The Nepali calendar months, in the Bikram Sambat (BS) system, run in this order: Baisakh, Jestha, Ashadh, Shrawan, Bhadra, Ashwin, Kartik, Mangsir, Poush, Magh, Falgun and Chaitra. The year starts with Baisakh in mid-April and ends with Chaitra the next mid-April. Each month has 29 to 32 days, and the count changes from year to year because each month follows the Sun's movement through the zodiac.
This page lists every month in order with its approximate Gregorian span, its usual length, and the season and festivals that fall in it. It also explains why BS months never line up with January, February and the other Gregorian months.
What are the 12 Nepali calendar months in order?
The twelve Bikram Sambat months in order are Baisakh, Jestha, Ashadh, Shrawan, Bhadra, Ashwin, Kartik, Mangsir, Poush, Magh, Falgun and Chaitra. Baisakh 1 falls in mid-April and is Nepali New Year. Chaitra, the twelfth month, ends in mid-April of the following Gregorian year.
Each month begins when the Sun enters a new zodiac sign. This entry is called Sankranti. The Sun does not move at an even pace, and the entry can happen at any hour of the day, so the length of each month shifts from year to year. The table shows the standard order and the rough Gregorian window of each month.
| Nepali month | Approx. Gregorian span | Approx. days | Season / note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baisakh (बैशाख) | Mid-April to mid-May | 30-31 | Spring; Nepali New Year on Baisakh 1 |
| Jestha (जेठ) | Mid-May to mid-June | 31-32 | Late spring; longest days approaching |
| Ashadh (असार) | Mid-June to mid-July | 31-32 | Early monsoon; rice planting (Asar 15) |
| Shrawan (साउन) | Mid-July to mid-August | 31-32 | Monsoon; Shrawan Mondays, fasting |
| Bhadra (भदौ) | Mid-August to mid-September | 30-32 | Late monsoon; Teej, Janai Purnima |
| Ashwin (असोज) | Mid-September to mid-October | 30-31 | Autumn; Dashain usually falls here |
| Kartik (कार्तिक) | Mid-October to mid-November | 29-30 | Autumn; Tihar, harvest season |
| Mangsir (मंसिर) | Mid-November to mid-December | 29-30 | Early winter; wedding season peaks |
| Poush (पुष) | Mid-December to mid-January | 29-30 | Winter; shortest days |
| Magh (माघ) | Mid-January to mid-February | 29-30 | Winter; Maghe Sankranti on Magh 1 |
| Falgun (फागुन) | Mid-February to mid-March | 29-30 | Late winter; Holi, Maha Shivaratri |
| Chaitra (चैत) | Mid-March to mid-April | 30-31 | Spring; last month, Ram Navami, Ghode Jatra |
The BS year is about 56 to 57 years ahead of the Gregorian year: add 57 to the Gregorian year from mid-April to December, and 56 from January to mid-April (for example, Baisakh 2083 began in April 2026). For how the system started, see what the Bikram Sambat calendar is. To see the day counts for the current year, open the BS months page.
Why do Nepali calendar months have different numbers of days?
Nepali months vary in length because Bikram Sambat is a solar calendar tied to the Sun's path through the zodiac. A month lasts as long as the Sun stays in one zodiac sign. That time is not the same for every sign, so months have 29, 30, 31 or 32 days.
The Earth moves faster in its orbit around early January and slower around early July. So in Ashadh and Shrawan, the monsoon months, the Sun stays longer in each sign and those months have 31 or 32 days. Poush and Magh in winter are shorter, usually 29 or 30 days. For the same reason, one BS month can be a day or two longer or shorter than the same month in another year.
How is each month's start fixed?
Each month starts on the day of Sankranti, when the Sun crosses into a new sign. Panchang makers calculate the exact moment of this entry and then assign it to a calendar day. Because the moment of entry varies, the final day count of each month is set in the official patro published for that year. Do not assume a month has the same length it had last year.
Which festivals fall in which Nepali months?
Most major Nepali festivals are tied to a month, which is why people often name a festival by its month. Dashain usually falls in Ashwin, Tihar in Kartik, Maghe Sankranti on Magh 1, and Holi usually in Falgun. Festivals that follow the Moon can move into the next month: in 2083, Vijaya Dashami falls on Kartik 4 and Holi on Chaitra 7. Knowing the usual month tells you roughly when a festival will come before you check the exact date.
Festival dates also depend on the lunar tithi inside the solar month. Dashain, for example, is tied to the bright fortnight (Shukla Paksha) of Ashwin, so its Gregorian date changes every year. For the ten days of Dashain and what happens on each, read the Dashain festival guide. For this year's dates, see the festival list.
Baisakh: Nepali New Year and Bisket Jatra in Bhaktapur.
Bhadra: Teej, Janai Purnima and Gai Jatra.
Ashwin: Dashain, the longest and most widely celebrated festival.
Kartik: Tihar, the five-day festival of lights.
Magh: Maghe Sankranti, the traditional start of Uttarayan.
Falgun: Holi and Maha Shivaratri.
How does the Nepali year start and end?
The Nepali year starts on Baisakh 1, usually April 13 or 14 in the Gregorian calendar, and ends on the last day of Chaitra the next April. The start date is set by the Sun entering Mesh (Aries), the first zodiac sign. It has nothing to do with January 1.
Because the new year is set by the Sun, it does not move through the seasons the way a purely lunar calendar does. The Nepali year always begins in spring. For why the new year falls in April and how it differs from January 1, see Nepali New Year (Navavarsha).
Converting a Nepali month to a Gregorian date
A BS month covers parts of two Gregorian months, so you cannot convert by adding a fixed number of days. An exact conversion needs the official day count for that year. The guide on converting BS to AD dates shows the steps. For a quick answer, enter the date in the Katigate date converter.
Check a month boundary rather than guessing
For BS 2083, Katigate’s month data gives Shrawan 31 days. Shrawan 1 corresponds to 17 July 2026, so its last day is 16 August and Bhadra 1 is 17 August. This is a check for that year, not a permanent rule for every Shrawan. Use the month table before entering a month’s final day in a form.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the first month of the Nepali calendar?
Baisakh is the first month of the Bikram Sambat calendar. It begins in mid-April, on the day the Sun enters Aries, and Baisakh 1 is celebrated across Nepal as Nepali New Year. The last month of the year is Chaitra, which ends the following mid-April.
How many days are in a Nepali month?
A Nepali month has 29 to 32 days, and the exact count changes from year to year. It depends on how long the Sun stays in one zodiac sign. Monsoon months like Ashadh and Shrawan are often the longest. Winter months like Poush and Magh are shorter.
Why does Baisakh not start on April 1?
Baisakh begins when the Sun enters Aries, which usually happens around April 13 or 14. Bikram Sambat is a solar zodiac calendar, so its months start and end by the Sun's position, not on fixed Gregorian dates.
Are Nepali calendar months the same as Indian Hindu months?
The names and order are almost the same, because both come from the same Vedic tradition, but the systems work differently. Nepal's official Bikram Sambat is solar: months start when the Sun enters a new sign. Many Indian regional calendars are lunar or lunisolar, so festival dates and the first day of a month can differ between Nepal and India.