Yahrzeit calculator / How the date is set
How the yahrzeit date is set
Four steps from the date of passing to the evening you light the candle, and the cases to check with your rabbi.
- 1
Find the Hebrew date of passing
Convert the English date. The Hebrew day runs from sunset to sunset, so a passing after sunset belongs to the next Hebrew date. If it was at dusk, Chabad.org says it is best to take the following day; ask your rabbi.
- 2
Keep that Hebrew date every year
The yahrzeit is the same Hebrew day and month each year. Hebrew months follow the moon, so the English date moves: a common Hebrew year is about 11 days shorter than the English one.
- 3
It begins the evening before
Like every Hebrew day, the yahrzeit starts at nightfall on the evening before the English date shown. The candle is lit then.
- 4
Check the special cases
A passing in Adar, or on the 30th of Cheshvan, Kislev or Adar I, needs a second look in some years. The calculator flags these.
Sources: Chabad.org, "Yahrzeit: Memorial Anniversary" (opens in a new tab); Wikipedia, "Hebrew calendar" (opens in a new tab) · checked 4 Oct 2026
The first yahrzeit after a delayed burial
The calculator counts from the date of passing. Chabad.org notes that many authorities hold that when there was a long delay between the passing and the burial, the first yahrzeit is kept on the anniversary of the burial, and later ones on the date of passing. If that applies to you, ask your rabbi.
Source: Chabad.org, "Yahrzeit: Memorial Anniversary" (opens in a new tab) · checked 4 Oct 2026
Reading the table
- Day of observance is the English date of the yahrzeit itself.
- Begins is the evening before, when it starts at nightfall.
- The calendar file puts each one in your calendar from that evening, with a reminder a week ahead.
Find the yahrzeit dates
The Hebrew date of passing, the next ten yahrzeits with the evening each begins, a calendar file and a printable card.
