Easter Calculator
What is Easter for?
Easter, or Resurrection Sunday, is the most important Christian festival. It commemorates the resurrection of Christ from the dead and the salvation of mankind, as described in New Testament.
Easter customs involve decorating eggs (egg are a symbol of a new life), blessing food, and recreating events from Way of the Cross - the last days and moments before Christ's death.
How does the Easter calculator work?
Easter calculator gives you the exact date of Easter Sunday in a particular year.
It takes into account:
- The fact that spring equinox happens more or less on the 21st of March every year - in the calculation, we use this date, as it's a date set by the Church; and
- The first full Moon that happens after the equinox, so the first full Moon of spring.
The first full Moon of spring is also called the Paschal full Moon. It sets the date of Easter Sunday pretty straightforwardly. Easter Sunday is simply the first Sunday after Paschal full Moon.
How is Easter date calculated - an example
Let's say we would like to perform an Easter date calculation for 2050:
- The spring equinox date is set - it's 21st of March. It's not the exact astronomical moment of the equinox most of the time, but its the date the Christian Church uses.
- Next, let's determine when the first full Moon happens after that date. In 2050, the first full Moon of spring will take place on the 7th of April.
- Then we have to find the first Sunday after that, which is Easter Sunday, or Resurrection Sunday.
- In 2050, Easter will take place on the 10th of April.
- Now you know how the Easter is determined!
Calculating Easter Sunday dates for the next ten years
To save you some time, we've already counted the Easter dates for the next decade. You can also check the date of the first full Moon (Paschal full Moon) after the Church's date of the March Equinox - 21st of March every year.
year | Paschal full Moon | Easter Sunday |
---|---|---|
2022 | April 16th | April 17th |
2023 | April 6th | April 9th |
2024 | March 25th | March 31st |
2025 | April 13th | April 20th |
2026 | April 2nd | April 5th |
2027 | March 22nd | March 28th |
2028 | April 9th | April 16th |
2029 | March 30th | April 1st |
2030 | April 18th | April 21st |
2031 | April 7th | April 13th |
How many days there are until Easter?
To determine how many days are left until Easter, first check when the next Easter falls. Then you can use our date to date calculator to check, how many days, weeks or months there are left until Easter!
FAQ
When is Easter 2022?
In 2022, Easter Sunday will take place on April 17th.
To determine the date step by step:
- Check when it's the Church's date of the March equinox. In our case, it's the 21st of March.
- Check when the first full Moon happens after that date. In 2020, it falls on the 16th of April.
- Now, let's find the first Sunday after the 16th of April. As 16th is a Saturday, the nearest Sunday is just the day after - 17th of April.
- That Sunday is Easter Sunday!
What date was Easter 2016?
In 2016, Easter occurred on the 27th of March.
That year, the first full moon after the spring equinox happened on 23rd of March. It was Wednesday, and the nearest Sunday was on 27th of March, meaning it became Easter Sunday.
When was the last time Easter was on April Fool's Day?
It was the year 1956 when Easter Sunday and April Fool's Day shared the same day. Next time it will happen in 2029.
Do they celebrate Easter in Canada?
Yes, Christian Canadians do celebrate Easter. Good Friday and/or Easter Monday is a statutory holiday in Canada.