Military time converter

How to use the military time converter

1. Choose the direction. Military to 12-hour turns 1630 into 4:30 PM. 12-hour to military turns 4:30 PM into 1630.
2. Type the time. Military time works with or without the colon: 1630, 16:30 and 1630 hours all give the same answer, and a short form such as 930 is read as 0930. For 12-hour time, add AM or PM; "noon" and "midnight" work too.
3. Read the answer in all three forms: military (1630), 24-hour with a colon (16:30) and 12-hour (4:30 PM). Time now fills in the current time from your device's clock.

The full chart below the converter lists every hour of the day. Use Print chart to print it on its own, or save it as a PDF.

How to convert military time

Military time counts the hours of the day from 00 to 23, so there is no AM or PM. It is always written with four digits: the first two are the hour and the last two are the minutes.

Military to 12-hour:

• From 0100 to 1159, it is the same as the morning time: 0930 is 9:30 AM.
• From 1200 to 1259, it is 12-something PM: 1215 is 12:15 PM.
• From 1300 to 2359, take 12 away from the hour and add PM: 1630 is 16 − 12 = 4, so 4:30 PM.
• From 0000 to 0059, the hour is 12 AM: 0045 is 12:45 AM.

12-hour to military: for PM times from 1:00 PM to 11:59 PM, add 12 to the hour (4:30 PM is 1630). For AM times, write the hour with two digits (9:05 AM is 0905). The two exceptions are 12 AM, which becomes 00 (12:30 AM is 0030), and 12 PM, which stays 12 (12:30 PM is 1230).

Midnight and noon: 0000, 1200 and 2400

Midnight and noon are where most mistakes happen. In 12-hour time, 12 AM is usually read as midnight and 12 PM as noon, but the labels are confusing. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) says "12 a.m. and 12 p.m. are ambiguous and should not be used," and points out that "noon is neither before noon nor after noon".

The 24-hour clock avoids the problem. NIST describes using "0000 to refer to midnight at the beginning of a given day (or date) and 2400 to designate the end of a given day (or date)."

• 0000 is midnight at the start of a day. A shift starting at 0000 on Tuesday starts the moment Monday ends.
• 2400 is midnight at the end of a day. It is the same moment as 0000 the next day, and is useful for closing times and deadlines: "open until 2400 on Friday" leaves no doubt about which midnight is meant.
• 1200 is noon. It is 12:00 PM in 12-hour time.

The converter accepts 2400 and shows it as midnight at the end of the day. After 2359, clocks normally roll over to 0000, so you will not see 2401 or anything later. If you are writing a deadline in 12-hour time, saying "11:59 PM" or "12:01 AM" also avoids any doubt.

With or without the colon

Both forms are the same time. Military time is usually written as four digits with no colon, sometimes followed by "hours": 1630 hours. Outside the military, the 24-hour clock is often written with a colon, as on phones, computers and many timetables: 16:30. The converter shows both, so you can copy whichever your form, rota or schedule asks for.

When you type, a leading zero is optional: 930, 0930 and 09:30 are all 9:30 AM. Two digits on their own are read as whole hours, so 7 is 0700.

Questions and answers

Sources

Checked on 7 October 2026. If a rule has changed, please tell us.

• NIST: Times of Day FAQs (12 a.m., 12 p.m., 0000 and 2400)