Standard time: when the clocks go back in Italy

Pick the year: the tool shows the night clocks go back to standard time, how long winter without summer time lasts and when they go forward again.

Time left until the return to standard time 2027, 31 October 2027

367days22hrs0min0sec

Clocks go back 2027: standard time returns

31 October 2027

On Sunday at 3:00 clocks go back to 2:00: one more hour of sleep. Summer time returns on 26 March 2028.

Summer time starts (2:00 → 3:00)Sun 28 March
Back to standard time (3:00 → 2:00)Sun 31 October
Days on summer time217
October change night25 hours
How this is calculated
Clock changes in the coming years
YearSummer time (forward)Standard time (back)
202728 March 202731 October 2027
202826 March 202829 October 2028
202925 March 202928 October 2029
203031 March 203027 October 2030
203130 March 203126 October 2031
203228 March 203231 October 2032
203327 March 203330 October 2033

Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · Law 260/1949 and amendments checked on 28 October 2026

In 2027 Italy returns to standard time (ora solare) on Sunday 31 October: at 3:00 the clocks go back to 2:00 and that night lasts 25 hours. In 2026 the change was on 25 October, in 2028 it will be on 29 October: always the last Sunday in October, as European Directive 2000/84/EC provides. Standard time, which in Italy is Central European Time, stays for about five months, until the last Sunday in March: from 31 October 2027 to 26 March 2028 is 147 days. With the October change you sleep an hour more and mornings get lighter, but darkness comes early: in December the sun sets in Milan before 16:45. Night workers do one hour more, which collective agreements usually pay as overtime or night work. 31 October 2027 is also the eve of All Saints' Day, which falls on a Monday in 2027: the weekend lasts three days.

The return to standard time in the coming years

Last Sunday in October and last Sunday in March of the next year
YearStandard time fromSummer time again fromDays on standard time
202625 October28 March 2027154
202731 October26 March 2028147
202829 October25 March 2029147
202928 October31 March 2030154
203027 October30 March 2031154

What happens on the night of the change

Under Directive 2000/84/EC summer time ends at 1:00 universal time on the last Sunday in October, which is 3:00 in Italy. At that moment clocks go back to 2:00 and the hour between 2:00 and 3:00 happens twice. Trains and planes follow timetables already worked out; night trains on the move may stop for an hour to keep to schedule. Italy's reference time is the one broadcast by INRiM in Turin.

Anyone on night shifts works one extra hour that night; on the March night, one hour less. How they are paid is set by the collective agreement.

Summer time 2027: clocks go forward

Summer time 2027: clocks go forward

28 March 2027

Summer time starts (2:00 → 3:00)Sun 28 March
Back to standard time (3:00 → 2:00)Sun 31 October
Days on summer time217
October change night25 hours
Spring summer time →

The spring change is on summer time 2027; All Saints' Day and the other autumn holidays on public holidays 2027.

Common questions

When do the clocks go back in Italy in 2027?

Sunday 31 October 2027 at 3:00, when the clocks go back to 2:00. It is the last Sunday in October, as every year. Summer time will start again on Sunday 26 March 2028. Phones and computers change automatically; other clocks have to be set back by hand.

Do you get an extra hour of sleep in October?

Yes, one hour. On the night of the change 3:00 becomes 2:00 again, so the night lasts 25 hours. Phones update automatically; analogue clocks, oven clocks and car clocks need to be put back by hand. Night-shift workers work one hour longer, paid as their contract provides.

Which is the "real" time, standard or summer time?

Standard time is the base time: in Italy it is Central European Time, one hour ahead of universal time. Summer time adds an hour in summer to make use of evening light. Neither matches local solar time exactly, which differs by over half an hour between Turin and Lecce.

Keep going

Summer time 2027

When the clocks go forward one hour

Calendar 2027

Printable, with holidays and week numbers

Public holidays 2027

Italy’s 2027 public holidays with the weekday

Official sources for this page

Prepared by

Publisher of an independent calendar that works out Italy's national holidays, patron saints' days and long weekends

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As of 2026, Law 260/1949 and its amendments checked on