How many sleeps until Christmas (and New Year)? Midnights, time zones and why Eve is 1
Kids (and plenty of grown-ups) ask "how many sleeps until Christmas?" The answer is not the same as a naive day counter — and that is why some countdown widgets look a day short on Christmas Eve.
What "sleeps" means
A sleep is a night that still stands between you and the big day: each midnight that passes removes one. If today is the target day itself, the answer is 0 sleeps — it is today. The count does not care whether you are awake at 9 am or 11 pm; only the calendar date in the chosen time zone matters.
| When you ask (local) | Sleeps until Christmas | Whole 24-hour days left |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Dec, any time | 2 | depends on the clock (often 1) |
| 24 Dec, morning | 1 | often still 0–1 |
| 24 Dec, 8 pm | 1 | 0 (under 24 hours remain) |
| 25 Dec, any time | 0 — it is today | 0 |
That Christmas Eve evening case is why people say "the countdown is a day off". See why countdown timers are often a day off.
Christmas and New Year chips
- Open the countdown.
- Tap Christmas or New Year (or pick any date).
- Choose whose midnights count — London, New York, Auckland, or any IANA zone.
- Optionally set "started waiting on" to light up nights already slept and show percent done.
New Year means 1 January in that zone. Crossing the date line: Auckland rings in the year many hours before London; the sleep count follows the zone you selected, not UTC by default.
Sleeps vs calendar days vs weekdays
- Sleeps / calendar days — same number: midnights between "today" and the target date.
- Weekdays vs weekend days — how those mornings split Mon–Fri vs Sat–Sun (handy for school-term waiting).
- Working / business days — weekdays minus bank holidays; different question. See working days until a deadline and UK working days.
From a script
# Christmas in Europe/London
curl -s 'https://api.oddlathe.com/v1/countdown?event=christmas&tz=Europe/London'
# New Year in Pacific/Auckland
curl -s 'https://api.oddlathe.com/v1/countdown?event=new-year&tz=Pacific/Auckland'
Docs with try-it: /v1/countdown. Need an age or duration between two past dates instead? Date difference.
Related
Countdown (days and sleeps) · Why countdown timers are a day off · Working days until a deadline · How many working days in the UK · Date difference · Time zone meeting planner · Anvil countdown API
Questions
How many sleeps until Christmas from Christmas Eve?
One. Any time on 24 December, Christmas Day is still one midnight away, so it is 1 sleep.
Is sleeps the same as days until Christmas?
Sleeps match the calendar-day gap. They are not the same as whole 24-hour days left — on Christmas Eve evening the 24-hour count can be 0 while sleeps is still 1.
Which time zone should I use?
The zone of the people waiting. Midnights in London and New York are different moments; pick the zone whose calendar you care about.
Does New Year mean 1 January or 31 December night?
The New Year chip targets 1 January (the day). From 31 December you have 1 sleep left.
Is there an API for sleeps until Christmas?
Yes. Anvil /v1/countdown?event=christmas returns sleeps, weekdays, weekend days and time left as JSON with no key.
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