When Is Palm Sunday?

Find the Date of This Holy Day in This and Other Years

Pope Francis Palm Sunday Procession

Technically called Passion Sunday in the current Catholic liturgical calendarPalm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, the final week of Lent, the season of preparation for Easter. Christian churches distribute palms (and sometimes pussy willows or other willows, olive branches, box elder, or spruce) on Palm Sunday to commemorate Christ's triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, before His arrest and Crucifixion on Good Friday. On Palm Sunday, the people of Jerusalem placed palm branches in Christ's path, signifying His Kingship over mankind (see Matthew 21:1-9).

How the Date of Palm Sunday Determined

Palm Sunday is the final Sunday before Easter Sunday. Because the date of Palm Sunday depends on the date of Easter, and Easter is a moveable feast, the date of Palm Sunday changes every year. (See How Is the Date of Easter Calculated? for more details.)

The earliest date that Palm Sunday can fall is March 15 (when Easter Sunday falls on March 22); the latest date is April 18 (when Easter Sunday falls on April 25). Very early and very late Palm Sundays are quite rare; Palm Sunday most often falls on one of the last two Sundays in March or one of the first two Sundays in April.

When Palm Sunday Is This Year

Here is the date of the next Palm Sunday:

  • Palm Sunday 2019: April 14, 2019 (second Sunday of April)

When Palm Sunday Is in Future Years

Here are the dates of Palm Sunday in future years:

  • Palm Sunday 2020: April 5, 2020 (first Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2021: March 28, 2021 (fourth Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2022: April 10, 2022 (second Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2023: April 2, 2023 (first Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2024: March 24, 2024 (fourth Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2025: April 13, 2025 (second Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2026: March 29, 2026 (fifth Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2027: March 21, 2027 (third Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2028: April 9, 2028 (second Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2029: March 25, 2029 (fourth Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2030: April 14, 2030 (second Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2031: April 6, 2031 (first Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2032: March 21, 2032 (third Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2033: April 10, 2033 (second Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2034: April 2, 2034 (first Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2035: March 18, 2035 (third Sunday of March)

When Palm Sunday Was in Previous Years

Here are the dates when Palm Sunday fell in previous years, going back to 2007:

  • Palm Sunday 2007: April 1, 2007 (first Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2008: March 16, 2008 (third Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2009: April 5, 2009 (first Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2010: March 28, 2010 (fourth Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2011: April 17, 2011 (third Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2012: April 1, 2012 (first Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2013: March 24, 2013 (fourth Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2014: April 13, 2014 (second Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2015: March 29, 2015 (fifth Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2016: March 20, 2016 (third Sunday of March)
  • Palm Sunday 2017: April 9, 2017 (second Sunday of April)
  • Palm Sunday 2018: March 25, 2018 (fourth Sunday of April)
Format
mla apa chicago
Your Citation
Richert, Scott P. "When Is Palm Sunday?" Learn Religions, Aug. 25, 2020, learnreligions.com/when-is-palm-sunday-541614. Richert, Scott P. (2020, August 25). When Is Palm Sunday? Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/when-is-palm-sunday-541614 Richert, Scott P. "When Is Palm Sunday?" Learn Religions. https://www.learnreligions.com/when-is-palm-sunday-541614 (accessed March 19, 2024).