Months and Dates in Chinese

The 12 months in Chinese

1. January
   一月 yī yuè
2. February
   二月 èr yuè
3. March
   三月 sān yuè
4. April
   四月 sì yuè
5. May
   五月 wǔ yuè
6. June
   六月 liù yuè
7. July
   七月 qī yuè
8. August
   八月 bā yuè
9. September
   九月 jiǔ yuè
10. October
    十月 shí yuè
11. November
    十一月 shíyī yuè
12. December
    十二月 shí'èr yuè

Today's date in Chinese

Saturday, October 24, 2026

Written: 2026年10月24日 星期六

Spoken: 二〇二六年十月二十四号，星期六 (èr líng èr liù nián shí yuè èrshísì hào, xīngqī liù)

How to say the date in Chinese

1. Year: 年 (nián), as in 2026年
2. Month: 月 (yuè), as in 10月
3. Day: 日 / 号 (rì / hào), as in 5日
4. Weekday: 星期 (xīngqī), as in 星期一

• Write it: 2026年10月5日 (èr líng èr liù nián shí yuè wǔ rì): October 5, 2026.
• Say it: 二〇二六年十月五号 (èr líng èr liù nián shí yuè wǔ hào): October 5, 2026.
• Everyday: 十月五号 (shí yuè wǔ hào): October 5. People usually leave out the year.

号 (hào) or 日 (rì)?

• 十月五号 (shí yuè wǔ hào): Say it with 号 (hào). Speech, messages and casual writing.
• 10月5日 (shí yuè wǔ rì): Write it with 日 (rì). Forms, signs, letters and the news.

Adding the day of the week

• 十月五号，星期一 (shí yuè wǔ hào, xīngqī yī): Monday, October 5. The date comes first, the weekday last.
• 2026年10月5日（星期一） (èr líng èr liù nián shí yuè wǔ rì (xīngqī yī)): Monday, October 5, 2026. Written, the weekday often goes in brackets.

All seven days of the week in Chinese, with audio

Three common slips

• Not 5号10月, but 10月5号 (shí yuè wǔ hào). Big to small: the month comes before the day.
• Not 两千零二十六年, but 二〇二六年 (èr líng èr liù nián). A year is read digit by digit, not as a number.
• Not 十月第五号, but 十月五号 (shí yuè wǔ hào). No “th”: a date never takes 第 (dì).

Days of the month: 1st to 31st

Say the number, then 号 (hào). Two is 二 (èr) in dates, never 两 (liǎng).

• 一号 (yī hào): the 1st.
• 二号 (èr hào): the 2nd.
• 十号 (shí hào): the 10th.
• 十一号 (shíyī hào): the 11th.
• 十二号 (shí'èr hào): the 12th.
• 二十号 (èrshí hào): the 20th.
• 二十一号 (èrshíyī hào): the 21st.
• 三十一号 (sānshíyī hào): the 31st.

How to say years in Chinese

Read the year digit by digit, then add 年 (nián). Zero is 〇 (líng) or 零 (líng).

• 2026年 · 二〇二六年: èr líng èr liù nián
• 1998年 · 一九九八年: yī jiǔ jiǔ bā nián
• 2008年 · 二〇〇八年: èr líng líng bā nián

• 去年 (qùnián): last year.
• 今年 (jīnnián): this year.
• 明年 (míngnián): next year.

Useful date phrases

• 今天几月几号？ (Jīntiān jǐ yuè jǐ hào?): What's the date today?.
• 今天十月五号。 (Jīntiān shí yuè wǔ hào.): Today is October 5.. 是 (shì, is) is optional: a date can be the whole answer.
• 你的生日是几月几号？ (Nǐ de shēngrì shì jǐ yuè jǐ hào?): When is your birthday?.
• 我的生日是三月十二号。 (Wǒ de shēngrì shì sān yuè shí'èr hào.): My birthday is March 12..
• 你是哪年出生的？ (Nǐ shì nǎ nián chūshēng de?): What year were you born?.
• 我是一九九八年出生的。 (Wǒ shì yī jiǔ jiǔ bā nián chūshēng de.): I was born in 1998..

Months as time words

• 上个月 (shàng ge yuè): last month.
• 这个月 (zhè ge yuè): this month.
• 下个月 (xià ge yuè): next month.
• 每个月 (měi ge yuè): every month.
• 一个月 (yí ge yuè): one month (a length of time). 一月 (yī yuè) is January.
• 两个月 (liǎng ge yuè): two months. 二月 (èr yuè) is February.

Chinese date format: how to write the date

• 2026年10月5日 (èr líng èr liù nián shí yuè wǔ rì): The standard written date. Letters, forms, calendars
• 2026-10-05 · 2026/10/5: Numbers only, still year first. Websites, receipts, packaging
• 二〇二六年十月五日 (èr líng èr liù nián shí yuè wǔ rì): All in characters. Invitations, certificates, signed documents
• 民国115年10月5日: Taiwan's official year count. Years are counted from 1912, the first year of the Republic, 民国 (Mínguó): 2026 is year 115.

Dates on forms and labels

• 日期 (rìqī): date.
• 出生日期 (chūshēng rìqī): date of birth.
• 生产日期 (shēngchǎn rìqī): production date.
• 保质期 (bǎozhìqī): shelf life. Counted from the production date, such as 12个月 (shí'èr ge yuè), 12 months.
• 有效期至 (yǒuxiàoqī zhì): valid until (the expiry date).

Lunar dates on a Chinese calendar

Calendars in China also print the traditional lunar date, 农历 (nónglì). Its months and days have their own names, and festivals follow them: Spring Festival is 正月初一 (zhēngyuè chūyī), the first day of the first lunar month.

• 农历 (nónglì): the lunar calendar.
• 正月 (zhēngyuè): the first lunar month.
• 腊月 (làyuè): the twelfth lunar month.
• 初一 (chūyī): the first day of a lunar month.
• 八月十五 (bā yuè shíwǔ): Mid-Autumn Festival (lunar 8/15).

Keep going

• Days of the week in Chinese: all seven days with audio.
• Mandarin Numbers for Prices, Dates & Time: free PDF workbook, 26 pages.
• Write the 12 months: a tracing worksheet for 一月 (yīyuè) to 十二月 (shí'èryuè).
• Seasons & Months worksheet
• Days, Weeks & Months worksheet
• Dates, Time, Numbers & Prices worksheet
• Birthday & Celebration worksheet
• Reading Lunar Calendar Dates worksheet

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