4-5-4 retail calendar
The US National Retail Federation calendar uses 4-5-4. Its fiscal year ends on the Saturday nearest January 31, so it starts on a Sunday in late January or early February.
4-4-5, 4-5-4 and 5-4-4
Fiscal week calculator
Enter the first day of your fiscal year and any date to get the fiscal week, period and quarter.
Result
Week 40
What is a fiscal week?
Many companies close their books on a 52-53-week fiscal year instead of calendar months. Every period then contains whole weeks and ends on the same weekday, which makes sales weeks and periods directly comparable year over year. The fiscal week number simply counts weeks from the first day of the fiscal year.
4-4-5, 4-5-4 and 5-4-4 calendars
Each quarter has 13 weeks, split into three periods ("fiscal months"). The pattern names the length of each period in weeks.
| Period | 4-4-5 | 4-5-4 | 5-4-4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Weeks 1–4 (4) | Weeks 1–4 (4) | Weeks 1–5 (5) |
| 2 | Weeks 5–8 (4) | Weeks 5–9 (5) | Weeks 6–9 (4) |
| 3 | Weeks 9–13 (5) | Weeks 10–13 (4) | Weeks 10–13 (4) |
The same pattern repeats for periods 4–6, 7–9 and 10–12. In a 53-week year the extra week usually goes into the last period, making it five or six weeks long; the calculator follows that convention.
Fiscal weeks vs. ISO weeks
If your fiscal year starts on the Monday of ISO week 1, fiscal and ISO week numbers are the same. Otherwise the fiscal week is offset. Compare with the ISO week calculator.
Quick answers
What is a fiscal week?
A fiscal week is a week number counted from the first day of a company's fiscal year instead of January 1. Week 1 starts on the fiscal year start date and each week is seven days long.
What is a 4-4-5 calendar?
A 4-4-5 calendar splits each 13-week quarter into periods of 4, 4 and 5 weeks. Every period ends on the same weekday, so periods are comparable and always contain whole weeks.
What is the difference between 4-4-5 and 4-5-4?
Only the position of the 5-week period. 4-5-4 puts it in the middle of each quarter and is used by the US retail (NRF) calendar. 5-4-4 puts it first.
Why do some fiscal years have 53 weeks?
52 weeks is 364 days, one or two days short of a year. To stay aligned with the calendar, a 52-53-week fiscal year adds a 53rd week every five or six years, usually to the last period of the year.