If your WordPress posts display the wrong time, or if your site is showing content in the wrong language or regional format, the issue could be with your timezone or locale settings. This is especially important for websites that rely on accurate publishing times, local calendars, or region-specific content.

In this article, we’ll show you how to set the correct timezone and locale in WordPress using your cPanel hosting account. No technical background or coding skills are needed!

Why Timezone and Locale Matter

Setting the correct timezone and locale ensures:

• Posts and comments show correct local time

• Scheduled posts are published at the right moment

• Emails and notifications reflect your region’s date and time

• Plugins like calendars and events work correctly

• Content is shown in the correct language or format

This small tweak improves the user experience and prevents confusion for both site owners and visitors.

Method 1: Change Timezone from WordPress Admin Dashboard

If you still have access to your WordPress admin area, this is the easiest way.

🔹 Step-by-Step:

1. Log into your WordPress dashboard
   Visit yourdomain.com/wp-admin

2. Go to Settings > General

3. Find the Timezone option
   You can set the timezone by city (e.g., Asia/Kolkata, America/New_York) or UTC offset (e.g., UTC+5:30)

4. Set the Date and Time Format
   You can also select your preferred date format (e.g., Y-m-d) and time format (H:i for 24-hour, g:i A for 12-hour)

5. Click Save Changes

Done! Your WordPress site will now display all content in the correct timezone.

Can’t Access WordPress? Do It via cPanel

If your site is down, locked out, or you want to apply timezone/locale settings manually, use phpMyAdmin in cPanel.

Method 2: Manually Set Timezone in WordPress via cPanel & phpMyAdmin

🔹 Step 1: Log in to cPanel

Go to yourdomain.com/cpanel and enter your login credentials.

🔹 Step 2: Open phpMyAdmin

• Navigate to the Databases section

• Click on phpMyAdmin

🔹 Step 3: Find the WordPress Database

• In the left sidebar, click your WordPress database name

• Click on the table wp_options (prefix may differ, e.g., abc_options)

🔹 Step 4: Edit Timezone Option

• Look for the row with the option name timezone_string

• If it’s not present, you can add it manually:

  • Scroll down and click Insert

  • Under option_name, type: timezone_string

  • Under option_value, type your timezone (e.g., Asia/Kolkata)

  • Click Go

This overrides the default UTC and applies your local time for posts and scheduled events.

Bonus: Set Locale (Site Language)

If WordPress is in the wrong language, you can change the locale setting via the admin panel or database.

Option A: From WordPress Dashboard

• Go to Settings > General > Site Language

• Choose your language (e.g., English (United Kingdom), French, etc.)

• Click Save

Option B: From phpMyAdmin (if locked out)

• Open the wp_options table again

• Find the row with WPLANG

  • If it doesn’t exist, insert a new row

  • Under option_name: WPLANG

  • Under option_value: en_GB for British English, fr_FR for French, etc.

Save the changes.

Troubleshooting Tips

• Still seeing UTC or incorrect times? Clear your browser and site cache

• Some plugins may override time settings check plugin configs if changes don’t reflect

• If your server’s PHP time zone is incorrect, contact your hosting provider to confirm default PHP timezone settings (you can usually override it via php.ini or .htaccess if needed)

How to Check Server Time (Optional)

Want to check what time your server is running on?

1. Log into cPanel

2. Open Terminal (if enabled) or create a PHP file:

   <?php
   echo date(“Y-m-d H:i:s”);
   ?>

3. Upload it to public_html, then access it via your browser.

Final Thoughts

Timezone and locale settings may seem minor, but they can significantly impact how your website functions. From scheduling blog posts to showing the right language or date format, these settings help your site feel professional, reliable, and user-friendly.

By using WordPress settings or making minor changes in cPanel’s phpMyAdmin, you can take control of your site’s region-based behavior all without needing to be a developer.