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Change Date & Time settings on Mac
Use Date & Time settings to set or change the date and time on your Mac. When the date and time are correct, time stamps on emails, messages, and files are accurate. Learn how to set the date and time.
To change these settings, choose Apple menu in the sidebar, then click Date & Time on the right. (You may need to scroll down.)
Open Date & Time settings for me
Date & Time options
Option | Description | ||||||||||
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Set time and date automatically | Have the date and time on your Mac set automatically using a network time server. Click Set, then type the address of your network time server. If your Mac isn’t connected to the internet, it connects when you choose this option. | ||||||||||
Date and time | View the date and time automatically set on your Mac. To manually set the date and time on your Mac, turn off “Set date and time automatically,” click Set, enter the date and time, then click Set. | ||||||||||
24-hour time | Use a 24-hour format for the time shown in the menu bar. For example, instead of 3:00 PM, show 15:00. | ||||||||||
Set time zone automatically using your current location | Have the time zone on your Mac set automatically based on your current location. Note: Location Services must be turned on in order to determine your current location. See Change Privacy & Security settings. | ||||||||||
Time zone | The time zone automatically set on your Mac. To manually set the time zone on your Mac, turn off “Set time zone automatically using your current location,” click Set, enter a city in the text field, choose a city from the list, then click OK. | ||||||||||
Closest city | A major city in your desired time zone. To change the city, turn off “Set time zone automatically using your current location,” click Set, enter a city in the text field, select the full city name from the list, then click OK. |
You can choose how the date and time appear in the menu bar. See Change Control Center settings.
To choose the formats used to show dates and times in other languages on your Mac, see Change how dates, times, and more appear.
Tip: Click the date and time in the menu bar to open Notification Center. See Use Notification Center.