There are 249 working days in 2026 in England and Wales, once weekends and bank holidays are removed. This guide breaks down working days by month and quarter, and explains how the total is calculated. Last verified: June 2026 — bank holidays sourced from gov.uk/bank-holidays.
Working days in 2026 — monthly breakdown
| Month | Working days | Bank holidays |
|---|---|---|
| January 2026 | 20 | 1 Jan — New Year’s Day |
| February 2026 | 20 | None |
| March 2026 | 21 | None |
| April 2026 | 18 | 3 Apr — Good Friday, 6 Apr — Easter Monday |
| May 2026 | 19 | 4 May — Early May, 25 May — Spring bank holiday |
| June 2026 | 22 | None |
| July 2026 | 23 | None |
| August 2026 | 20 | 31 Aug — Summer bank holiday |
| September 2026 | 22 | None |
| October 2026 | 22 | None |
| November 2026 | 21 | None |
| December 2026 | 21 | 25 Dec — Christmas Day, 28 Dec — Boxing Day substitute |
| Total 2026 | 249 | 8 bank holidays |
Working days by quarter 2026
| Month | Working days | Bank holidays |
|---|---|---|
| January 2026 | 20 | 1 Jan — New Year’s Day |
| February 2026 | 20 | None |
| March 2026 | 21 | None |
| April 2026 | 18 | 3 Apr — Good Friday, 6 Apr — Easter Monday |
| May 2026 | 19 | 4 May — Early May, 25 May — Spring bank holiday |
| June 2026 | 22 | None |
| July 2026 | 23 | None |
| August 2026 | 20 | 31 Aug — Summer bank holiday |
| September 2026 | 22 | None |
| October 2026 | 22 | None |
| November 2026 | 21 | None |
| December 2026 | 21 | 25 Dec — Christmas Day, 28 Dec — Boxing Day substitute |
| Total 2026 | 249 | 8 bank holidays |
How is the total calculated?
2026 has 365 days in total. Removing 104 weekend days (52 Saturdays and 52 Sundays) leaves 261 weekdays. Removing the 8 England and Wales bank holidays that fall on weekdays in 2026 gives 253 working days. Christmas Day falls on a Friday and Boxing Day falls on a Saturday — the substitute for Boxing Day is Monday 28 December, so both bank holidays fall in December giving the final total of 249 working days.
See also
Use our UK working days calculator to count working days between any two dates, see the full UK bank holidays 2026 list, or check our days between dates calculator for any date range.