when do we light the first hanukkah candle 2025

The first Hanukkah candle in 2025 is lit on Sunday evening, December 14, 2025 , after sunset.

Core details

• Hanukkah 2025 begins at nightfall on Sunday, December 14, 2025 (25 Kislev 5786), with the lighting of the first candle.

• You place one candle (plus the shamash) in the menorah and light it after sunset, following your community’s custom and local halachic times.

Timing nuances

• Standard practice is to light at or shortly after sunset; some communities light later in the evening when more people are around.

• On Friday of Hanukkah, candles are lit before Shabbat begins; on Saturday night, they are lit after Havdalah, but this does not affect the first night in 2025, which is a regular Sunday evening.

Quick how-to for first night

1. Place one candle on the far right of the menorah (plus the shamash in its separate spot).

2. Light the shamash, recite the appropriate blessings for the first night, then light the single Hanukkah candle using the shamash.

3. Let the candles burn out on their own; do not extinguish them manually.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.