Federal holiday

Memorial Day

Memorial Day, the last Monday of May, honors US military service members who died in service.

History

Originally called Decoration Day after the Civil War, Memorial Day became a federal holiday in 1971 with its date set as the last Monday of May. It functions as the unofficial start of summer in the United States and frequently overlaps with the final week of the spring semester or commencement.

On academic calendars

Most academic August-July calendars schedule commencement either the weekend before or the weekend after Memorial Day. K-12 districts whose last day of school falls in late May usually treat Memorial Day as a holiday and add a make-up day to the end of the year.

Dates by year

Below is the full schedule for Memorial Day from 2020 through 2035. The "observed" date matches the actual date in most years; it differs only when the statutory date lands on a Saturday or Sunday, in which case federal offices observe the holiday on the adjacent weekday per OPM rules.

YearDateDayObserved
2020 May 25, 2020 Monday
2021 May 31, 2021 Monday
2022 May 30, 2022 Monday
2023 May 29, 2023 Monday
2024 May 27, 2024 Monday
2025 May 26, 2025 Monday
2026 May 25, 2026 Monday
2027 May 31, 2027 Monday
2028 May 29, 2028 Monday
2029 May 28, 2029 Monday
2030 May 27, 2030 Monday
2031 May 26, 2031 Monday
2032 May 31, 2032 Monday
2033 May 30, 2033 Monday
2034 May 29, 2034 Monday
2035 May 28, 2035 Monday

Open the printable calendar

Each entry below opens the printable monthly grid where this holiday appears, with the day shaded in amber.