Main Difference

The main difference between EST vs. MST is that EST is the time along the east coast of North America, whereas MST is the time zone of North America, also known as Mountain Time Zone (MTZ).

EST vs. MST

The abbreviation of EST is Eastern Standard Time, while MST stands for Mountain Standard Time. The time zone of the Western Hemisphere is called Eastern Time Zone (ET), and the time along the east coast of North America is known as the Eastern Standard Time (EST). The time zone of North America is known as the Mountain Time Zone (MTZ). In the United States and Canada, this is called Mountain Standard Time (MST) or Mountain Time (MT).

EST is UTC-4 or UTC-5, whereas MST is UTC-7 or UTC-6. EST is the period during winter. And during summer, the time zone is known as Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). MST is at the standard time and the period during the shortest days of autumn and winter. At the daylight savings time, it is known as Mountain Daylight Time (MDT). EST is 2 hours before MST; on the other hand, MST is two hours after EST.

The most convenient time in EST to hold meetings and the like is between 11:00 am and 6:00 pm. In MST, the usual working time is between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm. Concerning the Pacific Time Zone, MST is one hour ahead of it. When talking about the Central Time Zone, MST is one hour behind it. States that observe EST are New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The states that follow the MST are the states of Texas, Kansas, Utah, and Arizona.

Comparison Chart

What is EST?

EST is the time zone followed in North America. It is 5 hours before the Greenwich observatory or Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). As the earth revolves on its axis around the sun so, different places are having different time zones. Due to the difference in time zone, there is nighttime at one end of the world, during the daytime in another. The time zone of the earth is bounded by different longitudinal lines. These lines include uniform standards or local time.

So the total central time zones are 24, which are based on the (GMT) Greenwich Mean Time or (UTC) Coordinated Universal Time. The Time zones are adjusted with the change in seasons. ‘Standard time’ gets converted to the ‘daylight savings time’ zone. In summer, it changes to ‘summertime’ zone, which is standard time plus one hour.

EST is used in the following countries: Bahamas, Canada, Haiti, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Mexico, Panama, Turks & Caicos Is, United States. The principal city in the EST timezone is New York City from the USA with other main cities, e.g., Toronto, Montreal, Brooklyn, Borough of Queens. EST is known to be one of the standard time zones. But for daylight saving in some places during summer, it observes Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).

States/Regions that Observe EST

• Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia
• Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey
• Ohio
• Rhode Island
• Virginia
• South Carolina
• Maryland
• New Hampshire
• North Carolina
• Pennsylvania
• Vermont
• West Virginia
• The Canadian provinces
• Territories of Ontario, Quebec, Nunavut, and Iqaluit
• Countries of Mexico, Panama
• Several South American countries

What is MST?

MST is known to be the time zone of North America. It is also known as Mountain Time Zone (MTZ). In the United States and Canada, it is known as Mountain Time (MT) or (MST). It is 7 hours back to the standard time, i.e., Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) of North America. It is used in the following countries: Canada, Mexico, United States. MST is UTC-7 or UTC-6.

MST is observing the meantime of the 105th meridian west of the Greenwich Observatory. In MST, the usual working time is between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm. The largest city that includes the MST timezone is Ciudad Juarez from Mexico. It is having a population of almost 1.512 million people. Other main cities in this area are Calgary, Phoenix, Chihuahua, and Edmonton.

MST is the standard timezone that adjusts the time for one hour forward for daylight saving during summer and known as Mountain Daylight Time (MDT). The annual start and end of MST are on the same date and time. At the start, the clocks are set one hour back at 2:00 (2:00 am) local time. In the end, the clocks were set one hour before at 2:00 (2:00 am) local time.

States/Regions that Observe MST

• Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and the Northwestern Territories
• Phoenix
• Arizona
• Colorado states
• New Mexico
• Wyoming
• Utah
• Idaho
• Oregon
• North Dakota
• Nebraska
• Montana
• Texas
• Kansas
• Nevada

Key Differences

1. EST is UTC-4 or UTC-5; on the other hand, MST is UTC-7 or UTC-6.
2. EST stands for Eastern Standard Time; on the flip side, MST stands for Mountain Standard Time.
3. EST is according to the mean solar time of the 75th meridian west of the Greenwich Observatory; contrarily, MST is according to the mean solar time of the 105th meridian west of the Greenwich Observatory.
4. The time along the east coast of North America is known as the Eastern Standard Time (EST), whereas the time zone of North America (Mountain Time Zone MTZ) is known as Mountain Standard Time (MST) in the United States and Canada.
5. EST is the period during winter; on the contrary, MST is at the standard time and the period during the shortest days of autumn and winter.
6. EST is the official time in the United States as the capital of the US is located in the EST; on the converse, MST is the time of the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and the Northwestern Territories.
7. States that observe EST are New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, while the states that follow the MST are the states of Texas, Kansas, Utah, and Arizona.
8. EST is 2 hours before MST; conversely, MST is two hours after EST.
9. Concerning the Pacific Time Zone, EST is one hour ahead of it; on the other side, when talking about Central Time Zone, MST is one hour behind it.

Conclusion

EST (Eastern Standard Time) and MST (Mountain Standard Time) are the two different time zones that are followed by different regions of the world.