France officially recognizes the most time zones, with 12 standard time zones when its overseas territories are included.
France’s European mainland occupies one time zone, Central European Time, but French territories are scattered across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. These include French Guiana, Réunion, Mayotte, New Caledonia, French Polynesia and the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.
During parts of the year, France can be associated with 13 different local times because Saint-Pierre and Miquelon observes daylight saving time while some other French territories do not. The exact count therefore depends on whether the question means standard time zones or seasonal clock offsets.
Russia spans 11 standard time zones across its continuous territory and is often named the largest country by time-zone spread. The United States also has several zones because of Alaska, Hawaii and overseas territories, but France’s dispersed territories give it the highest official total.