Ramadan 2027: Expected Dates, Moon Sighting and How to Prepare

Last checked: 23 October 2026. As of October 2026 these dates are projections, not announcements. We will update this page as official calendars and moon-sighting decisions are published. Sources: the Umm al-Qura calendar (as implemented in the Unicode ICU library and in moment-hijri, the library our app uses), NASA's table of moon phases, and reporting by The National (updated 6 October 2026) and Gulf News (updated 1 September 2026). Hadith were read in our self-hosted copy of the major collections.

When will Ramadan 2027 begin?

Expected: Monday 8 February 2027. That means:

• The crescent of Ramadan will be sought after sunset on Sunday 7 February 2027, which is 29 Shaʿban 1448 in most sighting-based calendars.
• If the month begins on 8 February, the first tarawih prayer is on the night of Sunday 7 February and the first suhoor and fast are on Monday 8 February.
• Some countries and communities may begin on Tuesday 9 February, for the reasons explained below.

Every source we checked agrees on 8 February as the expected start:

The astronomy behind it: the new moon (the conjunction) falls on 6 February 2027 at 15:56 UTC, according to NASA's table of lunar phases. That is after sunset in Makkah and across most of the Muslim world on 6 February, so the crescent cannot be seen that evening. By sunset on 7 February the moon is around a day old and widely expected to be visible, which is why 8 February is the consensus. Interesting detail for sky-watchers: that same new moon produces an annular solar eclipse on 6 February 2027, which NASA's table marks as annular.

Why Ramadan dates differ between countries

Every year, some Muslims start Ramadan a day before or after their relatives in another country, and every year people ask whether someone got it wrong. Usually nobody did. The difference comes from a real and old difference of method.

The hadith: start and end with the sighting

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Start fasting on seeing the crescent, and stop fasting on seeing the crescent, and if the sky is overcast, complete thirty days of Shaʿban" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1909; Sahih Muslim 1081). The Quran says "whoever sights the month, let him fast it" (Quran 2:185). So the month of an Islamic calendar starts when the new crescent is seen after sunset, or after 30 days if it is not.

Method 1: local sighting

Many scholars hold that each region follows its own sighting. Their evidence is the hadith of Kurayb: he saw the Ramadan crescent in Syria on a Friday night, while the people of Madinah saw it on Saturday night. When he told Ibn ʿAbbas, Ibn ʿAbbas said the people of Madinah would keep fasting until they completed thirty days or saw the new moon themselves, and said: "This is what the Messenger of Allah ﷺ commanded us" (Sahih Muslim 1087). Pakistan, India and Bangladesh, among others, traditionally rely on their own committees' sightings.

Method 2: following a sighting elsewhere

Other scholars hold that a confirmed sighting anywhere, or in a particular reference country, applies more widely. Many communities in Europe and elsewhere follow Saudi Arabia's announcement for this reason.

Method 3: astronomical calculation

Some institutions use calculation to fix the calendar in advance, so families can plan. Turkey's Diyanet publishes a calculated calendar, and in North America the Fiqh Council of North America uses a calculation-based approach. Scholars differ on whether calculation can replace sighting; calculation-based bodies argue that it determines the same astronomical event with certainty, while their critics hold that the hadith tie the month to an actual sighting.

What this means for 2027

Our advice is simple: follow your local mosque or national authority, and do not argue with relatives in other countries about it. Both methods have scholarly backing, and the hadith of Kurayb shows that different places beginning on different days happened in the time of the companions.

How is the Ramadan crescent actually sighted?

It helps to know what the moon-sighting committees are looking for on the evening of 7 February 2027, because it explains why a date can only be confirmed at the last moment.

1. The new moon itself is invisible. At conjunction the moon sits between the earth and the sun, with its lit side facing away from us. What Muslims look for is the hilal, the first thin crescent that appears after conjunction.
2. Observers look west, just after sunset, on the 29th. The young crescent sets shortly after the sun, so there is only a short window, often well under an hour, low on the western horizon.
3. Age is not enough on its own. Whether the crescent can be seen depends on how far it is from the sun in the sky, how high it is above the horizon at sunset, how long it stays up after the sun sets, and the weather and haze. A crescent that is the same age can be visible in one country and impossible in another.
4. The west sees it first. Because the moon keeps moving away from the sun, a place further west, where sunset comes later in universal time, often has a better chance. That is one reason a crescent missed in the Middle East can be seen in the Americas the same evening.
5. Testimony is checked. Committees take reports from trusted witnesses and many now compare them against astronomical data, rejecting claims of a sighting when the moon had already set or had not yet passed conjunction.

For 2027, the moon will be about a day old at sunset on 7 February in Makkah, which is why astronomers and newspapers expect a sighting that night. For the end of the month, the crescent on 8 March will be only hours old in the Middle East, which is why Eid is less certain.

Who announces Ramadan 2027 where you live?

The start of Ramadan is announced by a religious authority, not by a website or an app. A few of the best-known bodies, so you know whose announcement to wait for:

If you live in a country where mosques follow different announcements, the practical answer is to follow the mosque you pray in, so that your community fasts and celebrates Eid together.

Tarawih in Ramadan 2027: 8 or 20 rakats?

The first tarawih of Ramadan 2027 is expected on the night of Sunday 7 February. Every year the question of how many rakʿahs comes up, so here is the evidence, fairly.

• Eleven, including witr. ʿĀʾisha was asked how the Prophet ﷺ prayed in Ramadan and said: "He did not pray more than eleven rakʿahs in Ramadan or in any other month" (Sahih al-Bukhari 2013). Those who pray eight plus three witr follow this.
• Congregation under ʿUmar. ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb saw people praying in scattered groups in the mosque and gathered them behind one reciter, Ubayy ibn Kaʿb (Sahih al-Bukhari 2010). Reports in other collections describe twenty rakʿahs being prayed in the time of ʿUmar; scholars discuss their chains, and twenty became the long-standing practice in the Haramayn and of the Hanafi, Shafiʿi and Hanbali schools.
• No fixed limit. Many scholars point out that night prayer has no upper limit, and that ʿĀʾisha was describing the Prophet's ﷺ own habit, not setting a maximum for everyone.

So both eight and twenty have serious scholarly backing. Pray with your mosque, and do not leave the congregation over the number. Our how to pray taraweeh guide explains the prayer step by step.

When is Eid al-Fitr 2027?

Expected: Tuesday 9 March or Wednesday 10 March 2027.

Why the split? The new moon that ends Ramadan falls on 8 March 2027 at 09:29 UTC (NASA). If Ramadan began on 8 February, the evening of 8 March is the 29th of Ramadan, the night the Shawwal crescent is sought. At sunset in Makkah the moon will be only about six hours past conjunction (around 13 hours by sunset on the American east coast), which is very young for a naked-eye sighting. If it is not seen, Ramadan completes 30 days and Eid falls on Wednesday 10 March. The Umm al-Qura calendar, which follows astronomical criteria for Makkah rather than an actual sighting, lists 9 March. Saudi Arabia's religious announcement is made on the basis of sighting testimony, so the official Eid can differ from the printed civil calendar. We are not predicting the outcome; we are explaining why responsible sources give two dates.

Zakat al-Fitr must be paid before the Eid prayer. Many organisations collect it during the last days of Ramadan, so plan for it in the first week of March. Our zakat guide explains who pays it and how much.

Laylatul Qadr 2027: the last ten nights

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Search for the Night of Qadr in the odd nights of the last ten days of Ramadan" (Sahih al-Bukhari 2017). The Quran says the Night of Decree "is better than a thousand months" (Quran 97:3), and "whoever stands in prayer on the Night of Qadr out of faith and hoping for reward will have his past sins forgiven" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1901).

Islamic nights begin at sunset, so the "21st night" is the evening before the 21st fasting day. If Ramadan begins on Monday 8 February 2027:

On the 8 February scenario, the last ten nights begin at sunset on Saturday 27 February (the 21st night). Many people hope for the 27th night especially, which is a widely held opinion among scholars, but the hadith tell us to seek it across the odd nights, so do not put everything on one evening.

The dua the Prophet ﷺ taught ʿĀʾisha for this night: "Allāhumma innaka ʿafuwwun tuḥibbul-ʿafwa faʿfu ʿannī", O Allah, You are Pardoning and love to pardon, so pardon me (Jami at-Tirmidhi 3513, graded sahih by al-Albani and Ahmad Shakir). Our Laylatul Qadr guide covers the signs and the worship of these nights in detail.

Suhoor and iftar times in Ramadan 2027

Fasting runs from Fajr (the true dawn; suhoor must end before it) to Maghrib (sunset; iftar). Because Ramadan 2027 falls in February and March, fasts will be short in the northern hemisphere, roughly 11 to 13 hours, and longer in the southern hemisphere.

We computed the times below with adhan-js, the open-source prayer-time library used in the Niyyara app, using the calculation method most commonly followed in each place. These are for planning only: your local mosque may use a different method or add a safety margin of a few minutes, and its timetable is the one to follow.

Local times; London and New York are before their 2027 clock changes (28 March and 14 March respectively), so no daylight-saving adjustment applies in this window. "Fast" is Fajr to Maghrib.

Two things stand out. In Europe and North America the fast gets more than an hour longer between the first and last days, because the days lengthen quickly in late winter. And in Sydney the fast is longest at the start and shortens through the month.

For your exact location, the Niyyara app calculates Fajr and Maghrib on your phone, shows the suhoor and iftar countdown, and lets you choose the calculation method your mosque uses.

Ramadan 2027 calendar at a glance

Assuming the most likely scenario, Ramadan beginning on Monday 8 February 2027:

If your country starts on Tuesday 9 February, shift the Ramadan dates in this table one day later.

How to prepare for Ramadan 2027, from Rajab and Shaʿban

The months before Ramadan are a run-up, and the Sunnah gives us a few clear, authentic practices for them. Here they are with their sources, and with a note on some popular practices that lack a sound basis.

Rajab 1448 (from about 10 December 2026)

Rajab is one of the four sacred months (Quran 9:36), in which wrongdoing is especially serious and good deeds especially valued. There is no specific fast, prayer or celebration of Rajab established in authentic hadith, so the best use of it is general: more voluntary prayer and fasting, avoiding sin, and starting habits you want to carry into Ramadan.

You may see the dua "Allāhumma bārik lanā fī Rajab wa Shaʿbān wa ballighnā Ramaḍān" (O Allah, bless us in Rajab and Shaʿban and let us reach Ramadan) circulated widely. Its chain is weak according to most hadith scholars. Asking Allah to let you reach Ramadan is a good dua in your own words; just do not attribute this wording to the Prophet ﷺ as authentic.

Shaʿban 1448 (from about 9 January 2027)

Shaʿban has the clearest Sunnah of any month before Ramadan:

• Fast more in Shaʿban. ʿĀʾisha said: "I never saw Allah's Messenger ﷺ fasting a whole month except Ramadan, and I never saw him fasting in any month more than in Shaʿban" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1969).
• The reason he gave. Usāma ibn Zayd asked why. The Prophet ﷺ said: "That is a month people neglect, between Rajab and Ramadan. It is a month in which deeds are raised to the Lord of the worlds, and I love that my deeds are raised while I am fasting" (Sunan an-Nasa'i 2357, graded hasan by al-Albani).
• But not in the last day or two. "None of you should fast a day or two before Ramadan, unless it is a fast he regularly keeps" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1914). So if you are building up with voluntary fasts, plan to stop by about 5 February 2027, unless it is your regular Monday or Thursday fast.
• Make up missed fasts. If you owe fasts from Ramadan 2026, Shaʿban is the last stretch to make them up before the next Ramadan.

A practical eight-week plan

Your first night of Ramadan 2027: a checklist

If the month begins on Monday 8 February, Sunday 7 February is the night everything starts. A short list so nothing catches you out:

1. Check the announcement from your mosque or national authority after Maghrib on 7 February.
2. Make your intention. The intention (niyyah) to fast is in the heart; you do not need to say a set formula aloud. The Maliki school accepts one intention at the start of Ramadan for the whole month, while the other schools ask for an intention for each day's fast. Waking up for suhoor is itself an intention.
3. Pray tarawih, at the mosque if you can, on the first night.
4. Set your suhoor alarm with enough time to eat before Fajr. In London on 8 February 2027, Fajr is around 05:51; in New York around 05:42, by our calculation above.
5. Prepare dates and water for the first iftar, following the Sunnah of breaking the fast promptly (Sahih al-Bukhari 1957).
6. Pick your Quran plan. If you want to finish the Quran in Ramadan, one juzʾ a day does it.
7. Write down your duas. Ramadan is a month of dua; a list stops you forgetting the people who asked you to pray for them.

The Sunnah of suhoor and iftar

A few authentic reminders worth putting on your fridge:

• Eat suhoor. "Take suhoor, for there is blessing in it" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1923). Even a date and water counts.
• Hurry the iftar. "People will remain on the right path as long as they hasten to break the fast" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1957). Break your fast at Maghrib without waiting.
• The iftar dua. When breaking his fast, the Prophet ﷺ said: "Dhahaba al-ẓamaʾ, wa abtallat al-ʿurūq, wa thabata al-ajru in shāʾ Allāh", "The thirst has gone, the veins are moistened, and the reward is certain, if Allah wills" (Sunan Abi Dawud 2357, graded hasan by al-Albani). Our dua for breaking fast guide has more.

Ramadan in the coming years

The Islamic calendar is lunar, about 11 days shorter than the solar year, so Ramadan moves earlier each year. These are the Umm al-Qura dates; as with 2027, the actual start where you live can differ by a day.

That last row is worth noticing: in the 2030s Ramadan falls in midwinter for the northern hemisphere, with the shortest fasts of a generation in Europe and North America.

Who is exempt from fasting?

The Quran is clear that fasting has exemptions: "whoever is ill or on a journey, then an equal number of other days" (2:185), and "Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship" (the same verse). Scholars add other categories based on the Quran and Sunnah, including women during menstruation and postnatal bleeding, and, with details that differ between schools, pregnant and breastfeeding women who fear for themselves or the baby, and elderly people who cannot fast. If you have a medical condition such as diabetes, speak to your doctor and a scholar before Ramadan, not on the first morning. Our how to fast in Ramadan guide covers the rulings in detail.