Military Time

How 24-hour time works

The 24-hour clock counts hours straight through the day from 0000 (midnight) to 2359 (one minute before the next midnight), with no AM or PM. Up to 1259 the hours match the morning clock: 0900 is 9:00 AM. From 1300 onward you subtract 12 to read it as PM: 1500 is 3:00 PM, 2000 is 8:00 PM. The two special cases are noon and midnight - see the chart below.

Noon, midnight and the 2400 question

Midnight is written 0000 and each new day begins there. Noon is 1200. The confusing pair is 12:00 AM and 12:00 PM in the regular clock: 12:00 AM is midnight (0000) and 12:00 PM is noon (1200), which catches people out constantly. You will occasionally see 2400 used to mark the instant a day ends, but to avoid ambiguity most timetables, the military and this converter use 0000 for midnight.

Saying it aloud

Whole hours end in hundred: 0600 is oh six hundred, 1300 is thirteen hundred. A leading zero is spoken as oh. Minutes are read straight after the hour, so 0645 is oh six forty-five. The converter above shows the regular-clock wording (for example six thirty PM), while the chart below lists the military wording.

The 24-hour reference chart

Working across regions too? The time zone converter handles offsets and daylight saving. Timing something instead? Try the countdown timer.

Frequently asked questions