K-Drama Binge watchers, this is not for you (or maybe not).

Now to my dear episodic gurus, if you’ve ever been awake at 2 a.m. waiting for a K-Drama episode to drop, you’re not alone.

By that time, it’s broad daylight in Seoul. People are already commuting, going about their daily life, and literally living in the future because Korea’s not just ahead in skincare and fashion; it’s ahead in time.

Let’s talk about how the world’s clocks favor Koreans so much that they are even literally ahead of some of us.

Korea vs Nigeria  

South Korea runs on KST (Korea Standard Time), which is UTC +9, while Nigeria moves at WAT (West Africa Time), UTC +1. That’s a whopping 8-hour gap. When it’s 8 a.m. in Seoul, it’s midnight in Lagos. Koreans are getting ready for work, and Nigerians are probably sleeping off on their bed already while there is one K-Drama fan waiting for the next episode of “Bon Appetit Your Majesty” to air.  

Korea vs USA  

It gets interesting here because America cannot stick to one time zone, but guess who is less concerned about it? Korea,

Here’s how it stands in October:

• New York (Eastern Time, UTC -4) → 13 hours behind Korea

• Chicago (Central Time, UTC -5) → 14 hours behind

• Denver (Mountain Time, UTC -6) → 15 hours behind

• Los Angeles (Pacific Time, UTC -7) → 16 hours behind

Which means if you are in the US, your location determines how quickly you have access to Korean content.

Korea vs Philippines

Luckily for the Philippines, it runs on Philippine Standard Time (PHT), UTC +8, which means it’s just 1 hour behind Korea. If it’s 9 a.m. in Seoul, it’s 8 a.m. in Manila. This is why Filipino fans are always the first to trend hashtags.

Korea vs India  

India follows Indian Standard Time (IST), UTC +5:30, meaning Korea is 3 hours and 30 minutes ahead. So when it’s 9 a.m. in Seoul, it’s 5:30 a.m. in Mumbai. Koreans are already in their offices, and Indians are still contemplating getting 5 more minutes of sleep or getting out of bed before it is too late.

Korea vs Canada  

Canada’s another time-zone roller coaster, depending on where you live, just like the US.

• Toronto (Eastern Time, UTC -4) → 13 hours behind

• Winnipeg (Central Time, UTC -5) → 14 hours behind

• Vancouver (Pacific Time, UTC -7) → 16 hours behind

Basically, when Koreans are eating dinner, Canadians are still making breakfast.

Korea vs UK  

The UK is currently in British Summer Time (BST), which is UTC+1. Once DST ends, it reverts to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT, UTC +0). So for now, Korea is 8 hours ahead, but once BST ends in late October, it becomes 9 hours ahead. So by the time Londoners say “goodnight,” Seoul has already started the next day’s activities.

Korea really lives in the future, and now you know why they seem to be ahead of the world in almost everything. No matter where you are, your Korean faves have already done half a day’s work before you’ve even had your morning coffee.

Now we know why some people are quick to drop spoilers when we’ve not even seen the series.