France has the largest number of time zones when its overseas territories are included.
France observes 12 standard time zones across its metropolitan and overseas territories, and parts of the country can involve a 13th local time during daylight-saving arrangements. This unusual record comes from France’s territories scattered across the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, and Southern oceans.
Metropolitan France uses Central European Time in winter and Central European Summer Time in summer. Overseas France includes places such as French Guiana, Réunion, New Caledonia, French Polynesia, and the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.
Russia is often assumed to hold this record because its contiguous territory spans 11 time zones. The comparison changes when overseas territories are counted: France’s global territorial footprint gives it more time zones despite its much smaller mainland area.