Diwali 2026 in the USA Is Sunday, Nov. 8: Lakshmi Puja Time in Your Time Zone

Diwali 2026 in the United States (USA) is Sunday, Nov. 8, the same night as in India. Lakshmi Puja, the central prayer of the festival, is done that evening in the Pradosh Kaal window that opens at local sunset, so the exact time depends on your U.S. time zone: it runs about 4:44 to 7:08 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) in New York and 4:54 to 7:18 p.m. Pacific Time (PT) in Los Angeles, with six cities in the table below. The night is the Amavasya (new moon) of the Hindu month of Kartik. The five days of celebration begin with Dhanteras on Friday, Nov. 6 and end with Bhai Dooj on Tuesday, Nov. 10. California’s Diwali holiday law was ruled against in court this year, according to Fresnoland and the Eenadu Television (ETV) group news service ETV Bharat.

Lakshmi Puja time on Diwali 2026 in six U.S. cities

Lakshmi Puja is performed in the Pradosh Kaal window that opens at sunset and runs about 2 hours 24 minutes. Here is that window for six U.S. cities on Sunday, Nov. 8, from U.S. Naval Observatory sunset times. Clocks are on standard time, because they fell back on Nov. 1.

City	Sunset	Lakshmi Puja (Pradosh Kaal)
New York, NY	4:44 p.m. EST	4:44 to 7:08 p.m. EST
Atlanta, GA	5:39 p.m. EST	5:39 to 8:03 p.m. EST
Chicago, IL	4:36 p.m. CST	4:36 to 7:00 p.m. CST
Houston, TX	5:30 p.m. CST	5:30 to 7:54 p.m. CST
San Jose, CA	5:03 p.m. PST	5:03 to 7:27 p.m. PST
Los Angeles, CA	4:54 p.m. PST	4:54 to 7:18 p.m. PST

Your temple or family priest may name a shorter muhurat inside this window. The full table of 28 cities, with sunrise, is further down.

Countdown to Diwali 2026

The Lakshmi Puja options count to the start of the Pradosh Kaal window (sunset) in each city, from the Naval Observatory sunset times below, shown in your own time zone. Without JavaScript, use the table.

How many days until the five days of Diwali 2026

Date	Day	What it marks	Days from today
Nov. 6	Dhanteras	Buying gold, silver or new utensils	-
Nov. 7	Choti Diwali (Naraka Chaturdashi)	Early oil bath, first diyas, rangoli	-
Nov. 8	Diwali (Lakshmi Puja)	Lakshmi and Ganesha puja after sunset	-
Nov. 9	Govardhan Puja	Annakut food offerings	-
Nov. 10	Bhai Dooj	Sisters pray for brothers; brothers give gifts	-

Diwali 2026 dates: the five days

Day	Date	What it marks
Dhanteras	Friday, Nov. 6	Buying gold, silver or new utensils; lamps lit at the door
Naraka Chaturdashi (Choti Diwali)	Saturday, Nov. 7	Early oil bath, the first diyas, rangoli
Diwali (Lakshmi Puja)	Sunday, Nov. 8	Lakshmi and Ganesha puja after sunset, diyas, sweets, fireworks
Govardhan Puja	Monday, Nov. 9	Annakut food offerings; Gujarati New Year for many families
Bhai Dooj	Tuesday, Nov. 10	Sisters pray for their brothers; brothers give gifts

Sikhs mark Bandi Chhor Divas at the same time. Customs and the names of the days differ between regions, so families from Gujarat, Bengal or Tamil Nadu may follow a slightly different order. Our guide to Guru Nanak Jayanti covers another major Sikh festival this fall.

Why Diwali is on Nov. 8 this year

Hindu festivals follow a lunisolar calendar, so Diwali moves each year, usually between mid-October and mid-November. It is celebrated on the evening when the Amavasya tithi, the last lunar day before the new moon, is in effect after sunset.

In 2026 the new moon arrives at 07:02 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) on Monday, Nov. 9, according to the U.S. Naval Observatory. That is 12:32 p.m. in India and 2:02 a.m. Eastern Time in the United States. On both sides of the world, the Amavasya evening is Sunday, Nov. 8, so Indian and American families celebrate on the same night.

Diwali 2026 is 19 days later than in 2025, when it fell on Oct. 20. In 2027 it moves back to Friday, Oct. 29.

Lakshmi Puja time in the United States

Lakshmi Puja is traditionally performed during Pradosh Kaal, the window that opens at sunset. We counted it as 2 hours 24 minutes from local sunset, using Naval Observatory sunset times for Nov. 8, for 28 cities from Boston to Honolulu, grouped by time zone. U.S. clocks fall back on Sunday, Nov. 1, so every time below is standard time.

City	Sunset	Pradosh Kaal
Atlanta, GA	5:39 p.m. EST	5:39 to 8:03 p.m.
Boston, MA	4:29 p.m. EST	4:29 to 6:53 p.m.
Charlotte, NC	5:22 p.m. EST	5:22 to 7:46 p.m.
Columbus, OH	5:22 p.m. EST	5:22 to 7:46 p.m.
Detroit, MI	5:17 p.m. EST	5:17 to 7:41 p.m.
Edison, NJ	4:46 p.m. EST	4:46 to 7:10 p.m.
Jersey City, NJ	4:45 p.m. EST	4:45 to 7:09 p.m.
New York, NY	4:44 p.m. EST	4:44 to 7:08 p.m.
Philadelphia, PA	4:51 p.m. EST	4:51 to 7:15 p.m.
Raleigh, NC	5:13 p.m. EST	5:13 to 7:37 p.m.
Tampa, FL	5:41 p.m. EST	5:41 to 8:05 p.m.
Washington, DC	5:00 p.m. EST	5:00 to 7:24 p.m.
Austin, TX	5:38 p.m. CST	5:38 to 8:02 p.m.
Chicago, IL	4:36 p.m. CST	4:36 to 7:00 p.m.
Dallas, TX	5:30 p.m. CST	5:30 to 7:54 p.m.
Houston, TX	5:30 p.m. CST	5:30 to 7:54 p.m.
Minneapolis, MN	4:52 p.m. CST	4:52 to 7:16 p.m.
Denver, CO	4:50 p.m. MST	4:50 to 7:14 p.m.
Phoenix, AZ	5:30 p.m. MST	5:30 to 7:54 p.m.
Las Vegas, NV	4:38 p.m. PST	4:38 to 7:02 p.m.
Los Angeles, CA	4:54 p.m. PST	4:54 to 7:18 p.m.
Portland, OR	4:48 p.m. PST	4:48 to 7:12 p.m.
Sacramento, CA	4:59 p.m. PST	4:59 to 7:23 p.m.
San Diego, CA	4:52 p.m. PST	4:52 to 7:16 p.m.
San Jose, CA	5:03 p.m. PST	5:03 to 7:27 p.m.
Seattle, WA	4:41 p.m. PST	4:41 to 7:05 p.m.
Anchorage, AK	4:38 p.m. AKST	4:38 to 7:02 p.m.
Honolulu, HI	5:52 p.m. HST	5:52 to 8:16 p.m.

Many temples and family priests choose a shorter muhurat inside this window, based on the rising sign at their location. When your temple publishes one, follow it. The printable Lakshmi Puja table in the downloads lists the first 12 cities we published, with sunrise as well.

Where Diwali is a holiday in the U.S.

California. Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 268 on Oct. 6, 2025, to make Diwali a state holiday starting in 2026. A Sacramento County Superior Court judge then ruled in favor of the San Francisco Taxpayers Association, which had challenged the law, ETV Bharat reported on July 25, 2026 and Fresnoland on Sept. 1, 2026. ETV Bharat quoted the court as finding that AB 268 “violates several provisions of the federal and state constitutions.” The reports differ on how much of the law the ruling leaves in place, and we have seen no report of an appeal. Because Diwali falls on a Sunday this year, most campuses are closed that day anyway.

Pennsylvania and Connecticut. Pennsylvania named Diwali an official state holiday in 2024, and Connecticut followed in 2025. Neither law requires offices or schools to close.

New York City. A law signed by Governor Kathy Hochul on Nov. 14, 2023 made Diwali a holiday for New York City public schools. The schools first closed for it in 2024. With Diwali on a Sunday in 2026, there is no school day to cancel.

Diwali is not a federal holiday, so post offices, banks and federal offices keep their normal hours. On Sunday that means most are closed regardless.

Are schools closed for Diwali 2026?

Mostly not. With Diwali on a Sunday, the school calendars we checked keep Monday and Tuesday of Diwali week as ordinary days, so families who stay up late for Lakshmi Puja, or who mark Govardhan Puja and Bhai Dooj, are working around a school week.

District or office	Diwali week, Nov. 6 to 10	Days off nearby
New York City public schools	Open; Diwali is not on the 2026-27 calendar	Elementary schools dismiss three hours early on Thu., Nov. 5 for parent-teacher conferences; closed Wed., Nov. 11, Veterans Day
Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland	Open; no Diwali day on the 2026-27 calendar	No school Mon., Nov. 2; closed Tue., Nov. 3, Election Day
California state offices	Diwali is not on CalHR’s list of paid state holidays	Closed Wed., Nov. 11, Veterans Day

Sources: the 2026-27 calendars of New York City Public Schools and Montgomery County Public Schools, and the CalHR state holiday list. In California, check your own district’s calendar rather than relying on AB 268. If your child will miss class on Monday, Nov. 9 or Tuesday, Nov. 10 for Govardhan Puja or Bhai Dooj, look up your district’s attendance rules for religious observances before the week starts.

Planning the week

With Diwali on a Sunday, the main celebrations fall on a weekend for most families: Choti Diwali on Saturday, Lakshmi Puja on Sunday night. Govardhan Puja and Bhai Dooj land on Monday and Tuesday, so families who travel for Bhai Dooj may need a day off. Election Day falls the Tuesday before, on Nov. 3, and Veterans Day the Wednesday after, on Nov. 11.

Our free Diwali planner splits the preparations by day, from cleaning and buying diyas before Dhanteras to the Bhai Dooj tilak. To see the whole month, print a November 2026 calendar and mark the five days. For other festivals that follow the Moon, see our guides to Ramadan 2027 and Lunar New Year 2027, or plan ahead with a 2027 printable yearly calendar. Thanksgiving comes three weeks after Diwali, on Nov. 26; our page on when Thanksgiving falls explains the rule. Readers in Britain can follow our guide to Diwali in the United Kingdom.

Diwali week overlaps other November observances: Day of the Dead ends on Nov. 2, and Veterans Day follows on Nov. 11. The 2027 federal holiday list covers next year’s days off.