Calculate the exact number of working days between two dates, excluding weekends and US federal holidays. Perfect for shipping deadlines, contracts, legal filings, and project timelines.
Key facts about US business days and working schedules
Enter a start and end date to find the exact number of working days, excluding weekends and holidays. Essential for shipping estimates, contract deadlines, and project planning.
Open Date Calculator →A business day (also called a working day) is any calendar day that falls on a weekday (Monday through Friday) and is not a recognized public holiday. In the United States, business days exclude weekends and the 11 federal holidays established by law. Business days represent the days when normal commercial activity occurs — offices are open, banks process transactions, courts accept filings, and postal services deliver packages.
The concept matters because "business days" is the standard measurement unit for deadlines and timelines in commerce, law, finance, and logistics. A contract requiring a "5 business day" response period treats weekends and holidays as non-counting days, giving parties their full working week to respond. Without this standardization, deadline calculations across different sectors would be ambiguous and inconsistent.
The United States has 11 federally recognized holidays when federal government offices are closed and many private businesses follow suit. These are the dates excluded from business day calculations:
New Year's Day: January 1
Martin Luther King Jr. Day: 3rd Monday in January
Presidents' Day (Washington's Birthday): 3rd Monday in February
Memorial Day: Last Monday in May
Juneteenth National Independence Day: June 19 (added in 2021)
Independence Day: July 4
Labor Day: 1st Monday in September
Columbus Day (Indigenous Peoples' Day): 2nd Monday in October
Veterans Day: November 11
Thanksgiving Day: 4th Thursday in November
Christmas Day: December 25
When a holiday falls on Saturday, the preceding Friday is the observed holiday. When it falls on Sunday, the following Monday is the observed holiday. Some employers and industries recognize additional holidays (day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, state holidays) which would further reduce the business day count.
Manual calculation of business days requires: counting total calendar days between the dates, subtracting weekend days (Saturdays and Sundays), and subtracting any federal holidays that fall on weekdays within the period.
Formula: Business Days = Calendar Days − Weekend Days − Holiday Days
Example: Business days from June 1 to July 4:
Calendar days: 33
Weekends: June has approximately 8–9 weekend days in this span
Federal holidays: Independence Day July 4 (the endpoint itself)
Business days: approximately 23–24 working days
This calculation is complex enough that a business days calculator is far more reliable than manual computation, especially when holiday observance rules (holidays falling on weekends shifting to adjacent weekdays) are involved.
Legal documents and commercial contracts frequently specify deadlines in business days rather than calendar days because they reflect the operational realities of working life. A court filing deadline of "10 business days" means 10 actual days when courts are open and staff can process documents. A real estate contract "3 business days" to deliver earnest money means 3 days when banks are open and wires can be processed.
In the United States, various federal regulations define specific business day rules: the Fair Credit Reporting Act defines "business day" as any day except Sundays and legal public holidays. The Truth in Lending Act (TILA) uses a different definition in some contexts — all calendar days except Sundays and federal holidays (Saturdays count). These definitional differences matter in regulated industries, so always check the specific law or contract definition when precision is required.
For project management and deadline planning, the most common convention is Monday–Friday excluding federal holidays. Many project management tools and enterprise software use this definition as the default for date calculations.
The e-commerce shipping estimate "5–7 business days" is one of the most frequently misunderstood phrases in retail. It means 5–7 Monday-through-Friday days, excluding weekends and often excluding holidays. This translates to approximately 1–1.5 calendar weeks — but the exact number of calendar days depends on when counting starts.
If an order ships on Monday: 5 business days = the following Monday (7 calendar days). If an order ships on Friday: 5 business days = the following Friday (8 calendar days, because the intervening weekend doesn't count). If a holiday falls within the shipping window, add one additional day.
Standard US shipping services by speed: Standard/Economy (5–7 business days), First Class Mail (1–5 business days), Priority Mail (1–3 business days), Priority Mail Express (1–2 business days), Overnight/Next Day (1 business day). Note that USPS defines business days differently from UPS and FedEx — USPS delivers on Saturdays for many services, while UPS and FedEx Ground typically do not count Saturday as a business day for their standard services.
While Monday–Friday is the standard business week in most Western countries, business day definitions vary internationally. In many Middle Eastern countries, the work week runs Sunday–Thursday, with Friday and Saturday as the weekend. In some countries, Saturday mornings are counted as working time for certain industries. Religious and national holidays vary enormously — India has over 20 national holidays, the UK has 8 bank holidays, and Germany varies by state.
For international business dealings, contracts should specify which country's business day definition applies. A "5 business day" deadline in a US-UK contract could be interpreted differently depending on which holidays are excluded. International trade contracts often explicitly list the governing business day calendar or reference a specific jurisdiction's holiday schedule.
Any Monday–Friday that is not one of the 11 US federal holidays: New Year's Day, MLK Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. When a holiday falls on a weekend, the nearest weekday is the observed holiday.
Typically 21–23 business days per month. The exact count depends on how many weekends fall in the month and how many federal holidays occur. January (MLK Day), July (Independence Day), and November (Thanksgiving) typically have fewer business days than other months.
Business days reflect actual working time when parties can take action. If a deadline falls on a weekend, the parties are typically unavailable. Business days ensure response windows only count days when offices are open, banks are processing, and legal systems are operating.
Approximately 7–11 calendar days. Starting on Monday, 5 business days = the following Monday (7 calendar days). Starting on Friday, 5 business days = the following Friday (8 calendar days). Add 1–2 days if a federal holiday falls within the window.