Your quick guide to Easter 2026 dates (and why they change every year)

When is Lent, Easter, Passover 2026? See key dates

A guide to the 2026 holiday season, including Ash Wednesday, Lent, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Passover.

Wondering if Easter is early or late in 2026? Here’s what to know as spring holidays approach.

Christmas always falls on Dec. 25, but some religious holidays aren’t tied to one day. The dates for movable feasts shift every year. Some depend on the denomination that is celebrating.

This year, Easter isn’t early or late. It can happen as early as March 22 or as late as April 25. The 2026 celebration falls almost in the middle of the range.

Right now, we’re in the 40 days of Lent. But the first day of spring and Easter will be here soon.

Here’s what you need to know about spring holidays. Plan your family’s spring calendar now.

When does Lent start and end in 2026?

Lent began on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. It’s a 40-day period of fasting, prayer and contemplation.

The last day of Lent varies by denomination. Some end it on Holy Saturday. Others, like Roman Catholics, end the Lenten season at sundown on Maundy Thursday (also called Holy Thursday).

Those dates are Thursday, April 2, or Saturday, April 4, 2026.

Why can’t I eat meat on Fridays during Lent?

The 40 days are meant to emulate Jesus’ time of temptation in the desert.

Many Christians avoid meat on Fridays and Ash Wednesday. Some give up personal vices or habits (like eating sugar) and do extra prayers or service activities.

When is the spring equinox?

The spring or vernal equinox is the first day of spring.

It’s going to be at 9:46 a.m. CT Friday, March 20, 2026.

When is Easter 2026?

Most Christians, including Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox Christians, will celebrate Easter on Sunday, April 5, 2026.

Why do people celebrate Easter?

Christians believe that Jesus of Nazareth died by crucifixion on Good Friday. Easter is a Christian religious holiday that celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ three days after his death.

Why is Easter late some years and early in others?

On the Gregorian calendar, Easter is determined by the Sunday after the first full moon that follows the Spring Equinox.

Why do some churches celebrate Easter, Lent on different days?

While many denominations use the Gregorian calendar, the Eastern Orthodox Church uses the Julian calendar. They celebrate on Sunday, April 12, this year.

Their dates for Lent accordingly run from Monday, Feb. 23, to Saturday, April 11, 2026.

The churches using Julian calendars won’t sync up dates with Gregorian calendar users again until 2028, according to Greek City Times.

What is Holy Week?

Holy Week starts with Palm Sunday.

Holy Wednesday, also called Spy Wednesday, is just before the Triduum.

The Holy Week Triduum includes:

• Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday.
• Good Friday.
• Holy Saturday.

When is Palm Sunday this year? What’s the meaning of the day?

Palm Sunday is on March 29, 2026.

All four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, describe Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey while a crowd met him, waving palm fronds.

Palm Sunday can include reading the Passion, the story of Jesus’ last days and crucifixion.

When is Good Friday this year?

Good Friday, three days before Easter, celebrates Jesus’ death on the cross. According to the Bible, he was sacrificed to pay for the sins of mankind and his body was later laid to rest in a nearby tomb.

The date is April 3, 2026.

Is Good Friday a public holiday?

No, Good Friday is not a federal holiday, per a calendar from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

It’s also not a state holiday in Mississippi. The next one is Confederate Memorial Day on the last Monday in April, according to the Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration.

Check with your workplace and your child’s school calendars to see if Good Friday will be a day off for you or your family.

Contributing: Chris Sims, Marina Johnson and John Tufts

Bonnie Bolden is the Deep South Connect reporter for Mississippi with USA TODAY NETWORK. Email her at [email protected].