When is Easter 2026? when is easter and key dates for Lent
Church calendars shift each year, and 2026 is no exception. For planners, worshippers and anyone mapping holidays onto springtime events, here are the essential dates for the Lenten season and Easter in 2026 — all listed in Eastern Time (ET) — plus a quick look at why the date moves.
Dates to mark on your calendar (ET)
Ash Wednesday: Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026 (ET). This day begins the 40-day Lenten observance and is marked in many traditions by the distribution of ashes in the shape of a cross.
Lent period: Lent runs from Ash Wednesday, Feb. 18 through Thursday, April 2, 2026 (ET). In many Western rites the 40 days of Lent are counted not including Sundays; liturgical practices and local calendars can modify observances.
Orthodox Great Lent: Feb. 23 to April 11, 2026 (ET). Eastern Christian calendars use a different calculation and therefore observe a separate Lent window in many years.
Good Friday: Friday, April 3, 2026 (ET). The Friday of Holy Week commemorates the crucifixion and is observed with solemn services in a range of Christian traditions.
Easter Sunday: Sunday, April 5, 2026 (ET). This is the principal feast celebrating the resurrection and the climax of Holy Week.
Why the date shifts each year
The date of Easter moves because it is tied to lunar and seasonal markers rather than a fixed calendar date. The festival is celebrated on the first Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon that follows the Church's fixed observance of the vernal equinox, which is treated as March 21 for ecclesiastical purposes. That combination of a spring reference point and a lunar cycle means Easter can fall between late March and late April, and the whole Lenten timetable shifts accordingly.
As a result, some years the Lenten season and Easter arrive earlier in the calendar; in 2026 the season comes more than two weeks earlier than it did in 2025. That timing affects everything from parish scheduling to school calendars and family plans tied to the holiday.
What these days mean and how people observe them
Ash Wednesday marks a turn toward reflection and preparation. Many who attend services receive ashes made from the previous year's blessed palm branches; the gesture is a visible reminder of mortality and the call to spiritual renewal. The ritual has roots in ancient penitential practices and endured into medieval and modern liturgies as a compact symbol of humility and repentance.
Lent itself is traditionally a 40-day season of prayer, fasting and almsgiving intended to mirror the biblical account of a period of testing and preparation. Practices vary widely: some maintain stricter fasting rules, others adopt personal sacrifices such as giving up certain foods or habits, and many add extra worship or charitable work.
Holy Week, the final week of Lent, includes Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday and culminates on Easter Sunday. Observances range from processions and communal meals to solemn liturgies and sunrise services. For many, Ash Wednesday sees some of the highest single-day attendance patterns of the year, as people who do not regularly attend worship make a point of marking the season's opening.
Because traditions and calendars differ between Western and Eastern Christian communities, some faithful will observe separate Lent windows and celebrate Easter on different Sundays. For planning purposes in 2026, the dates listed above reflect the commonly observed Western calendar sequence in Eastern Time.
Whether you keep these days as religious observances, cultural markers or family traditions, note the key dates now to prepare liturgically, logistically or personally for the season ahead.
