When is National Chocolate Day?
National Chocolate Day 2026 is on Wednesday
Wednesday, October 28, 2026
October 28 every year. That's in 11 days.
until National Chocolate Day begins, in your time zone
National Chocolate Day is an informal US food holiday devoted to chocolate in all its forms, from bars and bonbons to cocoa and baked goods. It arrives just before Halloween, the country's biggest candy season.
About National Chocolate Day
National Chocolate Day is one of several chocolate days on the American calendar, and the one that sits right before Halloween. It is kept mostly by bakeries, candy makers, food writers and home cooks, and it has no official standing: no presidential proclamation or act of Congress created it, and no founder is documented.
The National Confectioners Association, the US candy industry's trade group, listed October 28 as National Chocolate Day on its candy holiday calendar, calling it the second chocolate day of the year after July 7 (World Chocolate Day). The same calendar listed September 13 as International Chocolate Day and December 28 as yet another chocolate day. The association explained that days like these usually start when a company or person tied to a candy asks a calendar publisher, such as Chase's Calendar of Events, to list them, not through any government action.
The day is a good excuse to look at how chocolate became an everyday American treat. For centuries after it reached Europe, chocolate was mostly something people drank, and solid eating chocolate only took off in the 19th century. According to the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, Milton S. Hershey founded his chocolate company in 1894 and produced his first chocolate bar in 1900. In 1905 he opened what was then the world's largest chocolate plant, set amid Pennsylvania dairy farms for a steady supply of fresh milk, and his milk chocolate became the first nationally marketed candy in the US. During World War II, the company developed heat-resistant ration bars for the Army.
Sources: National Confectioners Association: Candy Holidays (archived 2017), Smithsonian Insider: Hershey's Tropical Chocolate Bar (2012), Smithsonian Magazine: A Brief History of Chocolate. How we check dates.
How to mark National Chocolate Day
- Set up a small tasting of milk, dark and white chocolate and compare texture, sweetness and how each melts.
- Make hot cocoa from scratch with cocoa powder, sugar and milk instead of a mix.
- Bake a chocolate recipe from an old family or community cookbook and share it.
- Visit a local chocolatier or candy shop and ask how they temper chocolate.
- Read about where cacao is grown and how farming practices and fair-trade labels work.
National Chocolate Day dates
| Year | Date |
|---|---|
| 2025 | Tuesday, October 28, 2025 |
| 2026 | Wednesday, October 28, 2026 |
| 2027 | Thursday, October 28, 2027 |
| 2028 | Saturday, October 28, 2028 |
| 2029 | Sunday, October 28, 2029 |
| 2030 | Monday, October 28, 2030 |
| 2031 | Tuesday, October 28, 2031 |
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Frequently asked questions
When is National Chocolate Day 2026?
National Chocolate Day 2026 is on Wednesday, October 28, 2026. It falls on October 28 every year. In 2027, it is on Thursday, October 28, 2027.
How many chocolate days are there?
Several. The National Confectioners Association's candy calendar listed July 7, September 13, October 28 and December 28 as chocolate days, plus narrower ones such as milk chocolate and white chocolate days.
Who created National Chocolate Day?
No founder is documented. The day appears on the US candy industry's calendar of candy holidays, but it was never created by Congress or a presidential proclamation.
Is National Chocolate Day a public holiday?
No. National Chocolate Day is an observance, not a public holiday, so schools, banks, government offices and most businesses keep their normal hours.