Passover, one of the most widely observed Jewish holidays in the United States, doesn’t fall on a fixed date on the standard Gregorian calendar, which means many people check the dates fresh each year to plan seders, travel and time off work. This guide covers exactly when Passover 2026 begins and ends, along with the calendar system behind the shifting dates.
Passover 2026 Start and End Dates
Passover 2026 begins at sundown on Wednesday, April 1, and concludes at nightfall on Thursday, April 9, for Jewish communities in the United States and other locations in the Diaspora outside Israel. In Israel, Passover is observed for seven days rather than eight, and concludes a day earlier, at nightfall on Wednesday, April 8. This eight-day observance outside Israel, compared to seven days within Israel, reflects a longstanding historical practice: in ancient times, communities outside the Land of Israel didn’t always receive timely confirmation of the new month, so an additional festival day was added to ensure the holiday was observed correctly, a tradition that continues today even though the calendar is now fixed mathematically rather than observed month by month.
Seder Night Dates for 2026
The Passover Seder, the ceremonial feast that retells the story of the Exodus from Egypt, traditionally takes place on the first two nights of Passover for communities in the Diaspora, meaning the first seder falls on the evening of Wednesday, April 1, and the second on the evening of Thursday, April 2, 2026. In Israel, where Passover is observed for seven rather than eight days, only the first night’s seder is traditionally held.
Why Passover Falls on Different Dates Each Year
Passover always falls on the same date in the Hebrew calendar, the 15th day of the month of Nisan, but because the Hebrew calendar is lunisolar, combining lunar months with periodic adjustments to stay aligned with the solar year, the corresponding Gregorian calendar date shifts from year to year. Passover always occurs in spring, timed to coincide with the first full moon after the spring equinox, which is why the holiday can fall anywhere from late March to late April depending on the specific year.
What Passover Commemorates
Passover, or Pesach in Hebrew, commemorates the biblical story of the Exodus, in which the Israelites were freed from slavery in ancient Egypt. According to the Book of Exodus, God instructed the Israelites to mark their doorframes with lamb’s blood so that the tenth plague, which struck the firstborn of Egypt, would “pass over” their homes, sparing their firstborn children — the origin of the holiday’s name. The Passover Seder retells this story through a structured ceremonial meal, using the Haggadah as a guide, incorporating symbolic foods, songs and prayers that walk participants through the narrative of liberation.
Dietary Observances During Passover
A central practice throughout Passover is abstaining from chametz, or leavened foods, in commemoration of the Israelites’ hurried departure from Egypt, which according to tradition left them no time to let their bread rise. In place of leavened bread, Jewish households eat matzah, unleavened bread, throughout the week-long or eight-day holiday, alongside other traditional dishes like gefilte fish, tzimmes and desserts such as sponge cake and macaroons that avoid leavening agents and, in many traditions, other restricted grains and legumes as well.
Looking Ahead: Passover Dates Beyond 2026
For those planning further ahead, Passover 2027 is expected to begin at sundown on Wednesday, April 21, running through the evening of April 28 or 29 depending on Diaspora or Israel observance. Because the Hebrew calendar periodically adds an extra month to stay synchronized with the solar year, the gap between consecutive years’ Passover dates can vary more than the roughly 11-day annual shift seen with purely lunar calendars like the Islamic calendar.
Practical Planning for Passover 2026
For anyone organizing travel, hosting a seder, or requesting time off work around Passover 2026, the key dates to note are the evening of Wednesday, April 1, for the start of the holiday and first seder, the evening of April 2 for the second seder observed in the Diaspora, and either April 8 or April 9 for the holiday’s conclusion depending on whether you’re observing the seven-day Israel schedule or the eight-day Diaspora schedule.
Which Days Involve Work Restrictions
Within the full Passover holiday, not every day carries the same level of observance. The first two days and the final two days, in the Diaspora observance, are considered full festival days, or Yom Tov, during which observant Jews traditionally refrain from work, similar to Sabbath restrictions. The days in between, known as Chol HaMoed, carry a more relaxed, semi-festive status, meaning many normal activities, including work in some contexts, are permitted, which is a useful distinction to understand when planning around the holiday’s full eight or seven-day span rather than assuming the entire period carries identical restrictions.
Conclusion
Passover 2026 begins at sundown on Wednesday, April 1, and concludes on either April 8 or April 9 depending on whether you’re observing the holiday in Israel or in the Diaspora, including the United States. Because the date shifts each year based on the Hebrew lunisolar calendar, checking the specific dates annually remains the most reliable way to plan seders and related observances.