Time Difference. A two-hour time differences separates Central Time from Pacific Time, with Central Time falling two hours ahead. In official terminology, the Central Time Zone is UTC-06, which means the time in the Central Time Zone is six hours behind the Coordinated Universal Time. The Pacific Time Zone is UTC-08. During the fall, winter and spring periods of legal daylight savings time, the Central Time Zone shifts to UTC-05 and the Pacific Time Zone shifts to UTC-07.