Yokohama vs Seoul Time Difference: key details
The clocks in Yokohama and Seoul read the same digits, always. Both cities sit on UTC+9, and neither one touches the hour hand for summer. South Korea last observed daylight saving in 1988. Japan dropped it in 1952. The offset is locked.
A 9:00 start in Yokohama is a 9:00 start in Seoul. A 14:00 JST deadline is a 14:00 KST deadline. No mental arithmetic. No double-checking. That makes this pair the simplest cross-border schedule in East Asia. Yokohama vs Shanghai runs an hour behind. Yokohama vs Singapore runs an hour behind. Here, the number never moves.
When to call. Any hour that works in one city works in the other. Standard office hours, typically 9:00 to 17:30, align exactly. Lunch breaks fall together. The only variable worth a calendar check is public holidays: Japan and South Korea observe different dates. Golden Week in Japan, for instance, clusters four holidays in late April and early May and can close offices while Seoul stays open. See the Japan Public Holidays 2026 list before locking in spring meetings.
Travel time. A flight from Haneda or Narita to Incheon takes roughly two to two and a half hours. No jet lag. You land at the same local time you left. A 9:00 departure from Yokohama, allowing 90 minutes to reach the airport, puts you in Seoul before midday. The return leg works identically.
The one edge case. When the US or Europe shifts its clocks in March and November, the gap between JST/KST and those regions widens or narrows by an hour. The Yokohama, Seoul schedule stays frozen. The rule is simple: Yokohama time equals Seoul time, every day of the year.
Quick Reference: Yokohama ↔ Seoul
| Situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Scheduling a meeting | Pick any time. No conversion. |
| Calling from abroad | Dial +81 for Yokohama, +82 for Seoul. Same time applies. |
| Booking a flight | 2-2.5 hours. No time zone adjustment needed. |
| Checking deadlines | If it's 17:00 in Yokohama, it's 17:00 in Seoul. |
For more on how Yokohama’s time zone works, see the Yokohama Time Zone guide.