Fix SharePoint Date and Time Column Showing the Wrong Time
Question details
The user needs to correct the time displayed in a SharePoint Date/Time column that is populated via Power Automate, which currently shows an incorrect time due to UTC to regional time zone conversions.
- Product
- Microsoft SharePoint and Power Automate
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Populating a SharePoint list or document library Date/Time column automatically using a Power Automate flow.
- Observed behavior
- The Date/Time column displays the wrong time (often offset by several hours or rounded) compared to the raw data supplied by Power Automate, typically because the input is in UTC.
Temporarily change your SharePoint column type from Date/Time to 'Single line of text' to verify the exact raw time string being sent from Power Automate.
Adjust SharePoint Site Regional Settings
Configure your SharePoint site's regional settings to match your local time zone so that UTC values sent by Power Automate are translated correctly.
Power Automate typically handles dates and times in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), indicated by a 'Z' at the end of the time string. If your SharePoint site is set to a different default time zone, it will automatically shift the displayed time.
Navigate to your SharePoint site, click the gear icon (Settings) in the upper right corner, and select 'Site information', then 'View all site settings'.
Under the 'Site Administration' section, click on 'Regional settings'.
Locate the 'Time zone' dropdown menu and select your exact local time zone.
Click the 'OK' button at the bottom of the page to save the changes, then refresh your SharePoint list to see if the Date/Time column now displays correctly.
Convert Time Zone in Power Automate
Use a built-in Power Automate action to explicitly convert the UTC time to your target time zone before writing it to SharePoint.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my SharePoint date column show a 'Z' at the end of the time?
The 'Z' stands for Zulu time, which indicates that the time is in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Power Automate uses UTC as its default standard, and SharePoint relies on local site settings to convert this 'Z' time into your local time zone.
Why does the time show correctly when the column is formatted as single-line text?
A single-line text column does not apply any time zone formatting; it displays the exact raw string provided by Power Automate. A Date/Time column, however, automatically applies SharePoint's regional time zone conversion to the incoming data, which shifts the displayed hours.
Can I use a calculated column to fix the time zone difference in SharePoint?
Yes, you can create a calculated column to manually add or subtract the necessary hours from the original Date/Time column to match your local time zone. However, simply updating the SharePoint site's regional settings is typically a cleaner and more reliable solution.
