Yes, you can wash your ashes off before bed.

Quick Scoop: Can you wash your ashes off before bed?

For Ash Wednesday or similar Christian traditions, the ashes on your forehead are a symbol and reminder of mortality and repentance, not a sacramental that must stay on for a fixed number of hours. Because of that:

  • There is no official rule that says you must keep the ashes on until a certain time.
  • Many people choose to keep them on for the day as a quiet witness to their faith.
  • Others wash them off earlier for practical reasons (work, skin sensitivity, mess, bedtime), which is explicitly considered acceptable.

One Catholic writer notes that the “real purpose” of the ashes is to remind you of your mortality and need to repent; once that goal is accomplished, you can wash them off at any time, “especially to avoid things like getting them on bedsheets.” Diocesan guidance similarly says some people wipe them off right away, some leave them on all day, and there’s no obligation either way.

So what’s a reasonable approach?

  • If you had an evening Mass and are already getting ready for sleep, it’s fine to gently wash them off as part of your normal bedtime routine.
  • If you like the idea of wearing them a bit longer as a personal reminder or public witness, you can simply blot off excess ash so it doesn’t smear, then wash before bed.
  • Your interior attitude (prayer, repentance, starting Lent seriously) matters more than how many hours the ashes remain visible.

In short, yes—washing your ashes off before bed is completely okay, and many practicing Catholics do exactly that.

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