Boxing Day Dates 2026: When Sales Start in the UK

Boxing Day 2026 falls on Saturday 26 December. The substitute bank holiday is Monday 28 December, as listed for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland in the GOV.UK bank-holiday calendar (checked 3 October 2026).

No 2026 retailer launch time or shop opening is confirmed in this guide. The 2025 evidence ranges from Argos’s retailer-stated start on 17 December to Currys sale messaging observed by 06:14 UTC on 26 December. Use a dated retailer announcement and your branch or order details before planning a trip.

The confirmed calendar

Date	Calendar fact
Friday 25 December 2026	Christmas Day
Saturday 26 December 2026	Boxing Day
Monday 28 December 2026	Boxing Day substitute bank holiday

The calendar does not establish opening hours or delivery dates.

What the 2025 evidence establishes

The Boxing Day go-live times guide separates announced starts from messages observed in archived pages. Historical archive evidence was reviewed in August 2026.

• Argos: a 25 December 2025 homepage capture stated that its winter sale began on 17 December 2025. That is a retailer-stated schedule, not an observed launch, and it establishes no recurring 2026 date or shop opening.
• John Lewis: its Winter Sale 2025 guide, reopened on 3 October 2026, still gives 5pm on 24 December online and shops from 27 December at regular opening hours. That is an announced 2025 schedule, not a verified on-time switch or a 2026 timetable.
• Boots: sale messaging appeared in a 25 December 2025 capture. An earlier timestamp in a campaign identifier does not prove a Christmas Eve public launch.
• Currys: sale messaging was visible in a 26 December 2025 capture taken at 06:14 UTC. That capture does not establish when the sale began or when its first sale message appeared.
• Amazon: one 26 December 2025 homepage snapshot recorded no Boxing Day branding. That does not prove there was no named event elsewhere or at other times, and it says nothing about a future start.

These observations describe different evidence types. They should not be combined into a single midnight or Christmas Eve launch rule.

Check the retailer and the branch

No 2026 launch or national opening timetable is confirmed here for Superdrug, Sephora, Sports Direct, TK Maxx or Waterstones. Use the relevant retailer’s announcement and branch details.

The Boxing Day opening hours guide covers planning a visit. For collection, confirm the specific product, location and order-ready message; a website sale can run while a shop is closed. Argos’s collection instructions explain the message and code used for pickup. Those instructions were last checked on 26 September 2026.

Plan around the item you need

Use a shortlist and a target total price, including delivery and any services. No category’s stock level or cheapest day follows from the calendar alone. Compare the particular items in toys, sports, beauty, TVs, homeware, kitchen electricals and vacuum cleaners.

The Boxing Day shopping calendar is a planning aid, not confirmation of retailer events. If an offer ends on a stated date, keep the terms with the exact product; do not assume other products share that deadline or stock lasts until it.

After Boxing Day

A sale may continue, change or finish on the retailer’s stated schedule. This guide does not forecast deeper reductions on 27–31 December or confirm a universal January end date. Recheck the exact product and total price if you choose to wait.

See the January sales hub and January sales vs Boxing Day guide for the separate comparison. Waiting involves both price and availability uncertainty; neither outcome is established by a previous year’s headline.