What Singles’ Day is

Originating as an anti-Valentineu2019s observance among Chinese university students in the 1990s, dated 11 November for the four ones in 11/11. Alibaba turned it into a shopping event in 2009, and it has since become the largest single online retail day in the world by transaction volume.

The commercial event now runs for days rather than one, with pre-sales opening well before 11 November. Sales figures are published by the retailers themselves, so treat headline totals as company reporting rather than independently audited numbers.

Why this date does not move

The countdown at the top of this page is live, and the date beneath it is the next occurrence. This is a fixed date: it falls on the same day of the month every year, so only the weekday changes.

The date follows a fixed calendar rule, so it can be computed years ahead. Where a country observes this as a public holiday, the official government calendar remains the authority for whether the day off is moved when it falls on a weekend.

What is coming up next

Once this date passes, the countdown moves on according to the recurrence rule described above. Calculated lunar dates remain estimates until the relevant calendar or local authority confirms them. See the full list of upcoming events, or use the countdown timer for a duration of your own.