Last updated: May 2026
How many days until Christmas, New Year's, your birthday, or any custom date?
Holiday Countdowns
Custom Date Countdown
Birthday Countdown
Day counts are based on your device's local date and time. Holiday dates follow US observances. Easter is computed via the Gregorian algorithm. The live timer updates every second.
A days-until calculation is straightforward: subtract today's date from the target date. The result is the number of calendar days remaining, including both the current day and the target day, or excluding one or both depending on the convention. This calculator shows the number of full days remaining — so "1 day until Christmas" means tomorrow is Christmas.
Holidays that fall on fixed dates (Christmas, New Year's Day, Independence Day) are easy. Floating holidays — like Thanksgiving, Easter, and Labor Day — require a formula. Easter in particular uses the Gregorian algorithm (a mathematical formula developed in 1800) because it's tied to the lunar calendar and doesn't follow a simple annual pattern.
| Holiday | Type | 2026 Date |
|---|---|---|
| New Year's Day | Fixed (Jan 1) | January 1 |
| Martin Luther King Jr. Day | 3rd Monday in January | January 19 |
| Presidents' Day | 3rd Monday in February | February 16 |
| Easter Sunday | Floating (lunar calendar) | April 5 |
| Memorial Day | Last Monday in May | May 25 |
| Independence Day | Fixed (Jul 4) | July 4 |
| Labor Day | 1st Monday in September | September 7 |
| Thanksgiving | 4th Thursday in November | November 26 |
| Christmas | Fixed (Dec 25) | December 25 |
How many days until Christmas?
The Holiday Countdowns section above shows the live count. Christmas is always December 25th. As a quick mental calculation: find the number of months remaining, multiply each by its day count, add remaining days in the current month, and sum them up. Or just use the countdown above — it updates in real time.
How is Easter's date calculated?
Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox (around March 21). The Gregorian algorithm — used by most Western churches — calculates this mathematically without needing an actual astronomical observation. Easter can fall anywhere between March 22 and April 25. In 2026, Easter is April 5th; in 2027 it's March 28th.
What if a holiday falls on a weekend?
For federal holidays in the US, if a fixed holiday falls on Saturday, the observed day is the preceding Friday. If it falls on Sunday, it's observed on the following Monday. So if July 4th falls on a Sunday, federal offices and most businesses observe July 5th as the holiday. This calculator shows the actual calendar date, not the observed date.
How do I calculate days until my birthday?
Use the Birthday Countdown section — enter your birth month and day. The calculator finds your next birthday (in the current or next calendar year, whichever is sooner) and counts the days. If your birthday is today, it shows a special message instead of a countdown.
How many days until New Year's?
New Year's Day is always January 1st. The Holiday Countdowns section shows the live count. To estimate manually: count the days remaining in the current month, then add the full month counts for each month between now and January 1st. For example, from May 19: 12 days left in May + 30 (Jun) + 31 (Jul) + 31 (Aug) + 30 (Sep) + 31 (Oct) + 30 (Nov) + 31 (Dec) + 1 = 227 days.