It’s incredibly annoying. You glance down at your wrist, expecting to see exactly how much time you have left before your next meeting, and your Fitbit is three hours behind. Or maybe it’s just off by a few minutes. Either way, it makes a high-tech fitness tracker feel like a cheap plastic toy. People usually assume the device is broken, but honestly, it’s almost always a software sync issue or a timezone setting that got tripped up during travel. If you're wondering how do you change time on a Fitbit, the first thing to understand is that you can’t actually do it on the watch itself.
There is no "Set Time" menu on a Charge 6, a Sense 2, or an Inspire 3. It doesn't exist.
Fitbits are essentially "dumb" clocks that rely on your smartphone to tell them what time it is. They are mirrors. If the mirror is showing the wrong reflection, you don't scrub the glass; you change the object standing in front of it. Usually, that means tweaking the Fitbit app on your iPhone or Android device.
The Quick Fix: The Force Sync
Most of the time, your Fitbit is wrong because it hasn't "talked" to your phone in a while. Bluetooth is finicky. Sometimes the app goes to sleep in the background to save battery, and the handshake between the devices fails.
Open the Fitbit app. Make sure your watch is nearby. Look at the "Today" tab and pull down on the screen. You'll see a little spinning icon at the top. This forces a synchronization. For about 90% of users, this is the only step needed. The watch checks the phone’s system clock, realizes it’s lagging, and snaps back to the correct time. If that doesn't work, we have to dig into the actual timezone settings buried in your profile.
How to Change Time on a Fitbit Using the App Settings
If a sync didn't do the trick, your app probably thinks you’re in a different part of the world. This happens a lot to frequent flyers or people living near timezone borders.
First, tap your profile icon (usually in the top left corner of the Fitbit app). Head into "App Settings" and then look for "Time Zone." You'll likely see a toggle labeled "Set Automatically." Turn it off. Seriously, toggle it off. Now, manually select your correct timezone from the list. Once you’ve picked the right city or zone, go back to the main dashboard and force a sync again.
🔗 Read more: iPad 10th gen cases with keyboard: What most people get wrong about turning a budget tablet into a laptop
It feels counterintuitive to turn off "Automatic," but sometimes the app gets stuck in a loop where it's pulling location data from a cellular tower that’s misidentifying your location. Manually overriding it forces the software to prioritize your choice over the network's data.
The Android Bug Nobody Mentions
Android users often have a harder time with this than iOS users. Why? Battery optimization.
Android is aggressive about killing background apps. If your phone decides the Fitbit app is using too much juice, it cuts the connection. To fix this, you need to go into your phone's main settings—not the Fitbit app—and find "Apps." Locate Fitbit and change the battery setting to "Unrestricted." This keeps the link alive so the time stays accurate 24/7.
What if You're Using a Computer?
Hardly anyone uses the Fitbit Connect software on a PC or Mac anymore, but if you’re one of the few who does, the process is slightly different. You have to log into your dashboard on the Fitbit website. Click the gear icon, go to "Settings," and scroll down to "Personal Info." Under "Timezone," you can make your adjustment. Save it. But here’s the kicker: it won’t update until you sync your device through the dongle or the app.
Dealing with the 12-Hour vs. 24-Hour Clock
Sometimes the time is "right," but it’s in military time and you hate it. Or vice versa. Again, you can’t change this on the watch. You have to go to the Fitbit.com online dashboard.
💡 You might also like: The LG Chocolate Cell Phone: Why This Fingerprint Magnet Changed Everything
- Log in to your account on a web browser.
- Click the gear icon > Settings.
- Find "Clock Display Time."
- Switch between 12-hour and 24-hour.
- Sync your watch.
It’s a bit of a hassle that this specific setting isn't in the mobile app, but that’s how the ecosystem is built. It’s a legacy holdover from the early days of the Fitbit Ultra and the original Flex.
Why the Time Might Still Be Wrong After a Reset
If you’ve done a factory reset on your watch, the time will be wildly inaccurate until the setup process is complete. Don't panic. A factory-reset Fitbit thinks it’s January 1st of whatever year it was manufactured.
If you’ve synced, changed timezones, and checked your battery settings but the time is still drifting, you might be looking at a hardware issue. Specifically, the internal crystal oscillator. This is rare. More likely, your phone’s own time is wrong. Ensure your smartphone is set to "Set Time Automatically" in its own System settings. If your phone is five minutes fast, your Fitbit will be five minutes fast. They are tethered at the hip.
Addressing the Daylight Savings Glitch
Every Spring and Autumn, forums light up with people asking how do you change time on a Fitbit because the clocks changed and their watch didn't.
Usually, the Fitbit app handles this. But if it doesn't, do not just wait for it to fix itself. It might take days. The fastest way to kickstart a Daylight Savings update is to toggle your phone's Bluetooth off and back on, then open the Fitbit app. This "re-introduces" the two devices. The watch sees the new timestamp on the phone and updates instantly.
Real-World Troubleshooting: A Checklist
If you are currently staring at a watch that refuses to show the right time, try this specific sequence. It works for the Sense, Versa, and Charge series.
- Toggle Bluetooth. Turn it off on your phone, wait ten seconds, turn it back on.
- Kill the App. Swipe the Fitbit app away so it’s completely closed, then restart it.
- Check for Updates. Sometimes a pending firmware update prevents the time from syncing correctly.
- The "Double Sync." Sync once, wait a minute, and sync again. Sometimes the first sync only handles step data, and the second sync handles system settings.
Summary of Actionable Steps
Stop trying to find a settings menu on the watch face. It isn't there. Your Fitbit is a reflection of your phone's clock and the Fitbit app's regional settings.
To fix an incorrect time immediately:
Open the Fitbit app on your smartphone and pull down on the home screen to force a sync. If that fails, go to Account Settings > App Settings > Time Zone. Turn off "Set Automatically," manually select your timezone, and sync again. For those wanting to switch between 12-hour and 24-hour formats, you must use the Fitbit.com web dashboard, as the mobile app usually lacks this toggle. Lastly, ensure your phone's battery optimization isn't "killing" the Fitbit app in the background, which is a common culprit for time-drift on Android devices.
👉 See also: Finding a macbook air 13 case that actually protects your laptop without ruining it
By taking control of the app's permission to run in the background and manually verifying the timezone, you'll ensure your tracker stays accurate to the second.