France has the most time zones of any country when its overseas territories are included.
France spans 12 standard time zones across Metropolitan France and territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. The total rises to 13 if France’s claim in Antarctica is counted. Metropolitan France itself uses Central European Time, while places such as French Polynesia, New Caledonia and Réunion use different offsets.
The surprising result comes from geography, not from France’s mainland size. Its overseas territories are scattered across several oceans and extend across much of the globe. Russia and the United States have enormous continuous territories and are common guesses, but France’s island and overseas possessions give it the wider time-zone spread.
The count refers to standard time zones, not seasonal daylight-saving changes. Different sources may therefore present slightly different totals depending on whether Antarctica or disputed claims are included.