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Alberta Time Is Here: How to Change Your Calendar Time Zone in the New Outlook

Illustration of the new Outlook settings: Settings, Calendar, View, Time zones, with (UTC-06:00) Mountain Time (Alberta) selected and the Save button.
Changed Nov 1
Alberta is now onAlberta Time, UTC-6, all year
Pick in Outlook(UTC-06:00) Mountain Time (Alberta)
Don't use(UTC-07:00) Mountain Time (US & Canada)

Alberta changed time zones on November 1, 2026. The province now stays on Alberta Time (UTC-6) all year, and clocks no longer go back to Mountain Standard Time in the fall. British Columbia and Manitoba made similar changes on the same day.

Outlook doesn't always switch over by itself. If your calendar is still set to the old (UTC-07:00) Mountain Time (US & Canada), it's now an hour behind Alberta, and meetings can show up at the wrong time. Microsoft added a new time zone for the province, (UTC-06:00) Mountain Time (Alberta), and asks Outlook users to switch to it.

The good news: it takes about a minute in the new Outlook. Here's exactly where to click.

⚙ SettingsCalendarViewTime zonesMountain Time (Alberta)Save

First: are you using the new Outlook?

Microsoft now has two Outlook apps for Windows, and the steps are different. Here's the quickest way to tell them apart:

This guide

New Outlook

A Settings gear icon in the top-right corner, and no File tab. Outlook on the web looks and works the same way.

or
Different steps

Classic Outlook

A File tab in the top-left corner. Use File › Options › Calendar and find Time zones there instead.

How to change your calendar time zone in the new Outlook

  1. Open Settings

    Open the new Outlook. In the top-right corner, select the Settings gear icon. Don't see a gear? Select the ... button at the top of the window, then Settings.

    Using Outlook in a web browser? The gear is in the same place, and every step below is the same.

  2. Choose Calendar

    The Settings window opens. In the list on the left, select Calendar.

  3. Select View

    Next, select View. This page holds the calendar display options, including time zones.

  4. Pick your time zone

    Scroll down to Time zones. Open the list under Display my calendar in time zone and choose your zone. In Alberta, that's (UTC-06:00) Mountain Time (Alberta).

    Not sure which one? There's a quick guide for Alberta, B.C., Saskatchewan and Manitoba just below.

  5. Name it and turn on travel remindersOptional

    You can type a Label for the time zone, such as "Office" or "Calgary".

    If you travel, tick When I travel across time zones, ask me if I want to update my time zone, and Outlook will offer to switch for you.

  6. Select Save

    Select Save. Your calendar is now on the new time zone.

    One more thing: meetings that were booked before the change may still be an hour off. Here's how to fix those.

Illustrations of the new Outlook settings. Your screen may look slightly different depending on your version and theme.

Which time zone should I pick?

Outlook lists time zones by their name and their offset from UTC (the world's reference clock). Since November 1, 2026, here's what to choose:

Alberta(UTC-06:00) Mountain Time (Alberta)Drumheller, Medicine Hat, Calgary, Edmonton. Don't pick Mountain Time (US & Canada): it's now an hour behind Alberta.
British Columbia(UTC-07:00) Pacific Time (British Columbia)B.C.'s new zone. Don't pick Pacific Time (US & Canada).
Saskatchewan(UTC-06:00) SaskatchewanNo change. Saskatchewan and Alberta now show the same time all year.
Manitoba(UTC-05:00) ManitobaManitoba's new zone. Don't pick Central Time (US & Canada).

Don't see the new Alberta option? The new time zones arrive through Windows updates. Run Start › Settings › Windows Update, restart your computer, then try again. On a Reality Bytes managed computer, call us and we'll take care of it.

Fix meetings that were booked before the change

Changing your calendar's time zone doesn't change meetings that were already saved with the old Mountain Time zone. Microsoft recommends checking anything scheduled on or after November 1, 2026, especially recurring meetings and events booked far in advance.

  1. Open the event or meeting.
  2. For a recurring meeting, select Edit series.
  3. Select the meeting time, then select the Time zone (globe) button.
  4. Change it to (UTC-06:00) Mountain Time (Alberta).
  5. Select Save, or Send if it has attendees. They'll receive an updated invitation.

Bonus: show a second time zone

Working with a client, supplier or colleague in another province? Outlook can show a second time zone beside your own, so you never have to do the math when booking a meeting.

  1. Go to Settings › Calendar › View, the same place as before.
  2. Select Add time zone.
  3. Under Other time zones, search for a city in the time zone you want, for example Toronto or Vancouver.
  4. Give it a Label if you like, and make sure Show in calendar is ticked.
  5. Select Save.

The extra time zone appears down the side of your calendar in Day and Week view. To change the order or take one away, go back to the same page and use Move up, Move down or Remove, then Save.

Still not right? Quick fixes

The steps don't match my screen

You're probably using classic Outlook. Use File › Options › Calendar and look for Time zones.

Some meetings are an hour off

They were probably saved with the old Mountain Time zone. Update them as shown in Fix meetings that were booked before the change, or ask the organizer to.

The clock on my computer is wrong

Install the latest Windows updates, then check Start › Settings › Time & language › Date & time. Make sure the time zone is (UTC-06:00) Mountain Time (Alberta), or turn on Set time zone automatically.

My phone shows the wrong times

New events in the Outlook phone app use your phone's time zone. Update your phone's software and make sure its time zone is set automatically.

It's a shared or company calendar

Each person's time zone setting only changes how they see the calendar. Everyone else keeps seeing meetings on their own clock.

Want a hand?

If Outlook is still showing the wrong times, or you're juggling calendars across a team, we're happy to help. Reality Bytes clients can reach our 24/7 help desk at 1-888-887-BYTE or through the client portal, and our Microsoft 365 team can set up calendars, shared mailboxes and Outlook for your whole office. Not a client yet? Get in touch.

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