Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Street
The Street
Business
Jeremy Salvucci

Stock market holidays 2024

It's easier than ever for the average person to trade stocks. Digital investment services like Fidelity, Schwabb, and Robinhood have turned some of us into daily investors. If that sounds like you, it's best to get on the same schedule as Wall Street. Fortunately, that means you'll get these stock market holidays off.

When investors talk about the market being open or closed, they are actually referring to The New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. These are the two largest stock exchanges in the world, and usually the ones most armchair investors in America deal with. Luckily, both of these exchanges keep the same hours.

Related: What is extended-hours stock trading and why is it important?

The American stock market is open Monday through Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. In the modern day, extended hours trading does occur, albeit at much lower volumes. As a result, stock prices don’t tend to move as much outside of market hours unless bombshell news causes a drastic shift in sentiment in a particular stock after hours.

Nights and weekends aren’t the only times the wheels of the financial markets slow their roll, though. There are also 10 stock market holidays, during which the markets are closed. Wall Street also observes three stock market half days during which they close early at 1:00 p.m. Eastern. Here’s the full list: 

Signage on the side of a building along Wall Street

Mario Tama/Getty Images

2024 stock market holidays, half days, & more

Holiday 2023 observance 2024 observance 2025 observance Hours

New Year's Day

Monday, Jan. 2

Monday, Jan. 1

Wednesday, Jan. 1

Closed

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Monday, Jan. 16

Monday, Jan. 15

Monday, Jan. 20

Closed

Washington’s Birthday

Monday, Feb. 20

Monday, Feb. 19

Monday, Feb. 17

Closed

Good Friday

Friday, Apr. 7

Friday, Mar. 29

Friday, Apr. 18

Closed

Memorial Day

Monday, May 29

Monday, May 27

Monday, May 26

Closed

Juneteenth

Monday, Jun. 19

Wednesday, Jun. 19

Thursday, Jun. 19

Closed

Day before Independence Day

Monday, Jul. 3

Wednesday, Jul. 3

Thursday, Jul. 3

9:30 a.m.–1 p.m.

Independence Day

Tuesday, Jul. 4

Thursday, Jul. 4

Friday, Jul. 4

Closed

Labor Day

Monday, Sep. 4

Monday, Sep. 2

Monday, Sep. 1

Closed

Thanksgiving Day

Thursday, Nov. 23

Thursday, Nov. 28

Thursday, Nov. 27

Closed

Day After Thanksgiving

Friday, Nov. 24

Friday, Nov. 29

Friday, Nov. 28 

9:30 a.m.–1 p.m.

Christmas Eve

N/A (Sunday) 

Tuesday, Dec. 24

Wednesday, Dec. 24

9:30 a.m.–1 p.m.

Christmas

Monday, Dec. 25

Wednesday, Dec. 25

Thursday, Dec. 25

Closed

Can you still make trades on a market holiday?

Many popular brokerages now allow users to place certain types of buy and sell orders outside of typical stock market hours, but details vary. In many cases, only limit orders can be executed, and fractional share trading may not be available.

Here’s a short list of digital brokerages that offer extended-hours trading:

Brokerage Premarket trading After-hours trading Order types available

Robinhood

7–9:30 a.m.

4–8 p.m.

Limit only

Schwab

7–9:25 a.m. 

4:05–8 p.m.

Limit only

Fidelity

7–9:28 a.m.

4–8 p.m.

Limit only

WeBull

7–9:30 a.m. 

4–8 p.m.

Limit only

It's important to note that trading outside of regular trading hours comes with certain downsides. Bid-ask spreads are larger, and volume is lower, so trades may take longer to execute. On the other hand, trading during extended hours can be a good way to react quickly to news or events that could affect a stock’s price more drastically once volume increases during the next regular trading session.

What are the opening and closing bells?

At the New York Stock Exchange, four different bells in four different areas of the historic exchange’s trading floor are rung simultaneously to mark the beginning and end of each trading session. 

The head coach of the St. John's Red Storm basketball team rings the NYSE opening bell

Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The bells are activated via a button, which is sometimes pressed by a celebrity to mark an important occasion or by a company executive after an IPO to celebrate the beginning of a company’s publicly tradable status on the exchange. 

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.