Leap Year Checker
Instantly check if a year is a leap year and find nearby leap years
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About Leap Years
A leap year contains one extra day, February 29th, making it 366 days long instead of the usual 365. This is necessary to keep our calendar in alignment with the Earth's revolutions around the Sun.
The Rules
A year is a leap year if:
- It is divisible by 4;
- Unless it is divisible by 100;
- But it IS a leap year if it is divisible by 400.
For example, 2000 was a leap year (divisible by 400), but 1900 was not (divisible by 100 but not 400).
Frequently Asked Questions
It takes Earth approximately 365.2422 days to orbit the Sun. Without leap years, we would lose about 6 hours every year, and after 100 years, our calendar would be off by 24 days!
No. Although it is divisible by 4, it is also divisible by 100 but not by 400, so it is not a leap year.
The concept was introduced by Julius Caesar in 45 BCE, but the modern rules (Gregorian calendar) were established by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582.
People born on February 29 are called "leaplings." In non-leap years, they typically celebrate their birthday on February 28 or March 1.
Yes, leap seconds are occasionally added to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) to adjust for irregularities in Earth's rotation, but they are different from leap years.