Ash Wednesday is the first day of the season of Lent that leads up to Good Friday and Easter. What to know about the day.

In 2024, Ash Wednesday arrived early in the season, falling on Feb. 14, which is also Valentine's Day. This year, in 2025, Ash Wednesday is recognized nearly a month later on Wednesday, March 5. The day also marks the beginning of Lent, which lasts 40 days, and ends on another Christian observance, Holy Thursday.

Why is Easter 2025 so late this year? When is Easter Sunday date? What day does Lent start? What we know on Holy Week, Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and more.

Lent starts Wednesday, March 5, and runs through April 17, 2025. In the Christian church, Lent is a period of spiritual reflection before Easter. In Western churches, it begins on Ash Wednesday, which this year is on Wednesday, March 5.

Easter falls on the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox. This year, Easter is Sunday, April 20.

Ash Wednesday falls on Wednesday, March 5 this year. In Western churches, Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a period of spiritual reflection before Easter. Lent runs through April 17, 2025. Palm Sunday, the first day of the Holy Week which commemorates Jesus Christ's entry to Jerusalem, is on Sunday, April 13, 2025.

In 2025, Easter will be on April 20 this year. According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, it is a “movable feast” that can happen between March 22 and April 25 on the Gregorian calendar. On the Julian calendar, used by the Eastern Orthodox Church, Easter can be between April 4 and May 8.

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a weekslong period for the faithful that comes ahead of one of the most joyous holidays for Christians.

Based on the Lunar calendar, the date of Easter changes each year, always occurring on the initial Sunday after the Paschal Full moon (full moon that occurs on or after the March or spring equinox). The earliest Easter can be is March 22 and the latest is April 25.