Enter a time in either format and the tool converts it: 12-hour time with AM or PM to 24-hour time, also called military time, and back. In the 24-hour system the day runs from 0000 to 2359, 12 AM is 00, and PM hours have 12 added, so 1 PM is 13. Enter minutes as two digits.
Military time is written without a colon in some contexts, such as 1830, and read as eighteen thirty.
Military Time Converter: worked example
| Time | 5:45 PM |
|---|---|
| 24-hour (military) time | 17:45 |
| 12-hour time | 5:45 PM |
Military Time Converter: formula
NIST: Official U.S. Time · NIST: Times of day and midnight notation
Common error: Adding 12 to every hour. Morning hours stay as they are, and 12 PM stays 12, so only 1 PM to 11 PM gain twelve.
Conventions differ on whether midnight is 0000 or 2400 and on spoken forms such as oh-hundred. Some contexts write a colon and others do not. Time zones are not included, so 1400 in one zone differs from 1400 elsewhere.
The tool converts clock notation only, not dates. A 23:30 departure followed by a 90-minute journey ends at 01:00 on the next calendar day; formatting 01:00 as 1:00 AM does not carry that date. NIST distinguishes 0000 at the beginning of a named day from 2400 at its end.
The associated date matters.
Military Time Converter: changing Time
| Time | 24-hour (military) time | 12-hour time |
|---|---|---|
| 4:45 PM | 16:45 | 4:45 PM |
| 5:15 PM | 17:15 | 5:15 PM |
| 5:45 PM (example) | 17:45 | 5:45 PM |
| 6:15 PM | 18:15 | 6:15 PM |
| 6:45 PM | 18:45 | 6:45 PM |
Military Time Converter: individual input comparisons
| Input | Value | 24-hour (military) time | 12-hour time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 4:45 PM | 16:45 | 4:45 PM |
| 5:15 PM | 17:15 | 5:15 PM | |
| 5:45 PM | 17:45 | 5:45 PM | |
| 6:15 PM | 18:15 | 6:15 PM | |
| 6:45 PM | 18:45 | 6:45 PM |
Military Time Converter: values and definitions
| Quantity and definition | Value used |
|---|---|
| Time | 5:45 PM |
| 24-hour (military) time | 17:45 |
| 12-hour time | 5:45 PM |
Time & Clock calculators: Hours and Minutes ↔ Decimal Hours Calculator, Sleep Calculator, Time Card Calculator, Add Time Calculator, Time Zone Calculator.
Military time counts the hours from 00 to 23 and drops AM and PM. Midnight is 00:00, noon is 12:00, and every hour after noon adds twelve, so 5:45 PM becomes 17:45. The two ambiguous points are midnight and noon: 12 AM is 00, and 12 PM is 12.
Getting those two backward is the most common mistake in a shift schedule or a flight log.
Look at the 12 o'clock cases twice. A 12:30 AM appointment is 00:30, not 12:30, and the day it belongs to is the one that just started.
Add or subtract time on the add time calculator, find the gap between two times on the time duration page, and convert between zones on the time zone calculator. The time card and hours to decimal pages work with shift times. The sleep calculator works with wake and bedtimes.
Is midnight 0000 or 2400?
Both are used. 0000 is the start of the day and 2400 the end of the day, and most systems write midnight as 0000.
Why is military time used?
It removes AM and PM confusion, which matters in operations, aviation and healthcare where errors have consequences.
How do I convert PM time to military time?
Add 12 to the hour for times from 1 PM to 11 PM, so 3 PM becomes 15:00. Noon stays 12:00.