Master US-Brazil meeting scheduling with just 1-4 hours time difference. Learn about São Paulo business culture, Brazilian holidays, and optimal overlap windows for cross-American collaboration.
US-Brazil Business Hours: Scheduling Across the Americas
After years of scheduling nightmare calls with Asia (hello, 5 AM meetings), working with Brazil felt like a vacation. The timezone gap is only 1-4 hours depending on which US coast you're on. That's nothing. Compare that to the 13-17 hour torture of US-Japan scheduling and you'll understand why US-Brazil collaboration is so popular.
Here's what you need to know.
Brazil's Timezones
Brazil technically has four timezones, but unless you're working with someone in the Amazon rainforest, you'll deal with Brasília Time (BRT), which is UTC-3.
| Zone | UTC Offset | Cities |
|------|------------|--------|
| Brasília Time (BRT) | UTC-3 | São Paulo, Rio, Brasília |
| Amazon Time (AMT) | UTC-4 | Manaus |
| Fernando de Noronha (FNT) | UTC-2 | Islands |
| Acre Time (ACT) | UTC-5 | Western Amazon |
For business: assume BRT. São Paulo and Rio are where everything happens.
The US-Brazil Gap
| US Zone | Gap to São Paulo | Example |
|---------|-----------------|---------|
| Eastern | 1-2 hours | 9 AM NYC = 10-11 AM São Paulo |
| Central | 2-3 hours | 9 AM Chicago = 11 AM-noon São Paulo |
| Mountain | 3-4 hours | 9 AM Denver = noon-1 PM São Paulo |
| Pacific | 4-5 hours | 9 AM LA = 1-2 PM São Paulo |
Brazil killed DST in 2019 (smart move). The US still does it. So the gap changes twice a year.
DST Effects
| Period | NYC Gap | LA Gap |
|--------|---------|--------|
| Nov-Mar (US Standard) | 2 hours | 5 hours |
| Mar-Nov (US Daylight) | 1 hour | 4 hours |
Notice the pattern? US summer (daylight time) = smaller gap. That's opposite of US-Europe, where US summer makes the gap bigger.
Best Meeting Windows
East Coast + Brazil
Only 1-2 hours apart. Stupid easy.
| Time | NYC | São Paulo | Works? |
|------|-----|-----------|--------|
| 9 AM EST | 9 AM | 11 AM | Perfect |
| Noon EST | Noon | 2 PM | Perfect |
| 3 PM EST | 3 PM | 5 PM | Perfect |
| 5 PM EST | 5 PM | 7 PM | Brazil's wrapping up |
Sweet spot: 9 AM - 4 PM Eastern. Full overlap with Brazilian work hours.
West Coast + Brazil
Bigger gap (4-5 hours) but still manageable.
| Time | LA | São Paulo | Works? |
|------|-----|-----------|--------|
| 8 AM PST | 8 AM | 1 PM | Good |
| 11 AM PST | 11 AM | 4 PM | Good |
| 2 PM PST | 2 PM | 7 PM | Brazil's done |
| 4 PM PST | 4 PM | 9 PM | Too late |
Sweet spot: 7 AM - 1 PM Pacific. After 3 PM Pacific you're hitting Brazil evening hours.
Compare this to US-Europe meeting times — Brazil's way easier.
Brazilian Business Culture
Working Hours
9 AM to 6 PM, with a real lunch break from noon to 2 PM. Not a "working lunch" — an actual break. Sometimes longer.
Don't schedule important meetings during Brazilian lunch if you can avoid it.
How Brazilians Communicate
Some things I've learned:
Small talk matters: Don't jump straight into business. Relationship building isn't filler, it's the foundation.
Warmth: Expect friendly, sometimes personal conversation. It's not unprofessional, it's normal.
Flexibility: Meetings might start a few minutes late and run over. Build buffer time.
Polite but direct: More direct than most Latin American cultures, but softer than typical American bluntness.
Holidays That Shut Everything Down
| Holiday | 2026 Dates | Reality |
|---------|------------|---------|
| Carnival | Feb 14-17 | Don't even try to schedule anything |
| Easter Week | Mar 30 - Apr 5 | Reduced availability |
| Labor Day | May 1 | National holiday |
| Independence Day | Sep 7 | National holiday |
| Christmas-New Year | Dec 24 - Jan 1 | Everyone's gone |
Carnival is sacred. Business stops. People vacation. Don't schedule critical meetings that week unless you want to be ignored.
Tools
Time Zone Converter: See current time in both places instantly. Bookmark NYC ↔ São Paulo.
Overlap Finder: Visualize working hours. With US-Brazil you'll see tons of green overlap (refreshing after dealing with Asia).
Meeting Planner: Suggests optimal times for both sides.
Real Schedule Examples
NYC + São Paulo marketing teams: 10 AM EST / noon BRT. New York's mid-morning, São Paulo's pre-lunch. 30-minute meeting finishes before their lunch break.
LA + Rio dev team: 9 AM PST / 2 PM BRT. LA starts fresh, Rio's post-lunch. Skips the Brazilian lunch window.
Chicago + São Paulo execs: 8 AM CST / 11 AM BRT. Early for Chicago but doable, late morning for São Paulo.
Why US-Brazil Works
Timezone alignment: 1-4 hour gap means real-time collaboration is actually possible. Questions sent in the morning get answers before end of day.
No extreme hours: Nobody's waking up at 4 AM or staying until 11 PM for regular meetings.
Economic factors: Brazil's Latin America's biggest economy. Growing tech scene in São Paulo. Large market. Improving English proficiency.
Cultural fit: Despite language differences, both cultures are entrepreneurial, innovation-focused, tech-forward.
The Challenges
Language: Not everyone in Brazilian companies speaks fluent English. Speak clearly, avoid slang, provide written summaries after calls, use visuals.
Infrastructure: Internet quality varies by region. For video calls, suggest wired connections, have phone backup, allow buffer time for tech issues.
Payments/contracts: Brazilian international payment regulations are complicated. Currency fluctuations (BRL/USD) affect budgets. Get local legal help.
Growing Relationship
US-Brazil business is strengthening: more foreign investment, tech partnerships, trade agreements. Remote work makes distributed teams easier.
The timezone alignment makes Brazil attractive for US companies wanting international talent without the scheduling hell of Asia or even Europe.
Quick Summary
US-Brazil scheduling is easy:
- Gap: 1-4 hours (depending on US coast)
- Overlap: 4-7 hours of shared work time
- No brutal early/late calls needed
- Cultural compatibility helps
Cheat sheet:
- East Coast: Schedule anything 9 AM - 5 PM, nearly full overlap
- West Coast: Morning meetings work best, 7 AM - 1 PM Pacific
Use Meeting Planner for optimal times, Overlap Finder to visualize hours, Time Zone Converter for quick checks.
Compare: US-Europe times and US-Japan scheduling.
Martin Šikula
Founder of WhenestI work with distributed teams daily — whether it's coordinating with developers across time zones or scheduling client calls across continents. I built Whenest because existing tools were either too complex or too expensive for something that should be simple.