New Year’s Eve 2026: Which Countries Celebrate First and Last? (Full Midnight Timetable)
The new year doesn’t arrive everywhere at once. Midnight on January 1, 2027 sweeps across the planet over 25 hours, starting in Kiribati’s Line Islands at 10:00 UTC on December 31 and ending in American Samoa and Niue at 11:00 UTC on January 1. In New York, Kiribati’s celebrations start at 5 AM on New Year’s Eve morning.
Key facts
- First to celebrate: Kiritimati (Christmas Island), Kiribati, at UTC+14.
- Last inhabited places: American Samoa and Niue, at UTC−11.
- 37 different time zone offsets are in use on New Year’s Eve 2026, so midnight happens 37 times.
- New this year: Vancouver celebrates an hour before Los Angeles, because BC no longer turns its clocks back.
When midnight strikes around the world
New Year’s Eve 2026 is on Thursday, December 31. Here’s when each place reaches midnight, shown in Eastern Time (New York, Toronto), Pacific Time (Los Angeles, Seattle) and London time:
| Place (UTC offset) | Midnight in UTC | New York, Toronto | Los Angeles | London |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kiritimati, Kiribati (+14) | Dec 31, 10:00 | 5:00 AM | 2:00 AM | 10:00 AM |
| Chatham Islands, NZ (+13:45) | 10:15 | 5:15 AM | 2:15 AM | 10:15 AM |
| Auckland, Tonga, Samoa (+13) | 11:00 | 6:00 AM | 3:00 AM | 11:00 AM |
| Fiji (+12) | 12:00 | 7:00 AM | 4:00 AM | 12:00 PM |
| Sydney, Melbourne (+11) | 13:00 | 8:00 AM | 5:00 AM | 1:00 PM |
| Adelaide (+10:30) | 13:30 | 8:30 AM | 5:30 AM | 1:30 PM |
| Brisbane, Guam (+10) | 14:00 | 9:00 AM | 6:00 AM | 2:00 PM |
| Tokyo, Seoul (+9) | 15:00 | 10:00 AM | 7:00 AM | 3:00 PM |
| Beijing, Hong Kong, Singapore, Manila, Perth (+8) | 16:00 | 11:00 AM | 8:00 AM | 4:00 PM |
| Bangkok, Jakarta (+7) | 17:00 | 12:00 PM | 9:00 AM | 5:00 PM |
| Dhaka (+6) | 18:00 | 1:00 PM | 10:00 AM | 6:00 PM |
| Kathmandu (+5:45) | 18:15 | 1:15 PM | 10:15 AM | 6:15 PM |
| Mumbai, Delhi, Colombo (+5:30) | 18:30 | 1:30 PM | 10:30 AM | 6:30 PM |
| Karachi (+5) | 19:00 | 2:00 PM | 11:00 AM | 7:00 PM |
| Dubai (+4) | 20:00 | 3:00 PM | 12:00 PM | 8:00 PM |
| Tehran (+3:30) | 20:30 | 3:30 PM | 12:30 PM | 8:30 PM |
| Moscow, Istanbul, Riyadh, Nairobi (+3) | 21:00 | 4:00 PM | 1:00 PM | 9:00 PM |
| Cairo, Athens, Johannesburg (+2) | 22:00 | 5:00 PM | 2:00 PM | 10:00 PM |
| Paris, Berlin, Rome, Lagos (+1) | 23:00 | 6:00 PM | 3:00 PM | 11:00 PM |
| London, Lisbon, Accra (0) | Jan 1, 00:00 | 7:00 PM | 4:00 PM | 12:00 AM |
| Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires (−3) | 03:00 | 10:00 PM | 7:00 PM | 3:00 AM |
| St. John’s, Newfoundland (−3:30) | 03:30 | 10:30 PM | 7:30 PM | 3:30 AM |
| Halifax, Puerto Rico (−4) | 04:00 | 11:00 PM | 8:00 PM | 4:00 AM |
| New York, Toronto, Winnipeg (−5) | 05:00 | 12:00 AM | 9:00 PM | 5:00 AM |
| Chicago, Mexico City, Calgary (−6) | 06:00 | 1:00 AM | 10:00 PM | 6:00 AM |
| Vancouver, Denver, Phoenix (−7) | 07:00 | 2:00 AM | 11:00 PM | 7:00 AM |
| Los Angeles, Seattle (−8) | 08:00 | 3:00 AM | 12:00 AM | 8:00 AM |
| Anchorage (−9) | 09:00 | 4:00 AM | 1:00 AM | 9:00 AM |
| Honolulu (−10) | 10:00 | 5:00 AM | 2:00 AM | 10:00 AM |
| Pago Pago, American Samoa (−11) | 11:00 | 6:00 AM | 3:00 AM | 11:00 AM |
Who celebrates first?
The Line Islands of Kiribati, including Kiritimati (Christmas Island), are the first inhabited place to reach midnight. They’re 14 hours ahead of UTC. Kiribati moved its eastern islands to this time in 1995 so the whole country would share the same calendar day. Next come New Zealand’s Chatham Islands, 15 minutes later, and then New Zealand, Tonga and Samoa. Samoa famously skipped December 30, 2011 entirely when it moved to the other side of the International Date Line.
Who celebrates last?
The last inhabited places are American Samoa and Niue, at UTC−11. When it’s midnight in Pago Pago, it’s already 1 AM on January 2 in Kiritimati. Technically, the very last places are the uninhabited US islands of Baker and Howland, at UTC−12, which would make the full span 26 hours.
Why Vancouver celebrates before Los Angeles this year
Vancouver and Los Angeles used to share the same time all year. They still do in summer, but British Columbia stopped turning its clocks back in 2026 and now stays on UTC−7 all year. So on New Year’s Eve 2026, midnight in Vancouver is 11 PM in Los Angeles and Seattle. Calgary (UTC−6) celebrates with Chicago, and Winnipeg (UTC−5) with Toronto and New York. Read more about BC, Alberta and Manitoba’s new time.
Celebrate more than once
Because the new year arrives in waves, you can ring it in several times. On the US West Coast, many people watch the Times Square ball drop live at 9 PM, then celebrate again at their own midnight. In London, you can watch Sydney’s fireworks over lunch at 1 PM. Put our New Year countdown on the TV in fullscreen mode for your own midnight.
Calling family at their midnight
Use the table above to find the time in your city when midnight strikes for someone abroad. For example, to call family in Mumbai at midnight from Toronto, call at 1:30 PM. For any two cities, our time zone converter shows the exact time.
How we made this timetable
We took every time zone in the official IANA time zone database (version 2026e) and worked out its offset from UTC on December 31, 2026, then converted the moment of midnight into UTC, Eastern, Pacific and London time. That gives 37 distinct offsets. City examples use each city’s own time zone rules.
Frequently asked questions
Which country celebrates New Year first?
Kiribati, whose Line Islands are at UTC+14. Midnight there is 10:00 UTC on December 31, which is 5 AM in New York and 10 AM in London.
Which country celebrates New Year last?
American Samoa and Niue, at UTC−11. Their midnight is 11:00 UTC on January 1, which is 6 AM in New York.
How many hours does it take for the whole world to celebrate New Year?
About 25 hours for inhabited places, or 26 counting uninhabited Baker and Howland islands.
What time is New Year in Sydney for me?
Sydney reaches midnight at 13:00 UTC on December 31: 8 AM in New York and Toronto, 5 AM in Los Angeles, 6 AM in Vancouver and 1 PM in London.
