5 Weekends in 1 Month Happen More Often Than Every 823 Years
5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays in a month? It happens only once every 823 years—or does it? Let's have a fact check.
Busting the “5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, & 5 Sundays in 1 month” myth.
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Before you get too excited about this once-in-a-lifetime event and start telling your family and friends, know this: any such claims are false. Combinations of days like 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays occur much more often than every 823 years.
The Next Months with 5 Weekends
“MiracleIn” or “Money Bags”: The 823-Years Myth
If you have an email or a social media account, chances are that you have come across a viral post that claims an upcoming month has a rare combination of weekdays. Share it, the message states, or beware of some bad luck.
2025 is oddly satisfying for math nerds
Recent versions go something like this:
- February 2026 will witness a phenomenon that occurs only once in 823 years. The month features 4 Sundays, 4 Mondays, 4 Tuesdays, 4 Wednesdays, 4 Thursdays, 4 Fridays, 4 Saturdays. This is called MiracleIn.
- May 2026 has 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays. This happens only once every 823 years. The Chinese call it “silver pockets full” or “money bags.”
The statements are partially correct. For example, May 2026 does have 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays. But this is neither special nor unusual. You won’t need to wait another 823 years for this weekday combination.
September 27, 2025: a rare “global” square date
A calendar month that contains 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays actually occurs nearly every year and can even occur twice in the same year—May 2026, January 2027, and October 2027 all have the same weekday pattern.
First Day of the Month
The weekday combinations these 823-year messages refer to aren’t exceptional either. A quick look at a calendar will show that the first 3 weekdays of any 31-day month will be repeated 5 times in that month. So, any month that has 31 days and begins on a Friday will have 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays. Similarly, any 31-day month that begins on a Tuesday will have 5 Tuesdays, 5 Wednesdays, and 5 Thursdays.
Put it to the test in our calendar
Recurring Monthly Calendars
Ready for some math? Here’s a more mathematical reasoning of why the 823-year claim is a myth:
Every year has 7 months with 31 days. Each of these months has at least 3 weekdays that happen 5 times during the month. For example, March 2027 has 5 Mondays, 5 Tuesdays, and 5 Wednesdays. December 2027 has 5 Wednesdays, 5 Thursdays, and 5 Fridays.
There are 7 different days a month can start with. So, on average, the combination of any 3 days occurring 5 times in a calendar month will happen once a year.
In any given year, there are only 6 such combinations of days. This is because 2 months with 31 days start on the same weekday. In a common year, January and October have the same calendar, while January and July look the same in a leap year.
The Doomsday Rule for calendars
5-Day Combinations in a Month
| Dates: | 1 / 8 / 15 / 22 / 29 | 2 / 9 / 16 / 23 / 30 | 3 / 10 / 17 / 24 / 31 | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 2026 | 5 Thursdays | 5 Fridays | 5 Saturdays | Same as October 2026 |
| March 2026 | 5 Sundays | 5 Mondays | 5 Tuesdays | |
| May 2026 | 5 Fridays | 5 Saturdays | 5 Sundays | |
| July 2026 | 5 Wednesdays | 5 Thursdays | 5 Fridays | |
| August 2026 | 5 Saturdays | 5 Sundays | 5 Mondays | |
| October 2026 | 5 Thursdays | 5 Fridays | 5 Saturdays | Same as January 2026 |
| December 2026 | 5 Tuesdays | 5 Wednesdays | 5 Thursdays | |
| January 2027 | 5 Fridays | 5 Saturdays | 5 Sundays | Same as October 2027 |
| March 2027 | 5 Mondays | 5 Tuesdays | 5 Wednesdays | |
| May 2027 | 5 Saturdays | 5 Sundays | 5 Mondays | |
| July 2027 | 5 Thursdays | 5 Fridays | 5 Saturdays | |
| August 2027 | 5 Sundays | 5 Mondays | 5 Tuesdays | |
| October 2027 | 5 Fridays | 5 Saturdays | 5 Sundays | Same as January 2027 |
| December 2027 | 5 Wednesdays | 5 Thursdays | 5 Fridays | |
| January 2028 | 5 Saturdays | 5 Sundays | 5 Mondays | Same as July 2028 |
| March 2028 | 5 Wednesdays | 5 Thursdays | 5 Fridays | |
| May 2028 | 5 Mondays | 5 Tuesdays | 5 Wednesdays | |
| July 2028 | 5 Saturdays | 5 Sundays | 5 Mondays | Same as January 2028 |
| August 2028 | 5 Tuesdays | 5 Wednesdays | 5 Thursdays | |
| October 2028 | 5 Sundays | 5 Mondays | 5 Tuesdays | |
| December 2028 | 5 Fridays | 5 Saturdays | 5 Sundays |