Example: working days in a year
In England and Wales, 2027 has 253 working days on a Monday-to-Friday week. The year has 365 days, 104 of them Saturdays or Sundays, which leaves 261 weekdays. Taking away the 8 bank holidays, all on weekdays, leaves 253. Scotland and Northern Ireland have more bank holidays, so their totals are lower. Try 1 January to 31 December 2027 in the calculator and switch the region to compare.
How we calculate
The calculator goes through every day between the two dates, both included. A day counts as a working day when it is a Monday to Friday and not a bank holiday in the chosen region. Bank holidays come from the GOV.UK data; substitute days count as bank holidays because they are the official day off. Dates beyond the years GOV.UK has published are calculated from the usual rules.
The result is a calendar count, not legal advice. Notice periods, statutory deadlines and contract terms can define “working day” differently, for example by excluding Christmas Eve or counting Saturdays. Check the definition in the document that sets your deadline.
When the working days count matters
- Notice periods and deadlines that are set in working days, for example in a contract or a supplier agreement.
- Delivery and processing times, such as “3 to 5 working days”, which stretch over Easter and Christmas.
- Payroll and invoices around bank holidays, when Bacs only processes on banking days.
- Annual leave planning, to see how many days you would need to book between two dates.