No, Groundhog Day is not a federal holiday in the United States.

Quick Scoop

  • Groundhog Day is celebrated every year on February 2 as a cultural and folk tradition, especially around Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania.
  • It is not on the official list of U.S. federal holidays, so it does not trigger nationwide paid days off for federal employees.
  • On Groundhog Day, federal offices, courts, banks, schools, and most businesses stay open as normal, unless it happens to fall on a weekend that already affects hours.
  • Legally, Congress creates federal holidays under 5 U.S.C. § 6103, and Groundhog Day has never been formally considered for that status.

A bit of story: how “big” is it really?

In practice, Groundhog Day is more of a pop‑culture and community event than a legal holiday. People gather in places like Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney to watch the groundhog’s “prediction,” media outlets cover it every year, and it trends online, but then most people just go on with a regular work or school day.

There have even been opinion pieces and humorous essays arguing that Groundhog Day should become a federal holiday, playing on its quirky charm and the Bill Murray movie, but those are commentary, not law. One fun twist: Alaska actually made February 2 an official state holiday called Marmot Day instead of Groundhog Day, but that’s state‑level, not federal.

So if you’re planning your schedule: enjoy the tradition, but don’t expect a federally guaranteed day off on Groundhog Day.

TL;DR: Groundhog Day is a popular cultural observance on February 2, but it is not a U.S. federal holiday, and government offices, banks, and most workplaces remain open.

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