When Do the Clocks Change in 2026 in New Orleans?

Short answer: the clocks fall back one hour at 2 am on Sunday, November 1, 2026.

That happens across the United States, when 2 am daylight time becomes 1 am standard time, by the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s rule. In New Orleans, sunset moves from 6:14 pm on Saturday to 5:13 pm on Sunday, by the US Naval Observatory’s figures.

On these darker evenings you can book a private infrared sauna at NOLA Chill, 6045 Magazine Street in Uptown New Orleans, open 7 days and until 7 pm on weekdays: 30 minutes is $30 on your own or $48 for two, and you pay after your visit. The sun sets before 6 pm from now until well into February, so a warm, quiet half hour after the drive home is an easy habit to keep through the winter.

When the clocks change, and when they change back

At 2 am on Sunday, November 1, clocks in Louisiana and most of the United States go back to 1 am, and standard time runs until the second Sunday in March, which is March 14, 2027. The spring change this year was Sunday, March 8, 2026. Phones and computers change on their own, but the clocks on an oven, a microwave or an older car usually need you, so it is easiest to set them back an hour before bed on Saturday night. Hawaii, most of Arizona, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa and the US Virgin Islands do not change at all, by NIST’s list, and Louisiana changes with the rest of the country.

If you saw October 25 as the date for this change, that was the United Kingdom, whose clocks went back on Sunday, October 25, 2026, the last Sunday in October by the UK government’s published dates, a week before the United States.

Sunrise moves an hour earlier on the clock too, to about 6:14 am on Sunday, so mornings get lighter while evenings get darker. Here is how sunset in New Orleans moves through the winter.

Times are the US Naval Observatory’s figures for 6045 Magazine Street, read on October 29, 2026. Other parts of the city can differ by about a minute.

What the earlier dark means for your week

This first week of standard time, the sun sets a little after 5 pm every day, so anything you do after work now happens after dark. If you run on the levee, walk the dog or ride a bike home, that is the week to put a light and something reflective on, and to give yourself a little more time on the road, where it is harder to see people walking and riding.

Your body may take a few days to catch up. If you still wake at your usual time, the clock will now say an hour earlier, and 10 pm will feel like 11 pm until you adjust. The extra hour of sleep may not show up either: a 2013 review of the research in Sleep Medicine Reviews found little evidence of extra sleep on the night the clocks fall back, and a net loss of sleep across the week that follows. Keeping the same bedtime and wake time all week is the simplest way through it, and with sunrise near 6:14 am, there is daylight for a walk or a coffee outside before work.

The weather may add to the gray. NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center leans toward a wetter than normal December through February for New Orleans in its October 15, 2026 outlook, so many of the dark evenings ahead may be wet ones too. Our page on what a super El Niño winter means for New Orleans has what past winters like this one did here.

Dark evenings and mood: what is known

For most people the clock change means a few odd days, and for some the earlier dark brings a lower mood that is worth taking seriously. The National Institute of Mental Health describes seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, as a type of depression with a seasonal pattern that comes back: in most cases the symptoms start in the late fall or early winter, go away in spring and summer, and last about 4 to 5 months of the year, and a diagnosis needs that pattern for at least 2 years in a row.

The clock change itself has been studied too. A Danish registry study of 185,419 hospital contacts from 1995 to 2012 found an 11 percent rise in hospital diagnoses of depression after the change from summer time to standard time, and the rise faded over about 10 weeks. That is one study of hospital records in a country where winter days are far shorter than ours, so it shows a pattern across many people, not that the change causes depression or what it will do for any one person.

If a low mood lasts, comes back every winter, or gets in the way of work, sleep or the people around you, talk with a doctor or a therapist. NIMH describes several treatments for SAD that a health care provider can talk through with you. If you are in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which is free, confidential and open any time of day or night.

A sauna is not a treatment for depression or seasonal affective disorder, and it does not replace care or any medicine you take.

A warm half hour after dark

The private infrared sauna room at NOLA Chill, 6045 Magazine Street in Uptown New Orleans, is open until 7 pm on weekdays, so a 30-minute visit fits after work even when the sun sets at 5 pm. What a sauna can be is a warm, quiet half hour on an evening that is already dark when you leave work, and that may help some people unwind: in a 2019 international online survey of 482 sauna users, relaxation and stress relief were the main reasons people gave for going, and most reported better sleep. The people in that survey chose to answer it, so it shows why sauna users go, not what a sauna does for everyone.

The room holds one to four people and is set to about 175 F (80 C), with the room air usually in the 150s, and staff can set it lower if you ask. Thirty minutes is $30 for one person or $48 for two, with no membership needed, and you can pay after your visit. A 10-visit pack of 30-minute sessions is $200, and one pack visit covers one or two people, so two friends sharing it pay $10 each a visit; packages can be shared or split and last 12 months. The Chill membership is $85 a month for 2 sessions, the 30-minute sauna among them, with 20% off anything extra.

If you would rather skip the heat, NuCalm is a 30-minute guided audio and eye mask relaxation session for $40, and hydromassage is 30 minutes of warm water pressure under a dry bed surface for $30, with your clothes on. Our cold or rainy day sauna guide covers what a visit is like, the infrared sauna page has the room details, and every price is on the pricing page.

NOLA Chill is open 7 days: Mon to Fri 9am to 7pm, Sat 9am to 4pm, Sun 10am to 3pm, with off-street parking in front of the studio, so a weekday visit can come well after sunset.

Who should skip the sauna or ask first

Heat is not right for everyone. Skip the sauna, or check with your healthcare professional first, if any of these apply to you, and step out early if you feel dizzy or unwell.

• A fever or an active illness. Our page on using a sauna when you are sick covers when to wait.
• Pregnancy.
• High blood pressure that is not under control, or unstable heart disease.
• After drinking alcohol, or when you are dehydrated.
• Heat sensitivity, such as with multiple sclerosis.
• Medicines that change sweating, blood pressure or heart rate. A pharmacist can tell you whether yours do.

More for the dark and rainy weeks

• How to prepare for the time change, with a weekend plan for sleep
• How long it takes to adjust to the time change, about a week for most people
• A sauna on a cold or rainy day in New Orleans
• What a super El Niño winter means for New Orleans
• When the next cold front reaches New Orleans
• Where to unwind in New Orleans
• A sleep and stress reset with NuCalm and the sauna
• Sharing a private sauna with a friend
• Flu and cold season in New Orleans, with this week’s numbers
• Our evidence library, with the studies behind every service

How we checked

The date and time of the change are from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the October 25 date for the United Kingdom is from the UK government. Sunrise and sunset times are the US Naval Observatory’s figures for 6045 Magazine Street, in daylight time for October 31 and in standard time after that. What SAD is comes from the National Institute of Mental Health, the sleep and depression figures from the two studies below, and the reasons people give for using a sauna from the 2019 survey. We read each source on October 29, 2026.

• National Institute of Standards and Technology, daylight saving time
• US Naval Observatory, sun and moon data for one day
• UK government, when do the clocks change
• NOAA Climate Prediction Center, seasonal outlook discussion, October 15, 2026
• National Institute of Mental Health, seasonal affective disorder
• Hansen and others, Epidemiology, 2017: the clock change and hospital diagnoses of depression in Denmark
• Harrison, Sleep Medicine Reviews, 2013: daylight saving time and sleep
• Hussain and others, 2019: an international online survey of sauna users
• 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline

Frequently asked questions

When do the clocks change in 2026?

In the United States, the clocks fall back one hour at 2 am on Sunday, November 1, 2026, when 2 am daylight time becomes 1 am standard time. The spring change was Sunday, March 8, 2026, and the next one is Sunday, March 14, 2027.

Do we gain or lose an hour in November?

You gain one on the clock, since 2 am becomes 1 am and Saturday night runs an hour longer. A 2013 review of sleep research found little evidence that people actually sleep longer that night, and a net loss of sleep across the week that follows.

What time is sunset in New Orleans after the clocks change?

Sunset is 5:13 pm on Sunday, November 1, 2026, down from 6:14 pm the day before. Sunsets keep getting earlier until about 5:00 pm in late November and early December, then move later again, to 5:23 pm by January 15 and 5:49 pm by February 15.

When do the clocks go forward again?

Clocks spring forward one hour at 2 am on Sunday, March 14, 2027, the second Sunday in March, and sunset in New Orleans moves from 6:08 pm that Saturday to 7:08 pm on Sunday, by the US Naval Observatory’s figures.

Does every state change its clocks?

No. Hawaii, most of Arizona, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa and the US Virgin Islands stay on standard time all year, by the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s list. Louisiana changes with the rest of the country.

Can the time change affect your mood?

It may for some people. A Danish registry study of 185,419 hospital contacts found an 11 percent rise in hospital diagnoses of depression after the fall change, fading over about 10 weeks. If a low mood lasts or gets in the way of daily life, talk with a doctor or a therapist, and anyone in crisis can call or text 988.

Why did some sites say the clocks changed on October 25?

That was the date for the United Kingdom, whose clocks went back on Sunday, October 25, 2026, a week before the United States. Clocks in New Orleans change on Sunday, November 1.

Where can I unwind after work now that it gets dark earlier?

The private infrared sauna at NOLA Chill, 6045 Magazine Street, is $30 for 30 minutes on your own or $48 for two, with no membership needed, and you can pay after your visit. NOLA Chill is open 7 days: Mon to Fri 9am to 7pm, Sat 9am to 4pm, Sun 10am to 3pm.

NOLA Chill is a wellness studio at 6045 Magazine Street in New Orleans, not a medical clinic, and a sauna visit is not a treatment for depression or any other condition.