Free landlord tools / 3-day notice calculator

3-Day Notice Date Calculator

A California 3 day notice to pay rent or quit, perform covenants or quit, or quit gives the tenant 3 court days, not 3 calendar days. Saturdays, Sundays and judicial holidays are not counted. Enter the date and the way the notice was (or will be) served to see the exact dates.

Your notice

Your dates

Enter a service date to see the 3 court days, the last day to pay or perform, and the earliest day to file.

How the 3 days are counted

  • Only court days count. Code of Civil Procedure section 1161 gives the tenant three days "excluding Saturdays and Sundays and other judicial holidays." The day of service is not counted; the count starts on the next court day.
  • Judicial holidays. These are the California court holidays (Code of Civil Procedure section 135 and Government Code section 6700): New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Lincoln's Birthday, Presidents' Day, Cesar Chavez Day (March 31, shown by the courts as Farmworkers Day), Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Native American Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas. A holiday that falls on a Saturday is observed the Friday before, and one that falls on a Sunday is observed the Monday after.
  • Substituted service and posting. When the notice is left with an adult or posted, a copy must also be mailed. This calculator starts the count from the mailing date and adds no extra mailing days, following Losornio v. Motta (1998) 67 Cal.App.4th 110, which held that the 5 day mailing extension of Code of Civil Procedure section 1013 does not extend unlawful detainer notice periods.
  • The tenant has the whole last day. You may file the unlawful detainer only after the last day has fully passed, so the earliest filing day shown is the next court day.
  • Put the dates on the notice. Since Eshagian v. Cepeda (2025), a 3 day notice to pay rent or quit should state the date of service, the date the 3 days end, and that weekends and judicial holidays are excluded. Our online notices print these dates for you.

California court holidays

The holidays this calculator skips. Courts can also close on other days in an emergency, which this calculator cannot know about.

Estimate only, not legal advice. This calculator applies the general California rules for counting a 3 day notice. It does not check whether your notice is valid, whether it was served correctly, or whether a local ordinance (for example in the City of Los Angeles or unincorporated Los Angeles County) adds requirements or a minimum amount owed. Using it does not create an attorney-client relationship with the Law Office of Madaen. Read the full terms and disclaimer.

Get a notice with the dates already on it

Order a 3 day notice to pay rent or quit, perform covenants or quit, or quit online for $150. It is prepared for current California law with the service date, the 3 court days and a proof of service. Not sure which notice you need? Ask us first.

Order a notice online ($150) Request a free case review

More free tools: eviction timeline estimator and where to file an eviction. See also eviction notices explained.