Ordinal uses two timezones: your computer's local timezone and your workspace timezone. Understanding how they interact helps avoid scheduling confusion.
Your computer's local timezone
This is the timezone your computer is set to. Ordinal uses this for:
Displaying times in the calendar
The time picker when scheduling posts
Default times shown throughout the app
This means: When you schedule a post for 9:00 AM, it will publish at 9:00 AM in whatever your local computer timezone is set to.
Your workspace timezone
This is set in Settings → General and is shared across your entire team. It's used for:
Generating recommended post times (optimal times to post)
Showing a timezone conversion when you hover over any time in the app (from your local timezone to the workspace timezone)
Helping your team coordinate when everyone is in different locations
This means: If your workspace timezone is set to EST, recommended times will be optimized for an EST audience, and hovering over any scheduled time will show you what time that is in EST.
How to set your workspace timezone
Go to Settings → General
Scroll to the Timezone dropdown
Select your preferred timezone (changes save automatically)
Tip: Set your workspace timezone to match your target audience's timezone, not necessarily where you're located.
Common Questions
"My teammate and I see different times for the same post"
This is expected if you and your teammate are in different timezones. Each person sees the scheduled time converted to their own computer's timezone.
Example:
- You schedule a post for 9:00 AM Pacific
- Your teammate in New York sees it scheduled for 12:00 PM (their local time)
- Both of you are looking at the same post — it will publish at the same moment
You can always set a workspace timezone (see section above) - this way both you and your teammate would see a conversion into the same timezone when hovering over any times in the app.
"Recommended times don't match my audience"
Make sure your workspace timezone is set to match where your audience is, not where you are. Recommended post times are calculated based on the workspace timezone.
## Need help?
If posts are publishing at unexpected times or you're confused about timezone settings, reach out to us:
- **Email:** [email protected]
- **Live chat:** Click the chat icon in Ordinal