When Do the Clocks Go Back in 2026? How to Adjust Your Sleep

In the UK the clocks go back one hour at 2am on Sunday 25 October 2026. In most of the US, daylight saving time ends a week later, at 2am on Sunday 1 November 2026, when clocks fall back to 1am.

You get an extra hour that night. The easiest way to keep it is to go to bed at your usual time and wake at your usual time on the new clock. The harder part is the following week, when your body may still wake you an hour before your alarm.

When do the clocks go back in 2026?

Where	Clocks go back	What happens
UK	Sunday 25 October 2026	2am becomes 1am
US (most states)	Sunday 1 November 2026	2am becomes 1am, and that hour is repeated

GOV.UK sets out the rule plainly: "In the UK the clocks go back 1 hour at 2am on the last Sunday in October." In the US, NIST, the national time authority, says daylight saving time "ends at 2:00 a.m. on the first Sunday of November", and that for 2026 it runs "from March 8 at 2 a.m. (local time) to November 1 at 2 a.m. (local time)."

Not everyone changes. According to NIST, daylight saving time "is not observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the state of Arizona (with the exception of the Navajo Indian Reservation, which does observe DST)."

Because the UK and US change on different weekends, for the week from 25 October to 1 November the gap between them is one hour smaller than usual. London is four hours ahead of New York that week instead of five. If you call family or join meetings across the Atlantic, that is the week to double-check times.

The clocks go forward again on 28 March 2027 in the UK, and on the second Sunday of March in the US, which is 14 March 2027.

Do I really get an extra hour of sleep?

Only if you take it. In a 2019 survey of 2,003 US adults by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), 41% said they planned to use the extra hour to sleep. The rest planned to spend it on family, relaxing, chores or work.

The AASM's simplest advice for keeping the hour is:

• Wait to change your clocks until it is time to get ready for bed.
• Go to bed at your normal bedtime.
• Just before getting into bed, set your clocks back one hour.
• Wake up at your normal time in the morning.

The AASM also notes the limit: "One hour of extra sleep will not erase a chronic sleep debt." If you are not getting enough sleep in general, it suggests using the change as a reason to keep the earlier bedtime. The CDC recommends 7 or more hours a night for adults aged 18 to 60.

How do I adjust to the clocks going back?

The AASM's more recent tips, published ahead of the 2024 fall change, are:

1. "Get at least seven hours of sleep per night before and after the time change. Maintaining a consistent sleep routine is crucial."
2. "Adjust the timing of daily routines that are 'time cues' for your body, such as your mealtimes or exercise schedule, by shifting them a little later in the days leading up to the time change."
3. Set the clocks back one hour in the early evening on the Saturday, "and then go to bed when you feel sleepy."
4. "Head outdoors for early morning sunlight during the week after the time change, as the bright light will help set your internal clock to the new time."

In practice, for a fixed wake-up time, that means: keep your alarm at the same clock time, get daylight soon after you get up, and keep meals and exercise on the new clock from the first day.

Why do I wake up an hour early after the clocks go back?

Because your body clock has not moved yet. If you normally wake at 6:30, your body is used to that moment. After the change, that same moment is 5:30 on the clock, so you may wake well before your alarm and lie there waiting for it.

The Sleep Foundation says major sleep disruptions are less likely in the autumn than in spring, "however, some people have difficulty adjusting to a new wake-up time." It adds that "for most people, the effects of springing forward or falling back gradually subside over a few days or weeks."

The flip side is that your alarm feels later than usual, which makes getting up easier for the first few days. The risk is in the evening: you may feel sleepy an hour earlier than the clock says, and fight it to keep to your old bedtime. Going to bed when you feel sleepy, as the AASM suggests, is the gentler option.

If you are still tired or sleeping badly weeks later, the CDC advises: "Talk to your healthcare provider if you have problems sleeping."

Does anything else need changing on clock-change night?

A few things catch people out:

• Clocks that do not update themselves. Phones that take their time from the network normally change on their own. A plain battery alarm clock, a car clock or an oven does not. If your wake-up depends on one of those, change it before bed.
• Night shifts. In the US, NIST describes the fall change as "the local time becomes 1 a.m. and that hour is repeated." A shift that runs through 2am that night is an hour longer on the clock. Check how your employer handles it.
• Medicines taken at a set time. If you take a tablet at 8am every day, the 8am dose on Sunday comes 25 hours after Saturday's. For most medicines that is fine: the NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service says "for most medicines, it is acceptable to take a dose up to 2 hours late." Some medicines are more time-sensitive, including insulin, Parkinson's medicines and antiseizure medicines. If you take one of those, ask your pharmacist or diabetes team how to handle the change.

How ReminderIt can help with the time change

ReminderIt places a real phone call at the exact time you choose, in a natural voice that reads your message, such as "It is 6:30. Time to get up, and get outside for some daylight." If you miss the call, you get a WhatsApp message. We explain how scheduled calls behave across the change in Will my reminders adjust when the clocks change?.

You can set it up by sending a WhatsApp message (text, voice note or photo) or on the website, and there is no app to install. You can also set a wake-up or medicine call for a family member, such as a parent who lives on their own; they confirm first.

There is a 7-day free trial with 7 free reminder calls (3 if your number is in a country where calls cost more). After that it is one plan: $7 a month, or ₹299 a month in India, with annual and 2-year options.

The short answer

UK clocks go back at 2am on Sunday 25 October 2026; most of the US falls back at 2am on Sunday 1 November 2026. Keep your usual bedtime and wake time to bank the extra hour, get morning daylight in the week after, and expect your body to wake you early for a few days. Check any clock or alarm that does not update itself, and ask a pharmacist about time-sensitive medicines.

Sources: GOV.UK, When do the clocks change?; NIST, Daylight Saving Time (DST); American Academy of Sleep Medicine, Sleep experts advocate for permanent standard time ahead of fall time change (October 2024); AASM Sleep Education, Fall back to an earlier bedtime as daylight saving time ends; AASM, When daylight saving time ends, 41% plan to 'fall back' to sleep (November 2019); Sleep Foundation, Daylight Saving Time: How This Time Change Affects Sleep (updated July 2026); CDC, About Sleep; NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service, Advising on missed or delayed doses of medicines (updated March 2025).