Date & Time · Dates Formula verified

Week Number Calculator

Enter a date to find its ISO 8601 week number — the standard used in business planning, payroll and shipping schedules worldwide.

Date
ISO week
Week 38
2026

Step-by-step proofCheck by hand

How ISO week numbering works

ISO 8601 weeks run Monday to Sunday. Week 1 of a year is the week that contains that year's first Thursday — equivalently, the week containing 4 January. Because of that rule, a date right at the start or end of a calendar year can belong to a week numbered in the other year.

The rule

week 1 = the week containing 4 January  ·  weeks run Monday–Sunday

Worked example

31 December 2020 falls in week 53 of 2020 — 2020's final ISO week — even though 1 January 2021 also falls in that same week 53, not week 1 of 2021.

Frequently asked questions

What is an ISO week number?
ISO 8601 defines weeks as running Monday to Sunday, with week 1 of a year being the week that contains that year's first Thursday (equivalently, the week containing 4 January). Weeks are numbered 1 through 52 or 53 depending on the year.
Why can a date near January 1st belong to a different year's week?
Because week 1 is defined by which week contains the first Thursday, not by which week contains January 1st. A late-December date can fall in week 1 of the following year (if that week's Thursday lands in January), and an early-January date can fall in the last week (52 or 53) of the previous year (if that week's Thursday is still in December).
Why do some years have 53 weeks?
A year has 53 ISO weeks when 1 January falls on a Thursday, or on a Wednesday in a leap year — both cases push an extra partial week into the year's count. Every other year has 52.
Sources and method
  • ISO 8601 — Date and time format, week numbering.
Last reviewed: 20 Sep 2026 Sources last verified: 20 Sep 2026 Results use the assumptions explained on this page. Report an error How we check calculations

Related calculators