Find the date that is a number of business days away, count the business days between two dates, and see which days in a month are working days.
Working out dates that skip weekends and holidays
A business day is a weekday that is not a holiday. This tool adds or subtracts business days from a date, counts the business days between two dates, and shows each month on a calendar so you can see which days count. For the current month it also shows how many business days are left.
Choose the holiday calendar that fits your deadline: US federal holidays, Federal Reserve (bank) holidays, or weekends only. Holidays are worked out by rule for any year, including the Friday or Monday on which a weekend holiday is observed. You can add your own days off by clicking a date, and count Saturdays as business days.
The Date range tab also gives the calendar days, a breakdown of the days off, and an estimate of total hours and person-months for planning.
When you need to count business days
Shipping and delivery dates
Find the date a package or an order is due when a seller promises delivery in a number of business days.
Contract and notice periods
Work out the last day of a notice period, a payment term, or a review window written in business days.
Payroll, invoices, and bank transfers
Switch to the Federal Reserve calendar to see when a payment is likely to settle, and add your own bank's closures.
Project schedules
Count the working days between a start and a finish, then turn them into hours or person-months.
Working days left this month
See how many business days remain before month end to plan billing, sprints, or targets.
How to add or count business days in 4 steps
- Pick a holiday calendar at the top: US federal, Federal Reserve, or weekends only. Add Saturdays or your own days off if you need to.
- To add days, enter a start date and a number of business days in the calculator, or tap a preset such as 5 business days later.
- To count between dates, open the Date range tab and enter a start and an end date. Both are counted.
- Open the Year view to see the business days in every month of a year, and click a month to jump to its calendar.
Note: Count the start date as day 1 and the holiday calendar change every result on the page, so set them first.
How the tool counts
- Start date: by default the first business day after it is day 1. Turn on Count the start date as day 1 to include a start date that is a business day.
- Date ranges: both dates are included. A holiday that lands on a weekend is counted once, under weekends.
- Observed holidays: a calendar date marked with an asterisk is the day a weekend holiday is observed. Federal employees get the Friday before a Saturday holiday and the Monday after a Sunday holiday.
- Not included: state and local holidays, company closures, and Inauguration Day, which applies only in the Washington, DC area. Add them as custom days off.
- Saved on this device: custom days off and the hours per day stay in your browser. Clearing the browser data or using another device resets them.
- Person-months: the estimate divides business days by 20. It is a planning rule of thumb, not a standard.
Business days per month in 2025, 2026, and 2027
Weekdays that are not US federal holidays, with observed dates applied. Company closures are not included.
| Month | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | Federal holidays in the month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 21 | 20 | 19 | New Year's Day, MLK Day |
| February | 19 | 19 | 19 | Presidents' Day |
| March | 21 | 22 | 23 | None |
| April | 22 | 22 | 22 | None |
| May | 21 | 20 | 20 | Memorial Day |
| June | 20 | 21 | 21 | Juneteenth |
| July | 22 | 22 | 21 | Independence Day |
| August | 21 | 21 | 22 | None |
| September | 21 | 21 | 21 | Labor Day |
| October | 22 | 21 | 20 | Columbus Day |
| November | 18 | 19 | 20 | Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day |
| December | 22 | 22 | 21 | Christmas Day |
| Year | 250 | 250 | 249 | 11 holidays a year |
Why 2027 has one fewer
In 2027, Christmas Day falls on a Saturday and is observed on Friday, December 24. New Year's Day 2028 also falls on a Saturday, so it is observed on Friday, December 31, 2027. Both days come out of 2027.
Where to adjust
Companies often close on other days, such as the days between Christmas and New Year's Day. Click those dates in the calendar or use Add Dec 24 to 31 as days off, and the totals update.
Federal versus bank holidays, and whether the start day counts
The two choices that most often change a business day answer.
A Saturday holiday is not a day off for the Federal Reserve
OPM says that when a holiday falls on a Saturday, it is usually observed on Friday for federal employees. The Federal Reserve schedule says Federal Reserve Banks and Branches are open the preceding Friday.
In 2026, Independence Day is on Saturday, July 4. The federal calendar treats July 3 as a holiday, while the bank calendar does not. For payments and bank deadlines, use the Federal Reserve calendar, and check your own bank's schedule.
Day 1 is the next business day or the start date
Contracts and policies differ on whether the day an event happens counts. With the default setting, a request made on a Wednesday with a deadline of 3 business days ends on Monday if no holiday falls in between.
Turn on Count the start date as day 1 when the wording says the start day counts. Read the wording of your agreement and choose the setting that matches it.
Holidays you may not think of
Juneteenth is on the federal and Federal Reserve lists, and Columbus Day and Veterans Day are days off for many offices that stay open on others.
State holidays, such as a state's own observance days, are not on either list. Add the ones that apply to you as custom days off.
Common business day mistakes
Skipping weekends but missing a holiday
You count forward by hand, skip Saturday and Sunday, and forget a Monday or Thursday holiday. The delivery date, payment date, or deadline you give is a day late.
💡 See the solution▼
Missing an observed holiday
A holiday on a weekend is moved to a nearby weekday. In 2026, July 4 is a Saturday, and the federal day off is Friday, July 3.
💡 See the solution▼
Counting the start date when the terms do not
You treat the day of the event as day 1, but the agreement counts from the next business day, so your end date comes one day early.
💡 See the solution▼
Confusing business days with calendar days
A term of 30 days is read as 30 business days, or the other way round, and the due date moves by more than two weeks.
💡 See the solution▼
Forgetting company closures
A standard calendar does not know your office is closed between Christmas and New Year's Day, so the working days you plan on are not all available.
💡 See the solution▼
Business day calculator FAQ
Q.How do I add business days to a date?
A. On the Calendar tab, enter a start date and the number of business days in the Business day calculator. Weekends and the holidays in your chosen calendar are skipped. For example, 3 business days after Wednesday, November 25, 2026 is Tuesday, December 1, because Thursday, November 26 is Thanksgiving Day. Use a negative number to count back.
Q.Does the count include the start date?
A. Not by default. The first business day after the start date is day 1. Turn on Count the start date as day 1 and a start date that is a business day counts as day 1. With that setting, 3 business days from November 25, 2026 ends on Monday, November 30. If the start date is a weekend or holiday, the next business day is day 1 either way.
Q.How do I count the business days between two dates?
A. Open the Date range tab and enter a start date and an end date. Both dates are counted. The tool shows the business days, the calendar days, and the days off, with a breakdown into weekends, holidays, and your custom days off. For all of 2026 it shows 250 business days, from 104 weekend days and 11 holidays.
Q.Which holidays does the tool skip?
A. You choose a calendar. US federal holidays are New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. Federal Reserve (bank) holidays use the same eleven holidays with a different rule for Saturdays. Weekends only skips no holidays. State holidays and company closures are not included, so add those as custom days off.
Q.What is the difference between the federal and the bank calendar?
A. When a holiday falls on a Saturday, OPM says most federal employees get the Friday before off. The Federal Reserve says its Banks and Branches are open the preceding Friday. When a holiday falls on a Sunday, both observe it on the Monday after. In 2026, July 4 is a Saturday, so July 3 is a day off on the federal calendar and a business day on the bank calendar. Choose the one that matches your deadline.
Q.Can I add my own days off or count Saturdays?
A. Yes. Click any date in the calendar to mark it as a custom day off, and click it again to remove it. Add Dec 24 to 31 as days off adds that week in one click. Count Saturdays as business days is for a six-day week. Your custom days are saved in your browser on this device, and Clear custom days off removes them all.
Q.How many business days are left in this month?
A. Open the Calendar tab on the current month. The summary shows the business days left this month, counting today if it is a business day. It does not appear when you are viewing another month. Use the This month button to jump back.
Q.How many business days are in a year?
A. With US federal holidays, the tool counts 250 business days in 2025, 250 in 2026, and 249 in 2027. The Year view shows each month for the year you choose. A year with a holiday observed in the following year, such as New Year's Day 2028 observed on December 31, 2027, loses a day.
Q.What is the difference between business days and calendar days?
A. Calendar days count every day, including weekends and holidays. Business days count only working days. A contract that says 30 days usually means calendar days, and 30 business days is about six weeks before holidays. The tool shows both, with the length of the period in weeks and months.
Q.Can it estimate total hours or person-months?
A. Yes. On the Date range tab, enter hours per day. The tool multiplies it by the business days in the range to give total hours, and divides the business days by 20 for an approximate person-month figure. The 20-day month is a rough convention. Adjust it for your own planning.
Q.Is my data sent anywhere?
A. No. All calculations run in your browser. Custom days off and the hours-per-day value are saved in your browser's local storage on this device only. They are not uploaded, and they do not carry over to other devices.
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