Is Your Android Phone Showing the Wrong Time? Here’s How to Fix It

Sometimes the clock on an Android phone can show the wrong time. If this happens to you, here are four ways to solve the problem.

Automatic time and date setting is a handy feature on Android. You don’t have to worry about setting the time even if you get a brand new phone. However, you can sometimes find that your phone’s clock is off by a few minutes or, in extreme cases, up to a full hour.

This error can be a major inconvenience if you don’t catch it early enough. You might miss a critical alert or get into trouble if you’re working on a tight schedule. What is causing this problem and what can you do to fix it?

Why your Android phone shows the wrong time

There are three possible reasons why your phone is showing the wrong time:

• You accidentally turned that off Automatic time and date setting. You may have played around with the numbers unintentionally.
• You may have set the wrong time zone if the Automatic date and time setting is off.
• The error may come from your wireless service provider or connecting to a third-party Wi-Fi network.

You can correct the wrong time on your Android device using at least one of the following four methods.

1. Turn automatic date settings on and off

Go to Settings > General Management or System > Date and Time and turn the Automatic date and time switch off and on again. These settings may vary slightly depending on the device.

In most cases, this action should set your watch to the exact time. You can still enjoy the benefits of automatic time and date settings, especially if you change time zones frequently.

2. Reboot your phone

Rebooting your phone will erase any temporary bugs that may be affecting your device’s functionality. The good old tech support trick of turning a device off and on again. Try this option if you disable and re-enable it Automatic date and time setting does not work.

3. Disable automatic date and time setting

Go to Settings > General Management or System > Date and Time and then turn the Automatic date and time unbutton. Set the time manually and keep using your device. Also, make sure your phone is set to the correct time zone – follow the steps shown above and go to Select time zone and choose the appropriate one.

This approach is most effective, especially when you experience wrong times multiple times within a given period of time. However, remember that you will need to set the time and date each time you travel to a different time zone.

4. Update your operating system or perform a hard reset

If none of the other steps work, check if a system update is available for your device. Updating Android can get rid of any bugs that may have been messing with your time settings. You can take the more drastic measure and perform a hard reset on your phone if the system update doesn’t solve the problem.

Correct the wrong time on your Android device

Your device’s clock will show the wrong time more than once a year as long as automatic time and date adjustment is enabled. However, you may not always notice it as your clock corrects itself if your network or provider is the culprit. To avoid this problem permanently, turn off the automatic time and date completely.