Military time is the 24-hour clock: hours run from 00 to 23 and there is no AM or PM. It is used by the armed forces, hospitals, airlines, railways, police and dispatchers because “1800” can only mean one time of day. Type a time in either format below — 5:30 PM, 17:30 or 1730 — and the converter shows it in both systems and tells you how to say it aloud.
How to use the military time converter
- Type the time. Standard time can include AM or PM (“7:45 pm”); military time can be written with or without a colon (“1945” or “19:45”).
- Read the conversions: 24-hour time, 12-hour time, the four-digit military format and the spoken form.
If you enter a time with no AM/PM, it is read as a 24-hour time. “12” or “12:00” is therefore noon.
Military time conversion formula
AM to 24-hour: hour unchanged (1 AM to 11 AM); 12 AM becomes 00
24-hour to PM: hour − 12 (for 13 to 23)
The minutes never change. Only the hour needs conversion, and only for the afternoon and evening, because the morning hours are the same on both clocks. The two special cases are midnight (12 AM = 00:00) and noon (12 PM = 12:00).
Examples
- 5:30 PM: 5 + 12 = 17, so 17:30, said “seventeen thirty”.
- 9:05 PM: 9 + 12 = 21, so 21:05, said “twenty-one zero five”.
- 0800: before noon, the hour stays, so 8:00 AM, said “zero eight hundred”.
- 1300: 13 − 12 = 1, so 1:00 PM, said “thirteen hundred”.
- 12:00 AM: midnight is 00:00.
Military time chart
| Military time | Standard time | Spoken |
|---|---|---|
| 0000 | 12:00 AM | zero hundred |
| 0100 | 1:00 AM | zero one hundred |
| 0200 | 2:00 AM | zero two hundred |
| 0300 | 3:00 AM | zero three hundred |
| 0400 | 4:00 AM | zero four hundred |
| 0500 | 5:00 AM | zero five hundred |
| 0600 | 6:00 AM | zero six hundred |
| 0700 | 7:00 AM | zero seven hundred |
| 0800 | 8:00 AM | zero eight hundred |
| 0900 | 9:00 AM | zero nine hundred |
| 1000 | 10:00 AM | ten hundred |
| 1100 | 11:00 AM | eleven hundred |
| 1200 | 12:00 PM | twelve hundred |
| 1300 | 1:00 PM | thirteen hundred |
| 1400 | 2:00 PM | fourteen hundred |
| 1500 | 3:00 PM | fifteen hundred |
| 1600 | 4:00 PM | sixteen hundred |
| 1700 | 5:00 PM | seventeen hundred |
| 1800 | 6:00 PM | eighteen hundred |
| 1900 | 7:00 PM | nineteen hundred |
| 2000 | 8:00 PM | twenty hundred |
| 2100 | 9:00 PM | twenty-one hundred |
| 2200 | 10:00 PM | twenty-two hundred |
| 2300 | 11:00 PM | twenty-three hundred |
Rules and conventions
- Four digits, no colon. Military time is written hhmm, as in 0645 or 2310. A colon (06:45) is common in civilian 24-hour clocks such as those used in Europe and on phones.
- Leading zeros matter. The hours 00 to 09 are padded with a zero so that every time has four digits.
- “Hours”. A time is often followed by the word “hours” when written or spoken: “Meet at 1400 hours.”
- Time zones. Military and aviation use a letter suffix; Zulu (Z) means Coordinated Universal Time, so 1500Z is 15:00 UTC.
Working out durations
The 24-hour clock makes elapsed time easier because there is no AM/PM to juggle: 2230 minus 0745 is 14 hours 45 minutes. Convert to minutes if you need to cross the hour. To add a duration to a start time, use the Hours From Now Calculator or Minutes From Now Calculator calculators, and to total shift lengths in decimal hours use the Time Card Calculator or Hours Calculator.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert PM time to military time?
Add 12 to the hour for any PM time except 12 PM. 3:15 PM becomes 15:15, and 9 PM becomes 21:00. 12 PM (noon) stays 12:00.
How do I convert military time to standard time?
If the hour is 13 or higher, subtract 12 and add PM: 1800 is 6:00 PM. Hours 01 to 11 are AM, 12 is noon (PM), and 00 is midnight (12 AM).
Is midnight 0000 or 2400?
Both are used. 0000 is the start of a new day, while 2400 means the end of the day that is finishing. Most schedules, and this converter, show midnight as 00:00.
How do you say military time?
Say each pair of digits as a number, with “hundred” for whole hours: 0800 is “zero eight hundred”, 1530 is “fifteen thirty”, and 0005 is “zero zero zero five”.
Why does the military use 24-hour time?
It removes any AM/PM ambiguity in orders and schedules. Hospitals, airlines, railways and emergency services use it for the same reason.