The World’s Most Common Public Holidays: Which Days Do the Most Countries Take Off?
If there’s one day the whole world takes off, it’s January 1. In our holiday data for 207 countries and territories, New Year’s Day is a nationwide public holiday in 196 of them in 2027. December 25 comes second, with about 180, and May 1, Labour Day, third, with 154. Here’s the full ranking.
Key facts
- New Year’s Day (January 1): 196 countries and territories.
- Christmas Day (December 25): about 180.
- Labour Day (May 1): 154, but not in the US, Canada, the UK or Australia.
- Good Friday and Easter Monday 2027 (March 26 and 29): about 113 each.
The most widely shared public holidays of 2027
| Rank | Date in 2027 | Holiday | Countries and territories |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Friday, January 1 | New Year’s Day | 196 |
| 2 | Saturday, December 25 | Christmas Day | 181 |
| 3 | Saturday, May 1 | Labour Day / International Workers’ Day | 154 |
| 4 | Friday, March 26 | Good Friday | 114 |
| 5 | Monday, March 29 | Easter Monday | 112 |
| 6 | Sunday, December 26 | Boxing Day / St Stephen’s Day | 84 |
| 7 | Sunday, May 16 (expected) | Eid al-Adha | 76 |
| 8 | Tuesday, March 9 (expected) | Eid al-Fitr | 61 |
| 9 | Sunday, August 15 | Assumption of Mary | 57 |
| 10 | Monday, November 1 | All Saints’ Day | 53 |
| 11 | Thursday, May 6 | Ascension Day | 52 |
| 12 | Monday, May 17 | Whit Monday | 51 |
The December 25 count includes a few countries that mark a different holiday on that date, such as Pakistan, which celebrates Quaid-e-Azam Day, the birthday of its founder.
New Year’s Day: almost universal
January 1 is a day off almost everywhere, including in countries that use another calendar for religious or traditional purposes, like China and Japan. The few places in our data without a January 1 holiday include Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia, India and Ethiopia, which celebrate their own new years: Nowruz in March, Rosh Hashanah in September or October, the Islamic New Year, regional new years such as Diwali and Ugadi, and Enkutatash on September 11.
May 1: the holiday North America skips
International Workers’ Day on May 1 is a public holiday in 154 places, from Mexico and Brazil to Germany, Russia, China and Nigeria. But the US and Canada celebrate Labor Day in September instead, and the UK, Ireland and Australia have holidays on a Monday in May rather than on May 1 itself. Japan, the Netherlands and Switzerland don’t give May 1 off nationwide either.
Easter: shared, but on a moving date
Good Friday and Easter Monday move every year, because Easter depends on the moon. In 2027, Easter Sunday is unusually early, on March 28. Many Orthodox countries celebrate Easter later, on May 2 in 2027, so they mark Good Friday and Easter Monday on different dates.
Eid: holidays that move 11 days a year
Eid al-Fitr, at the end of Ramadan, and Eid al-Adha follow the Islamic lunar calendar, which is about 11 days shorter than the solar year. In 2027, Eid al-Fitr is expected around March 9 and Eid al-Adha around May 16. The exact dates depend on the sighting of the moon, and many countries give more than one day off.
August 15: one date, many holidays
August 15 is the Feast of the Assumption in 57 places, mostly Catholic countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. It’s also Independence Day in India, Liberation Day in South Korea and North Korea, and Independence Day in the Republic of the Congo.
How we got these numbers
We counted, for every date in 2027, how many countries and territories give a nationwide public holiday on that date, using the holiday data behind our public holidays pages. It covers 207 countries and territories and comes from the open-source date-holidays project. We counted each place once per date and didn’t count substitute days or regional holidays. The data is a good global overview, but it doesn’t include every country and may lag behind recent changes in some, so treat the counts as close estimates.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most celebrated public holiday in the world?
New Year’s Day. January 1 is a public holiday in 196 of the 207 countries and territories in our data.
Is May 1 a holiday in the US?
No. The US and Canada celebrate Labor Day on the first Monday in September. In 2027, that’s September 6.
When is Easter 2027?
Easter Sunday is March 28, 2027. Good Friday is March 26 and Easter Monday is March 29. Count down with our Easter countdown.
Which holidays change date every year?
Easter-based holidays (Good Friday, Easter Monday, Ascension, Whit Monday), Islamic holidays like Eid, and holidays based on lunar calendars like Chinese New Year and Diwali.
Find all the holidays in your country on our public holidays pages, or see how many public holidays each country gets.
