Load and Troubleshoot MySQL Time Zone Tables

Last updated: August 28, 2026.

Offset values such as +00:00 work without time zone tables, but names such as America/New_York require MySQL’s time zone data. Named zones apply historical and daylight-saving transitions.

Verify named-zone support

SELECT @@system_time_zone, @@global.time_zone, @@session.time_zone;
SELECT CONVERT_TZ('2026-07-01 12:00:00', 'UTC', 'America/New_York') AS LocalTime;

SET time_zone = 'UTC';
SELECT NOW() AS SessionNow, UTC_TIMESTAMP() AS UtcNow;

Operate consistently

• Load zoneinfo data with the platform-appropriate MySQL utility.
• Restart or refresh according to the MySQL documentation.
• Store event instants in UTC where practical.
• Convert for display using an explicit named zone.
• Refresh time zone data when operating-system rules change.

Reference: MySQL 8.4 time zone support.