Military Time Converter — 12-Hour ↔ 24-Hour

Free military time converter. Convert standard 12-hour AM/PM time to 24-hour military time and back instantly. Includes the full military time chart. Used in the military, medical, aviation, and payroll. Accurate, instant, no sign-up.

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Military Time Converter

12-hour AM/PM ↔ 24-hour military time

Military Time
1430
2:30 PM = 1430 hours ("fourteen thirty")
Military Time Chart
12-HourMilitary12-HourMilitary

How to Use the Military Time Converter

  1. 12-hour to military — enter the hour, minutes, and AM/PM; the 4-digit military time appears.
  2. Military to 12-hour — enter the 24-hour value (0–23) and minutes to get standard AM/PM time.
  3. No colon in military — 2:30 PM becomes 1430, spoken "fourteen thirty" or "fourteen hundred thirty."
  4. Use the chart — reference the full conversion table for every hour of the day.

Where It's Used

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Military & Aviation

The armed forces, pilots, and air traffic control use 24-hour time to eliminate AM/PM confusion in critical operations.

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Medical & Nursing

Hospitals chart medications and vitals in 24-hour time so 7:00 (AM) is never mistaken for 19:00 (PM).

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Payroll & Scheduling

Time clocks, shift schedules, and international business often use 24-hour time for unambiguous records.

Military Time Guide — How the 24-Hour Clock Works

Military time (the 24-hour clock) counts hours from 0 to 23 instead of restarting at 12, eliminating any AM/PM ambiguity. Midnight is 0000 ("zero hundred"), 1:00 AM is 0100, noon is 1200, and the afternoon continues 1300 (1 PM), 1400 (2 PM), up to 2359 (11:59 PM). The conversion rule is simple: for PM times from 1:00 PM to 11:59 PM, add 12 to the hour (2:30 PM → 14:30 → 1430). For AM times, the hour stays the same except 12:00 AM (midnight) becomes 0000.

The 24-hour system is standard in the US military, aviation, healthcare, public transit, and most of the world outside the US for everyday timekeeping. It's written as four digits with no colon (1430) and spoken as "fourteen thirty." The biggest sources of confusion are the two "12 o'clock" moments: 12:00 AM (midnight) = 0000, and 12:00 PM (noon) = 1200. Using 24-hour time removes the risk of scheduling a meeting or medication 12 hours off — a genuinely dangerous error in medical and operational settings, which is why these fields adopted it.

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Midnight & Noon

12:00 AM (midnight) = 0000. 12:00 PM (noon) = 1200. These two are the most common mistakes — midnight is the start of the day (0000), not 2400.

The +12 Rule

For PM times 1:00–11:59, add 12 to the hour: 3 PM = 1500, 6 PM = 1800, 9 PM = 2100, 11 PM = 2300. AM hours stay the same (except midnight).

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How to Say It

1430 = "fourteen thirty." 0800 = "zero eight hundred" or "oh eight hundred." 2000 = "twenty hundred." 0000 = "zero hundred."

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Global Standard

Most countries use 24-hour time daily. The US, Canada, Australia, and a few others favor 12-hour AM/PM in civilian life but use 24-hour in military/medical contexts.

Military Time FAQ

2:30 PM in military time is 1430 (spoken "fourteen thirty"). For any PM time from 1:00 to 11:59, add 12 to the hour: 2 + 12 = 14, then append the minutes. So 2:30 PM = 1430, 5:45 PM = 1745, 11:15 PM = 2315.
Midnight (12:00 AM) is 0000 in military time, spoken "zero hundred" or "zero hundred hours." It marks the start of a new day. Some contexts write midnight as 2400 to mean the end of a day, but the standard and unambiguous form is 0000. Noon (12:00 PM) is 1200.
For military times 1300–2359, subtract 12 from the hour and add PM: 1800 − 12 = 6:00 PM. For 0000–1159, it's AM (with 0000 = 12:00 AM and 1200 = 12:00 PM). Examples: 0730 = 7:30 AM, 1500 = 3:00 PM, 2145 = 9:45 PM. This converter does it instantly both ways.
The 24-hour clock eliminates AM/PM confusion, which is critical when a 12-hour error could be catastrophic — in combat operations, flight schedules, or medication timing. Saying "1800 hours" leaves no doubt it's 6 PM, whereas "6 o'clock" could be morning or evening. Aviation and hospitals adopted it for the same safety reason.

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