When is Sukkot 2028?

Sukkot 2028 starts at sundown on Wednesday, October 4, 2028, and ends at nightfall on Wednesday, October 11, 2028. Shemini Atzeret comes right after it on Thursday, October 12. Outside Israel, Simchat Torah is on Friday, October 13, and it runs straight into Shabbat. On the Hebrew calendar, Sukkot is the 15th through the 21st of Tishrei, 5789.

Most people start looking up these dates in late summer, when school calendars and time-off requests are due. If you're reading this early, you're ahead of the game. Below you'll find every date, the day of the week for each one, how the calendar differs in Israel, and what changes in 2028 because Shabbat lands in the middle of the holiday twice.

Sukkot 2028 Dates

• Erev Sukkot: Wednesday, October 4, 2028. The holiday begins at sundown, and the first meal in the sukkah is that night.
• First day of Sukkot (15 Tishrei): Thursday, October 5, 2028
• Second day of Sukkot (16 Tishrei, outside Israel): Friday, October 6, 2028
• Shabbat Chol HaMoed (17 Tishrei): Saturday, October 7, 2028
• Chol HaMoed: Sunday, October 8 through Tuesday, October 10, 2028
• Hoshana Rabbah (21 Tishrei), the seventh day: Wednesday, October 11, 2028
• Shemini Atzeret (22 Tishrei): begins at sundown Wednesday, October 11, and is observed on Thursday, October 12, 2028
• Simchat Torah (23 Tishrei, outside Israel): begins at nightfall Thursday, October 12, and is observed on Friday, October 13, 2028

Every Jewish holiday starts the evening before the date printed on most calendars, because the Jewish day begins at sunset. That's why the calendar may show Sukkot as October 5 even though you'll be eating in the sukkah the night before.

Erev Sukkot vs. the First Day: Which One Do You Put on the Calendar?

Put down both. Erev Sukkot, Wednesday, October 4, is the day to get things done. Finish the sukkah, cook, and set the table. At sundown, candles are lit and the holiday begins. The first meal in the sukkah that night, with Kiddush and bread, is one of the most important of the whole festival.

Thursday, October 5, is the first full day of Sukkot. It's a full holiday, or yom tov. Many people who observe it don't work, and it's the first day the lulav and etrog are waved. If you're requesting time off, Wednesday afternoon plus Thursday is the minimum. Outside Israel, add Friday too.

The Seven Days, Plus Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah

Sukkot itself lasts seven days. The first day, or the first two days outside Israel, is a full holiday. The days after that are Chol HaMoed, the "intermediate days." They're still part of the festival, and meals are still eaten in the sukkah, but daily life mostly goes on as usual. This is when families take trips, invite neighbors over, and spend long evenings under the schach.

The seventh day, Hoshana Rabbah (Wednesday, October 11), has its own customs, like extra circuits around the synagogue with the lulav and beating willow branches. It's also the last full day of eating in the sukkah.

After that come Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah. People often lump them in with Sukkot, but technically they're a separate holiday. On Simchat Torah, the yearly cycle of Torah readings ends and starts again from the beginning, with dancing and plenty of noise. Customs vary on whether to eat in the sukkah on Shemini Atzeret, so ask your rabbi or follow your family's practice.

Sukkot 2028 Outside Israel vs. in Israel

The Hebrew dates are the same everywhere. What differs is how many days are full holidays:

• Outside Israel: Thursday, October 5 and Friday, October 6 are both full holiday days. Shemini Atzeret is Thursday, October 12, and Simchat Torah is Friday, October 13. The whole Sukkot-to-Simchat-Torah season ends at nightfall Friday, October 13, but in 2028 that's really the start of Shabbat, so the holiday doesn't end until Saturday night.
• In Israel: Only Thursday, October 5 is a full holiday, and Friday, October 6 is already Chol HaMoed. Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah fall on the same day, Thursday, October 12, and end at nightfall that evening.

If family members are spread across both, it helps to compare calendars early. For example, a relative in Jerusalem will be done with the holidays a day before you are.

What's Different About Sukkot 2028: The Days of the Week

In 2028, Shabbat falls in the middle of Sukkot and again right after Simchat Torah. For anyone who keeps both Shabbat and the holidays, that makes a real difference.

Three-day stretch #1 (outside Israel): Thursday–Saturday, October 5–7. The two holiday days run straight into Shabbat Chol HaMoed. That means three days in a row with no errands, no driving, and no shopping for many families. Plan meals for all three days before Wednesday afternoon. Many families also make an eruv tavshilin on Wednesday, October 4. This is a simple ritual, done before the holiday starts, that permits cooking on Friday's holiday for Shabbat.

Three-day stretch #2 (outside Israel): Thursday–Saturday, October 12–14. Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah lead right into Shabbat Bereishit, the first Shabbat of the new Torah cycle. That calls for another eruv tavshilin on Wednesday, October 11 (Hoshana Rabbah), and another full round of cooking ahead of time.

No lulav on Shabbat. The lulav and etrog aren't waved on Shabbat, so they sit out on Saturday, October 7. Outside Israel, you'll wave them on Thursday and Friday, skip Saturday, and pick them up again Sunday through Wednesday.

A tight build window. Yom Kippur 2028 falls on Shabbat, September 30. It starts at sundown Friday, September 29. Many people follow the custom of starting the sukkah right after Yom Kippur ends. In 2028 that means Saturday night, followed by just four days (Sunday through Wednesday) before Sukkot begins. Building on a weeknight after work is very doable with the right kit, but it's much less stressful if everything is already in the garage and ready to go.

Where Sukkot 2028 Falls Compared to Other Years

The Jewish calendar follows the moon but is adjusted to stay in step with the seasons, so Sukkot moves around on the secular calendar from year to year. Here's how 2028 compares with the years around it:

• 2026: sundown Friday, September 25 – nightfall Friday, October 2 (full 2026 guide here)
• 2027: sundown Friday, October 15 – nightfall Friday, October 22
• 2028: sundown Wednesday, October 4 – nightfall Wednesday, October 11
• 2029: sundown Sunday, September 23 – nightfall Sunday, September 30

2027 is a very late year, and Sukkot 2028 comes back about eleven days earlier. It's still early October, though, so in much of North America the evenings will be cool. Bring out blankets and a space heater for the colder nights. Rosh Hashanah 2028 begins at sundown on Wednesday, September 20. Our Rosh Hashanah 2027 guide explains why the fall holidays move so much from one year to the next.

Plan Early: A Sukkot 2028 Checklist

The holiday is a long way off, and that's exactly why now is a good time to plan. Some things are easier to sort out long before the fall rush:

1. Request time off now. Outside Israel, mark October 4 (afternoon), 5, 6, 12, and 13. In Israel, mark October 4 (afternoon), 5, and 12.
2. Check your space and your rules. If you've moved, or your building has new management, read up on HOA, landlord, and city rules for sukkahs before you order anything.
3. Know what makes a sukkah kosher. Our guide to the minimum requirements for a sukkah covers walls, height, and roofing in plain English.
4. Size it for your guest list. With two three-day stretches, 2028 has a lot of meals to host. If your table keeps growing, consider going up a size.
5. Measure your schach. Use our schach coverage guide so the roof isn't coming up short with four days left to build.
6. Do a test build. Set it up once on a nice weekend before the holidays. Then, after Yom Kippur, you'll already know where every piece goes.

Getting Your Sukkah Ready for 2028

The Sukkah Project has been making sukkahs since 1996. The most common thing we hear from customers is that they wish they hadn't waited until the week before. Our steel-frame kits go together without tools. Pre-cut poles slide into welded fittings, and most families are finished in about an hour. That matters in a year like 2028, when Yom Kippur ends Saturday night and Sukkot starts Wednesday.

If this will be your first sukkah, start with our best sukkah kits for beginners guide. If you're comparing sellers, our guide to buying a sukkah online explains what to look for. Either way, ordering early means you get the size you actually want, before the popular kits sell out for the season.

Put Wednesday, October 4, 2028, on the calendar and give yourself plenty of time to get ready. Chag sameach!