If you’re asking what time is it now in BC, you’re probably expecting a single, simple answer. Maybe you’re trying to catch a friend in Vancouver before they head to bed, or you’ve got a business call with a firm in Victoria. Most of the time, you’re looking at Pacific Standard Time (PST).
But honestly? British Columbia is a bit of a rebel when it comes to the clock.
Depending on exactly where you’re standing in this massive province, the answer to "what time is it" can actually change just by driving down the highway. It’s not just one big time zone. It’s a patchwork of Mountain Time, Pacific Time, and places that simply refused to change their clocks back in the 70s.
The Short Answer for Most of BC
For the vast majority of the province—think Vancouver, Victoria, Kelowna, and Whistler—BC is on Pacific Standard Time (PST) during the winter and Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) in the summer.
As of right now, in early 2026, the province is currently in Pacific Standard Time. That means it’s UTC-8.
However, we are rapidly approaching the "spring forward" moment. In 2026, the clocks in most of BC will shift ahead by one hour on Sunday, March 8. On that day, at 2:00 AM, the time will suddenly become 3:00 AM. If you’re visiting or living here, that’s the night you lose an hour of sleep but gain that glorious evening sunlight.
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The "Mountain Time" Rebels in the Kootenays
This is where it gets weird. If you head over to the eastern edge of the province, specifically the East Kootenays, they don’t follow the rest of BC. They follow Alberta.
Communities like Cranbrook, Golden, and Invermere are on Mountain Time.
- Winter: They are one hour ahead of Vancouver.
- Summer: They stay one hour ahead of Vancouver because they also observe Daylight Saving Time.
Essentially, if it’s 9:00 AM in Vancouver, it’s already 10:00 AM in Cranbrook. This makes sense for them because their business ties and travel routes are often linked more closely to Calgary than to the coast.
The Places Where Time Actually Stands Still
Then you have the true holdouts. There are pockets of BC that looked at the concept of changing clocks twice a year and just said, "No thanks."
The most famous example is Creston.
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Creston is technically on Mountain Standard Time (MST) all year round. They do not observe Daylight Saving Time. This creates a hilarious situation where, for half the year, they are synced up with Vancouver, and for the other half, they are synced with Calgary.
If you're driving through the Kootenays in the summer, your GPS might have a nervous breakdown as you move between Creston (which hasn't changed its clock) and its neighbors who have.
The Northeast does this too. Dawson Creek and Fort St. John also stay on Mountain Standard Time all year. They don't "spring forward." They just stay put. It’s actually quite peaceful once you get used to it—no groggy Mondays in March because of a lost hour.
Why BC Hasn't Fixed This Yet
You might remember a few years ago when the BC government held a massive survey about whether to stay on permanent Daylight Saving Time. Something like 93% of people said they wanted to stop the clock flipping.
So why are we still doing it in 2026?
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Basically, BC is waiting on its neighbors. The plan has always been to stay in sync with Washington, Oregon, and California. It’s called the "West Coast alignment." If BC stopped changing clocks but Seattle and Los Angeles didn't, it would create a nightmare for trade, flights, and television broadcasts. Since the US federal government hasn't fully cleared the way for the states to make the permanent switch, BC is stuck in a holding pattern, still flipping the switches twice a year.
Quick Summary for 2026
- Most of BC (Vancouver/Victoria): Currently PST (UTC-8). Moves to PDT (UTC-7) on March 8, 2026.
- East Kootenays (Cranbrook): Currently MST (UTC-7). Moves to MDT (UTC-6) on March 8, 2026.
- The "No-Change" Zones (Creston/Fort St. John): They stay on UTC-7 all year long.
Practical Tips for Staying on Time
If you're traveling through the province, don't rely solely on your phone's "Set Automatically" feature. Near the borders of the Kootenays or in the Northeast, your phone might ping a tower in a different time zone and jump the gun.
When booking flights out of Cranbrook (YXC), always double-check if the flight time is listed in Mountain or Pacific time. Most airlines use local airport time, but if you’re driving in from a Pacific Time town like Nelson, you might arrive an hour late for your check-in if you aren't careful.
If you are coordinating a meeting, the safest bet is to use UTC offsets or specify "Vancouver Time" vs "Cranbrook Time." It saves a lot of "Oh, I thought you meant my time" apologies later.
To stay on track, mark March 8, 2026 on your calendar as the start of Daylight Saving and November 1, 2026 as the day we fall back. Until the US Congress and the BC Legislature finally sign the dotted line on permanent time, we’re all just going to keep playing this game of musical clocks.
Actionable Next Steps:
Check your digital calendar settings to ensure "Time Zone Support" is active if you are traveling between the Kootenays and the Coast this month. If you are in a community like Creston or Fort St. John, manually lock your device to MST (UTC-7) to prevent it from accidentally "springing forward" with the rest of the province on March 8th.