About the Chinese Lunar Calendar Converter
This Chinese lunar calendar converter translates dates between the Gregorian (solar) calendar and the traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar, also called the nongli (农历) or yinli calendar, in both directions. Enter a Gregorian date to get the lunar month and day, the sexagenary (Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch) year name and its zodiac animal — or enter a lunar date such as the 15th day of the 8th month to find the matching Gregorian date and weekday.
It is built for anyone who keeps a lunar birthday, plans Lunar New Year, Mid-Autumn or Dragon Boat celebrations, or needs to read a date from a family record or almanac. Leap months (闰月) are handled exactly: tick “Leap month” when a date falls in the repeated month, and the converter tells you when a year has no such leap month. Add a target year to see when the same lunar birthday falls on the Gregorian calendar that year.
The month and leap-month data come from the Hong Kong Observatory’s official Gregorian–Lunar calendar conversion tables and cover lunar years 1901 to 2099 (19 February 1901 to 8 February 2100). Months begin on the day of the astronomical new moon in China’s time zone, so the results match the dates printed on Chinese, Hong Kong and Taiwanese calendars.
How to use the chinese lunar calendar converter
- 1Choose Gregorian → Lunar or Lunar → Gregorian.
- 2Enter the Gregorian date, or the lunar year, month and day.
- 3Tick “Leap month” only if the lunar date is in the repeated (闰) month.
- 4Set a target year to see when the same lunar date — such as a lunar birthday — falls that year.
- 5Read the converted date, then check the table for every month of that lunar year.
Formula and method
The Chinese calendar is lunisolar. Each month starts on the day of the astronomical new moon in China Standard Time (UTC+8), so months have 29 or 30 days and an ordinary year has 12 months (353–355 days). Because 12 lunar months fall about 11 days short of a solar year, a 13th “leap” month is inserted roughly 7 times every 19 years; it is the first month that contains no major solar term (zhongqi), and it repeats the number of the month before it.
The converter stores, for every lunar year from 1901 to 2099, the length of each month and the position of the leap month, taken from the Hong Kong Observatory conversion tables. To convert, it counts days from Chinese New Year 1901 (19 February 1901) to find which lunar year, month and day contains your date — or adds the month lengths to go the other way. The year name uses the 60-year cycle of 10 Heavenly Stems and 12 Earthly Branches, where 1984 was Jia-zi.
- Day number
- A continuous count of days, used to step between the two calendars
- Leap month (闰月)
- An extra month repeating the previous month’s number, added in 7 of every 19 years
- Stem-branch year
- Sexagenary cycle name: stem = (year − 4) mod 10, branch = (year − 4) mod 12
Worked examples
29 September 2026 on the lunar calendar
The 8th lunar month of 2026 begins on 11 September 2026, so 29 September is day 19 of that month in the Bing-wu (Horse) year. The same lunar date, 8/19, falls on 19 September 2027 next year.
When is Chinese New Year 2027?
Lunar 2027 begins on Saturday 6 February 2027, the start of the Ding-wei year of the Goat. Its 1st month has 30 days.
A date in the leap 2nd month of 2023
Lunar 2023 had a leap 2nd month starting 22 March 2023, so its 15th day was 5 April 2023. 2024 has no leap 2nd month, so the same birthday is celebrated in the regular 2nd month: 24 March 2024.
Birthday on 20 January 1990 (before Chinese New Year)
Chinese New Year 1990 was on 27 January, so 20 January 1990 still belongs to lunar 1989 (Snake): day 24 of the 12th month. In lunar year 2026 the 12th month 24th day falls on 31 January 2027.
Frequently asked questions
How do I find my lunar birthday?+
Convert your Gregorian date of birth to the lunar calendar, then set the target year. The tool returns the Gregorian date on which that same lunar month and day falls, which changes every year by up to about a month.
What is a leap month in the Chinese calendar?+
A leap month (闰月) is a 13th month added about 7 times every 19 years to keep the lunar calendar aligned with the seasons. It repeats the number of the preceding month — 2023, for example, had two 2nd months.
Why is my Chinese zodiac different from the year I was born?+
The zodiac year begins at Chinese New Year, which falls between 21 January and 20 February. If you were born in January or early February before New Year, your lunar year and animal are those of the previous year.
What date is Chinese New Year 2027?+
Chinese New Year 2027 is Saturday 6 February 2027, starting the Year of the Goat (Ding-wei). Chinese New Year 2026 was on 17 February 2026, starting the Year of the Horse.
Why does a lunar month have 29 or 30 days?+
Each month starts on the day of the new moon, and the time between new moons averages about 29.53 days. Depending on when the new moons fall in China Standard Time, a month ends up with either 29 or 30 days.
Is the Korean or Vietnamese lunar calendar the same?+
They follow the same rules, but Korea uses UTC+9 and Vietnam UTC+7 to date new moons, so in rare years a month can start a day apart. This converter uses China Standard Time (UTC+8), as in the Hong Kong Observatory tables.