EST to CST and CST to EST converter

States split between Eastern and Central

The line between the two zones runs through several states, so “what time is it there?” depends on the county, not just the state:

• Tennessee. East Tennessee (Knoxville, Chattanooga) is Eastern; Nashville and Memphis are Central.
• Kentucky. Louisville and Lexington are Eastern; the western half, including Bowling Green and Paducah, is Central.
• Indiana. Most of the state is Eastern, but twelve counties are Central: six in the northwest near Chicago and six in the southwest around Evansville.
• Florida. Most of the panhandle west of the Apalachicola River, including Pensacola and Panama City, is Central. Tallahassee is Eastern.
• Michigan. Four Upper Peninsula counties that border Wisconsin use Central Time; the rest of the state is Eastern.

“8/7c” and other one-hour habits

TV listings that say “8/7c” mean a show airs at 8 PM Eastern and 7 PM Central, the same moment. Network prime time runs 8–11 PM Eastern and 7–10 PM Central, and Sunday’s early NFL games kick off at 1 PM Eastern, which is noon in Chicago or Dallas. For meetings, a 9-to-5 day in New York and one in Chicago overlap for seven hours, from 10 AM to 5 PM Eastern.