How do I convert a Gregorian date to a Chinese lunar date?

Choose Gregorian → Lunar and select a civil date. The result shows its lunar year, month and day, whether the month is a leap month, the zodiac animal, year stem–branch, and any solar term beginning that day.

How can I check today’s Chinese lunar date?

Select Today (China Standard Time) to convert today’s date in Beijing, UTC+8. Near midnight, that date can differ from the date where you live. The homepage also shows today’s lunar date and almanac.

How do I convert a Chinese lunar date back to Gregorian?

Choose Lunar → Gregorian, enter the lunar year, month number and day, then select Convert lunar date. Check Leap month only if the original date explicitly belongs to a leap month. Month 12 near Chinese New Year can fall in the following Gregorian year.

How do I find my lunar birthday and its Gregorian date this year?

First convert your original Gregorian birth date to record the lunar month, day and leap status. Then use Lunar → Gregorian with the target lunar year and those month/day values. Keep the original birth year for birth-date conversion. A leap-month birthday or day 30 may not exist in every year; families follow different observance customs.

What is a leap month, and when should I select it?

A leap month repeats a lunar month number to keep the calendar aligned with the seasons, usually every two or three years. The regular month and its leap counterpart have different Gregorian dates. Select Leap month only for an explicitly marked leap-month date; invalid leap months and days are rejected. HKO tables label leap months.

Why can a January or February birthday show a different zodiac animal?

The converter’s zodiac year starts on Chinese New Year, lunar month 1 day 1, rather than January 1. For example, the Fire Horse year begins on 17 February 2026; 16 February still belongs to the Snake year. BaZi uses Li Chun as an alternative boundary, so the two conventions can differ near the transition.

Which years are supported, and how can I verify a result?

The converter accepts Gregorian dates from 1 January 1900 through 31 December 2100. Reverse conversion must produce a date inside that range. Cross-check with HKO’s Gregorian–Lunar tables for 1901–2100. Calculations far in the future can differ near midnight; HKO flags possible one-day differences in some future months.

Does today use my local midnight or Beijing time?

Today uses China Standard Time, UTC+8, which has no daylight-saving changes. Dates entered manually are civil dates: 2026-02-17 is converted as 17 February, without treating it as a timestamp. Your local date and Beijing’s date may differ near midnight.

How do I get lunar age (虚岁) for the Chinese gender chart?

In the common lunar-year convention, age is 1 at birth and increases at Chinese New Year: target lunar year minus birth lunar year plus 1. Convert the relevant dates first, then use the gender predictor for its chart inputs. The chart is entertainment only, with no scientifically demonstrated advantage over roughly 50% chance; clinical ultrasound or NIPT, interpreted by a clinician, can provide medical information.

Are auspicious activities scientifically proven?

No. Recommended and avoided activities come from the traditional Chinese almanac. They are cultural reference points, not scientific predictions or professional advice.

Chinese Lunar Date Converter

Convert Gregorian and Chinese lunar dates in either direction. Check today’s lunar date, find your lunar birthday, and see leap months and the zodiac year.

Chinese calendar dates use China Standard Time (UTC+8). Today follows Beijing’s civil date. Near midnight, your local date and Beijing’s date can differ by one day. A date you enter is converted as written, without shifting it to another timezone.

Cross-check with Hong Kong Observatory tables

Frequently Asked Questions

How Gregorian to Lunar Conversion Works

Lunisolar vs Gregorian calendars

The Chinese calendar is lunisolar: months follow the moon (each month starts on a new moon) while leap months keep the year aligned with the seasons. The Gregorian calendar is purely solar. Our converter maps a civil date to the corresponding lunar year, month, and day, including the 60-year stem-branch cycle used in Chinese timekeeping.

What the conversion result shows

Each result includes the lunar date, the zodiac animal of that lunar year, and the traditional 宜 (recommended) and 忌 (to avoid) activities for that day. A solar term (节气) is shown only when that term begins on the selected day. These almanac notes are cultural guidance, not medical or legal advice.

Leap months (閏月)

About every three years the Chinese calendar inserts a leap month so festivals stay in season. Dates that fall in a leap month are labelled as such in the result. The same Gregorian date can therefore map to different lunar months across years.

Historical Evolution of the Lunisolar Calendar

The Chinese lunisolar calendar (农历) has more than 3,000 years of documented history: Shang dynasty oracle bones already record the 60-day stem-branch cycle. Court astronomers refined lunisolar systems so farming stayed aligned with the seasons. In 104 BCE, under Emperor Wu of Han, a team including Deng Ping, Luo Xiahong, and Sima Qian issued the Taichu Calendar (太初历). It was the first fully recorded official calendar to integrate the 24 solar terms (节气) and to insert a leap month wherever a lunar month contains no major solar term (无中气置闰)-rules still used today.