How many days until Christmas?

Christmas Day falls on December 25 every year, so the countdown only changes which weekday it lands on.

Christmas dates

Planning around Christmas

Most shipping companies set their last guaranteed Christmas delivery dates in mid-December, and many stores start holiday hours in the first week of the month. If you are mailing cards or gifts abroad, international deadlines usually fall in late November or the first days of December, so the number above is worth checking early.

How many sleeps until Christmas?

Children usually count sleeps rather than days: the number of nights left before Christmas morning. On Christmas Eve there is one sleep left, so the sleeps count is the same as the days count until the day itself.

Christmas around the world

Most countries celebrate on December 25, but several Orthodox churches, including those in Russia, Serbia and Ethiopia, celebrate on January 7 because they follow the older Julian calendar. In many European countries the main celebration and gift giving happen on Christmas Eve, December 24.

Worked example

Here is how the numbers above work out for Christmas 2026, which falls on a Friday. Weekdays and weekend days count only the days in between, so together they come to one less than the days left. September 25 is exactly 13 weeks out, the usual "three months to go" mark, and December 11 leaves two weeks with only 9 weekdays for school or work. With the page open, the browser tab shows the count too, for example "50 days · Christmas countdown".

Common mistakes

Counting today as a day left. On December 1 it is tempting to say 25 days, because the 1st and the 25th are both on the calendar. The gap is 24 days: the count starts tomorrow and stops when Christmas morning arrives.

Planning on the 25th when the day off moves. In the United States, when December 25 falls on a Saturday, federal offices close on Friday, December 24 instead, and a Sunday Christmas moves to Monday. That happens next in 2027. In the UK, Boxing Day on December 26 is also a bank holiday, and a weekend date gets a substitute weekday: in 2026 Boxing Day is a Saturday, so Monday, December 28 is the bank holiday.

Mixing up Advent and the countdown. Advent starts on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, which can be any date from November 27 to December 3. An Advent calendar that opens on December 1 and the church season of Advent often start on different days.

How the countdown works

The count uses your device's date and time zone, so it is right wherever you are. Days left counts calendar days from today to Christmas; on the day itself it shows 0. Weekdays and weekend days count the days in between, not today or Christmas. The live clock runs to midnight at the start of Christmas in your time zone.

Questions

How many weeks until Christmas?

The Weeks box above shows it for today, as whole weeks plus leftover days. From early November there are about seven weeks to go, from Thanksgiving about four, and from December 18 exactly one week.

How many days until Christmas from December 1?

24 days. That is why most Advent calendars have 24 doors: one for each day from December 1 to Christmas Eve.

What day of the week is Christmas next year?

Christmas 2026 is a Friday and Christmas 2027 is a Saturday. The table above lists the next five years. Because 2028 is a leap year, the weekday jumps two places that year, from Saturday to Monday.

When do the twelve days of Christmas start?

On December 25. They run to January 5, the eve of Epiphany on January 6, so they are the days after Christmas rather than a countdown to it.

Last updated November 5, 2026 · Spotted a wrong result? Tell us and we'll check it.