Christmas Countdown 2026: How Many Sleeps Until Christmas (Printable Chart)
Christmas Day 2026 is on Friday 25 December. On 1 November there are 54 sleeps to go, on US Thanksgiving (26 November) 29, and on 1 December, when most advent calendars open their first door, 24. Days until Christmas and sleeps until Christmas are the same number.
Key facts
- Christmas Eve: 1 sleep left
- First Sunday of Advent: 29 November (26 sleeps)
- St Nicholas Day: 6 December (19 sleeps)
- Printable chart on this page
Last updated 1 Nov 2026
Christmas Day 2026 falls on a Friday. If someone in your house has started asking "how many sleeps until Christmas?" every morning, this page gives you the answer for the big dates of the season and a chart you can print, stick on the fridge and tick off one day at a time.
How many days until Christmas 2026?
Counting from 20 October 2026, there are 66 days to go. "Days until Christmas" and "sleeps until Christmas" are the same number: on Christmas Eve there is one sleep left, and on the 23rd there are two. Here is the countdown from the dates people usually ask about:
| Date (2026) | What's happening | Days (sleeps) until Christmas |
|---|---|---|
| Tue 20 Oct | Today, as this guide was updated | 66 |
| Sat 31 Oct | Halloween | 55 |
| Sun 1 Nov | Start of November | 54 |
| Wed 11 Nov | Veterans Day (US) / Remembrance Day | 44 |
| Thu 26 Nov | US Thanksgiving | 29 |
| Fri 27 Nov | Black Friday | 28 |
| Sun 29 Nov | First Sunday of Advent | 26 |
| Mon 30 Nov | Cyber Monday | 25 |
| Tue 1 Dec | First door of most advent calendars | 24 |
| Sun 6 Dec | St Nicholas Day | 19 |
| Sun 13 Dec | St Lucia Day | 12 |
| Fri 18 Dec | Last Friday before Christmas week | 7 |
| Thu 24 Dec | Christmas Eve | 1 |
Two dates are easy to mix up. The first Sunday of Advent is 29 November 2026, but most calendars open their first door on Tuesday 1 December. Our guide to when Advent starts in 2026 explains why.
The printable December countdown chart
Print this page (Ctrl+P on a computer, or Share then Print on a phone) and choose "fit to page" so the chart lands on one sheet. Each row shows the date, the sleeps left that night and one small idea. The ideas follow the 2026 calendar, so bigger jobs such as putting up the tree and baking fall on weekends, and the quick ones sit on school and work nights.
| Date | Sleeps left | Countdown idea | Done |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 1 Dec | 24 | Hang a paper chain or open the first door | ☐ |
| Wed 2 Dec | 23 | Write letters to Santa or a grandparent | ☐ |
| Thu 3 Dec | 22 | Paper snowflakes for the windows | ☐ |
| Fri 4 Dec | 21 | Hot chocolate and a Christmas story | ☐ |
| Sat 5 Dec | 20 | Put up and decorate the tree | ☐ |
| Sun 6 Dec | 19 | St Nicholas Day: shoes out the night before | ☐ |
| Mon 7 Dec | 18 | Make homemade cards | ☐ |
| Tue 8 Dec | 17 | Family board game night | ☐ |
| Wed 9 Dec | 16 | Watch a holiday film in pyjamas | ☐ |
| Thu 10 Dec | 15 | Make a pinecone bird feeder | ☐ |
| Fri 11 Dec | 14 | Kindness day: help someone without being asked | ☐ |
| Sat 12 Dec | 13 | Visit a Christmas market or a light trail | ☐ |
| Sun 13 Dec | 12 | St Lucia Day: bake saffron buns or light candles | ☐ |
| Mon 14 Dec | 11 | Call or video-call a relative | ☐ |
| Tue 15 Dec | 10 | Carols or a holiday playlist while tidying | ☐ |
| Wed 16 Dec | 9 | Make salt dough ornaments | ☐ |
| Thu 17 Dec | 8 | Pack a box for the food bank | ☐ |
| Fri 18 Dec | 7 | Blanket fort and torchlight reading | ☐ |
| Sat 19 Dec | 6 | Bake and decorate cookies | ☐ |
| Sun 20 Dec | 5 | Wrap presents together | ☐ |
| Mon 21 Dec | 4 | Longest night: candlelit dinner | ☐ |
| Tue 22 Dec | 3 | Winter walk and scavenger hunt | ☐ |
| Wed 23 Dec | 2 | Make the Christmas Eve box | ☐ |
| Thu 24 Dec | 1 | Christmas Eve: treats out for Santa and the reindeer | ☐ |
Swap any idea that does not suit your family. The chart is just as useful with the idea column ignored: a child colouring in one box a night has a visible countdown that answers the daily question for you.
Five ways to use a countdown chart
- Sticker chart: one sticker per day, added at breakfast or bedtime. Toddlers who cannot read numbers yet understand a shrinking row of empty boxes.
- Paper chain: make one link per sleep and remove a link each night. Start on 1 December with 24 links, or start on 26 November with 29 links if you want the countdown to begin at Thanksgiving.
- Countdown jar: put one folded idea slip per day in a jar and pull one out each morning. Keep two blank slips for days that fall apart.
- Chalkboard or whiteboard: write "__ sleeps until Christmas" by the door and let a different person update it each night.
- Activity calendar: use the chart as the plan and put a note in each pocket of a homemade calendar. Our 24 free activity ideas give you plenty of swaps.
Starting before December
Some families like a longer run-up. Three easy ways to stretch the countdown without spending more:
- From Thanksgiving (29 sleeps): a paper chain made on Thanksgiving evening is a nice job for children while the adults clear up.
- From the first Sunday of Advent (26 sleeps): light one candle on an Advent wreath each Sunday and add the daily chart from 1 December.
- From 1 November (54 sleeps): use a simple number countdown for November and save the activity chart for December, so the season does not feel too long for small children.
Working out the number yourself
To count from any date, subtract it from 25 December. In a spreadsheet, =DATE(2026,12,25)-TODAY() gives the number of days left; format the cell as a number rather than a date. In your head, the quick method is: days left in the current month, plus 25 for December, plus 30 for November if you are still in October. From 20 October that is 11 + 30 + 25 = 66.
Tips for a calm countdown
- Pin the chart at child height so it becomes their job, not yours.
- Put the busiest ideas on Saturdays and Sundays, and keep Monday to Thursday to ten-minute activities.
- Leave a couple of rows deliberately light in the last week, when school concerts and travel take over.
- Pair the chart with a scout elf if you have one. Our 35 five-minute elf ideas fit the same quick evenings.
- Borrow a tradition or two for the special days, such as St Nicholas shoes on 6 December or St Lucia buns on 13 December, from our list of countdown traditions from around the world.
Whatever you choose, keep the chart somewhere visible. The fun is in watching the number get smaller.