COT — Colombia Time
See what COT means, where it is used, and how to compare or convert Colombia Time to other time zones.
How to Convert COT to Other Time Zones
Open the COT converter page: Go to https://www.xconvert.com/time-converter/cot-time-zone to open the visual comparison tool with Colombia Time (COT) pre-loaded at UTC-05:00. This page is useful when you need to line up business calls with contacts in Colombia, coordinate support coverage across the Americas, or check whether a shipment, flight, or market-related task fits Colombian local time.
Add comparison cities: Click “+ Add City” and search for cities you commonly work with, such as New York, Mexico City, or Lima. These are practical comparisons because New York is a major finance and media hub, Mexico City is central to Latin American corporate operations, and Lima shares the same UTC-05:00 offset year-round, which is useful for regional scheduling.
Select a time range on the grid: Click “Select” to enter selection mode, then drag across the COT row to highlight a working window such as 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM COT. That selection lets you instantly compare the same moment elsewhere—for example, 9:00 AM COT is 10:00 AM in New York during U.S. daylight saving time, but 9:00 AM in New York during standard time, which matters when planning recurring calls with U.S.-based teams.
Export or share the result: After selecting a range, use the export options shown by the tool: ICS download, Google Calendar, Gmail, Copy to clipboard, or Share link. This is especially helpful for sending a confirmed meeting slot to a distributed sales team, adding a Colombia-based vendor call to your calendar, or sharing a link so everyone sees the time translated into their own local zone automatically.
About Colombia Time (COT)
COT stands for Colombia Time, the standard time used in Colombia. Its exact offset is UTC-05:00, which means local time in COT is 5 hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and does not vary seasonally.
Colombia Time is used nationally across Colombia, including major urban and commercial centers such as Bogotá, Medellín, Cali, Barranquilla, and Cartagena. Bogotá, the capital and largest city, has a metro population in the millions and serves as the country’s main center for government, finance, technology, aviation, and corporate headquarters, so COT is highly relevant for international business coordination.
Because COT remains fixed at UTC-5 all year, it is straightforward to compare with other regions. For example, COT is the same as Lima and Peru Time (PET) year-round, it is usually 1 hour behind New York during U.S. daylight saving time, and it matches U.S. Eastern Time only during the part of the year when Eastern Time is on standard time. That means when it is 9:00 AM in Colombia, it is 9:00 AM in New York in winter, but 10:00 AM in New York in summer.
COT is particularly important for industries with cross-border activity in the Americas, including BPO and customer support, coffee and agricultural exports, oil and mining operations, aviation, e-commerce, and financial services. Companies scheduling with Colombian teams often compare COT against Eastern Time, Central European Time, and other Latin American zones because Bogotá is a common regional base for Spanish-language operations and multinational support teams.
COT and Daylight Saving Time
Colombia Time does not observe daylight saving time. The offset remains UTC-05:00 throughout the entire year, and COT does not switch to any summer or daylight variant.
For the current year, 2026, there are no DST transition dates for COT—no spring clock change and no autumn clock change. This makes Colombia easier to schedule with than countries that shift clocks seasonally, because a meeting set for 3:00 PM COT stays at 3:00 PM local Colombia time every week of the year.
What does change is the relationship between COT and places that do observe daylight saving time. For example, in 2026, the United States is scheduled to begin daylight saving time on March 8, 2026, and end it on November 1, 2026; during that March-to-November period, New York is 1 hour ahead of Colombia, while outside that period, New York and Colombia share the same clock time. This seasonal difference is a common source of scheduling mistakes for remote teams, recruiters, and clients booking calls with Colombian partners.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does COT stand for?
COT stands for Colombia Time, the national standard time used in Colombia. It is set at UTC-05:00, so it is always five hours behind UTC and is used consistently across the country without seasonal clock changes.
Is COT the same as GMT?
No, COT is not the same as GMT. GMT is UTC+00:00, while COT is UTC-05:00, so Colombia Time is 5 hours behind GMT; for example, when it is 12:00 noon in GMT, it is 7:00 AM in COT.
Which cities use COT?
COT is used across Colombia, including major cities such as Bogotá, Medellín, Cali, Barranquilla, Cartagena, Bucaramanga, and Cúcuta. These cities cover Colombia’s main economic regions, from finance and government in Bogotá to port, tourism, and industrial activity on the Caribbean coast.
What is the UTC offset for COT?
The UTC offset for COT is UTC-05:00. In practical terms, that means you subtract five hours from UTC to get Colombia local time, so 18:00 UTC converts to 13:00 COT.
When does COT change?
COT does not change during the year because Colombia does not currently observe daylight saving time. In 2026, there are no official DST start or end dates for Colombia, so the country remains on UTC-05:00 from January through December.
Is COT the same as Eastern Time in the United States?
COT is only the same as U.S. Eastern Time during the part of the year when Eastern Time is on standard time. When the U.S. moves to daylight saving time—from March 8, 2026, to November 1, 2026—Eastern Time becomes UTC-04:00, making it 1 hour ahead of COT.
Which countries use COT?
COT is specifically associated with Colombia. While other countries may also use UTC-05:00, they usually refer to their local time by different names or abbreviations, such as PET for Peru Time rather than COT.
Is COT the same as UTC-5?
Yes, COT corresponds to UTC-5 year-round. However, using the label COT is more precise in scheduling because it tells people you mean Colombia Time specifically, which helps avoid confusion with other regions that share the same raw offset but may follow different naming conventions or seasonal rules.