Leap Day is on Tuesday, February 29, 2028. February 29 only appears in leap years, which usually come every four years. It keeps our calendar lined up with Earth’s trip around the sun.
When Is the Next Leap Day?
The next one is Tuesday, February 29, 2028. After that comes Sunday, February 29, 2032.
A leap year normally falls in any year that divides evenly by 4. It has 366 days instead of 365, and the extra day goes on the end of February.
In the three years between, February has only 28 days, and the date simply doesn’t exist. The rule has one exception for century years, explained below.
How Did It Start?
In 46 BC, Julius Caesar reformed the Roman calendar with advice from the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria. His Julian calendar added one extra day every four years.
The 1582 rule: not every four years
Caesar’s fix overshot by a little, since the true year is slightly shorter than 365.25 days. Over centuries, the calendar drifted. So in 1582, Pope Gregory XIII adjusted it, creating the Gregorian calendar most of the world uses today.
Under his rule, century years skip the leap day unless they divide evenly by 400. That’s why 2000 was a leap year, but 2100 won’t be.
Why Do We Need Leap Day?
Earth takes about 365.24219 days to circle the sun, NASA explains. A 365-day calendar would slip about one day every four years.
Without a fix, the seasons would slowly drift across the months. Over centuries, summer would arrive in what the calendar calls winter. Leap Day keeps holidays, harvests and school years in the right season.
Born on February 29
The odds of being born on February 29 are about 1 in 1,461, Texas Standard reports. Many leap-day babies celebrate on February 28 or March 1 in other years.
The twin towns of Anthony, Texas, and Anthony, New Mexico, call themselves the Leap Year Capital of the World. They held their first festival in 1988.
How to Celebrate Leap Day
- Do a “bonus day” task: use the extra 24 hours for something you keep putting off, like a museum visit.
- Write a time capsule letter: seal a note to open on the next leap day, four years later, and predict what will change.
- Throw a leapling party: count a friend’s “real” leap-day birthdays and celebrate the number.
- Jump for it: kids can hold a frog-jump contest and measure the longest leap.
- Look back: check photos from the last leap day and see what’s changed.
- Teach the math: have kids test the rule on years like 1900, 2000 and 2024.
The February 29 Proposal Tradition
An Irish custom says women may propose to men on February 29. Some accounts tie it to St. Bridget proposing to St. Patrick, but historian Philip Freeman says early sources don’t support that story.
Historian Katherine Parkin of Monmouth University found that early 1900s leap-year postcards mostly mocked the idea of women proposing.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many days are in a leap year?
366. February gets 29 days instead of the usual 28.
Who started the Leap Year Capital festival?
The idea came from Mary Ann Brown, a leap-day baby living in Anthony, Texas. The twin towns held their first festival in 1988.
Is 2100 a leap year?
No. Century years skip Leap Day unless they divide evenly by 400, so 2100 will have a 28-day February.