canada)
  • Adjust for DST automatically = On

Outlook uses Windows’ time‑zone database as its source of truth.

2/ Confirm time‑zone selections in Classic Outlook

• Outlook > File > Options > Calendar > Time zones
• Primary: (UTC‑06:00) Central Time (US & Canada)
• Second time zone: (UTC‑05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada) (Ensure it’s not Atlantic Time or a non‑DST ‑05:00 zone.)

Reference: Manage time zone settings in Outlook.

 

Here are a few quick fixes that usually correct the time‑bar display:

1/ Switch the calendar to Work Week view

• Go to Calendar
• Change the view from Week to Work Week
• Check whether the time scale updates correctly

2/ Temporarily set “First day of week” to Monday

This avoids anchoring the calendar view on Sunday - the day of the DST change - which is what triggers the incorrect offset.

Note: Outlook stores events in UTC and applies Windows time‑zone + DST rules at display time. In dual‑time‑zone mode, the Week view may incorrectly reuse Sunday’s pre‑ and post‑DST offset for the entire week. It’s only a rendering issue; the event timestamps themselves remain accurate.

Reference: How time zone normalization works in Microsoft Outlook.

 

I hope this information helps. Please try the steps and let me know whether they resolve the issue. If the problem persists, we can work together to find a solution.  

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Thank you for your kindness and for contributing to the forum.   

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