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Advent 2026 starts Sunday, November 29, and ends at sundown on Thursday, December 24. That's twenty-six days and four Sundays: November 29, December 6, December 13, and December 20.
Advent 2026 also opens a new liturgical year. The church's calendar doesn't turn over on January 1 — it turns on the First Sunday of Advent, which means November 29 is both the start of the season and the start of Year B.
November 29 – December 25, 2026 · 6 dates · Lectionary Year B
| Date | Day | Color |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 29 | First Sunday of Advent | |
| Dec 6 | Second Sunday of Advent | |
| Dec 13 | Third Sunday of Advent | |
| Dec 20 | Fourth Sunday of Advent | |
| Dec 24 | Christmas Eve | |
| Dec 25 | Christmas Day |
Each linked date opens that Sunday's readings, liturgical color, and planning note.
Advent 2026 has four Sundays, and the season closes on Christmas Eve:
Hope, peace, joy, and love is the most common order for the candle themes. Some congregations swap peace and love. Joy on the third Sunday is the one constant, which is why that candle is so often rose. Each Sunday in the calendar above opens its readings and liturgical color.
Advent 2026 is 26 days long, from November 29 through December 24. Advent always has four Sundays and almost never has the same number of days.
The rule fixes the end, not the beginning. Advent runs to Christmas Eve, and it starts on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day — the Sunday nearest November 30, the feast of St. Andrew. Because December 25 lands on a different weekday each year, that first Sunday slides across a full week, and the season runs anywhere from 22 to 28 days.
Advent 2026 is on the longer side at twenty-six days. If you plan a four-week series, that's a comfortable amount of room. It is not always so: two years from now the season is four days shorter.
Advent Dates 2026–2030
Always four Sundays — but never the same number of days
| Year | Advent Begins | Christmas Eve | Days | Lectionary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Sun, Nov 29 | Thu, Dec 24 | 26 | Year B |
| 2027 | Sun, Nov 28 | Fri, Dec 24 | 27 | Year C |
| 2028 | Sun, Dec 3 | Sun, Dec 24 | 22 | Year A |
| 2029 | Sun, Dec 2 | Mon, Dec 24 | 23 | Year B |
| 2030 | Sun, Dec 1 | Tue, Dec 24 | 24 | Year C |
The older use, and still the most common
Purple is what most congregations have in the closet, and it is never wrong. It carries the note of preparation that Advent shares with Lent — a season of getting ready rather than a season of celebration. If your paraments are purple and your candles are purple, nothing about Advent 2026 requires you to change that.
Widely adopted in Lutheran, Episcopal, Methodist and UCC congregations
Sarum blue takes its name from the medieval use of Salisbury Cathedral, and over the last several decades it has become the ordinary Advent color in a great many mainline congregations. The reasoning is theological rather than decorative: blue distinguishes Advent from Lent, and it frames the season as hope and expectation rather than penitence.
If your congregation is deciding, that is the real question — not which color is correct, but whether you want Advent to look like Lent or to look like something of its own.
The third Sunday only · December 13, 2026
Many congregations light a rose candle and, where they have them, use rose paraments on the third Sunday of Advent. Joy interrupts the waiting for a week. Rose is optional in every tradition that uses it — a congregation with one set of Advent paraments simply keeps them up, and nothing is lost.
The third Sunday of Advent — December 13, 2026 — is often called Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin rejoice. It is the one Sunday in the season where joy is allowed to interrupt the waiting, and it is why many Advent wreaths carry one candle that isn't the same color as the other three.
Nothing about it is required. A congregation that lights four candles of one color and keeps its paraments up all season has not skipped anything. But if you have ever wondered why one candle in the wreath is pink, this is the answer.
Want to share what each candle means with your congregation? The Advent Wreath Carousel explains hope, peace, joy, love, and the Christ candle in seven ready-to-post slides, with room for your church’s logo →
Advent 2026 begins Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary, the cycle whose Sunday Gospel readings come mostly from Mark. Year A ends on November 22, 2026, with Christ the King; Year B runs from November 29 through Reign of Christ in November 2027.
The complete worship plan for the First Sunday of Advent: liturgy, sermon starter, bulletin text →
The complete worship plan for the Second Sunday of Advent: liturgy, sermon starter, bulletin text →
The complete worship plan for the Third Sunday of Advent: liturgy, sermon starter, bulletin text →
The complete worship plan for the Fourth Sunday of Advent: liturgy, sermon starter, bulletin text →
This is a common point of confusion when ordering resources: material labeled "Year B" is for Advent 2026 forward, not for the year that's ending. Each date in the calendar above opens that Sunday's full readings.
If you'd rather have the week's readings arrive on their own, the weekly lectionary email lands Tuesday morning with the readings, the liturgical color, and one thing worth noticing. No product promotion, ever.
When does Advent start in 2026?
Advent 2026 starts Sunday, November 29, and ends on Christmas Eve, Thursday, December 24.
When is the first Sunday of Advent 2026?
Sunday, November 29, 2026.
What are the four Sundays of Advent 2026?
November 29, December 6, December 13, and December 20, 2026.
How many Sundays are in Advent?
Always four. The First Sunday of Advent is the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day, so the count never changes even though the number of days does.
How many days is Advent in 2026?
Twenty-six days, from November 29 through December 24. Advent ranges from 22 to 28 days, because it ends on Christmas Eve and begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day.
When does Advent end in 2026?
At sundown on Christmas Eve, Thursday, December 24, 2026, when the Christmas season begins.
Which lectionary year is Advent 2026?
Advent 2026 begins Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary, which runs through Reign of Christ in November 2027.
What color is Advent?
Purple is the older use and remains the most common. Blue is now widely used in Lutheran, Episcopal, Methodist, and UCC congregations, and rose appears on the third Sunday in traditions that mark Gaudete.
When is Gaudete Sunday 2026?
Sunday, December 13, 2026 — the third Sunday of Advent.
Is Advent part of Christmas?
No. Advent is its own season of waiting and preparation that ends where Christmas begins, on Christmas Eve. Keeping the distinction is part of what the season is for.
