Ramadan 2027 is expected to begin on Monday 8 February 2027 and last 29 or 30 days, with Eid Al Fitr on Tuesday 9 or Wednesday 10 March, depending on the moon sighting. Working backwards, a Ramadan 2027 marketing plan for the UAE or Saudi Arabia should lock its offer and budget by 14 December 2026, start creative production by 28 December, have tracking and catalogues checked by 11 January 2027 and start warming up audiences on 18 January.
That is closer than it looks: the offer deadline is seven weeks from now. Below are the key dates, the plan phase by phase, starting budget splits, and a planner that turns your own start date, budget and production time into a dated plan you can add to your calendar.
- 8 February 2027: expected first day of Ramadan (projection reported by The National, citing the UAE’s Astronomy Centre).
- 22 February 2027: Saudi Founding Day falls in the middle of Ramadan this year.
- 28 February: the last ten nights begin (from the evening of 27 February).
- 9 or 10 March: Eid Al Fitr. Have creative ready for both dates.
- Plan per market: the UAE and Saudi Arabia share the month, not the weekend, the language mix or the media costs.
Ramadan 2027 key dates for the UAE and Saudi Arabia
| Moment | Expected date | What it means for campaigns |
|---|---|---|
| Offer, budget and audiences locked | Monday 14 December 2026 | 8 weeks before the first day |
| Creative production starts | Monday 28 December 2026 | 6 weeks before; earlier for video and Arabic voice-over |
| Tracking, catalogue and templates checked | Monday 11 January 2027 | 4 weeks before, while there is still time to fix things |
| Warm-up starts | Monday 18 January 2027 | Teasers, audience building, early offers |
| First day of Ramadan | Monday 8 February 2027 | Subject to moon sighting the evening before |
| Middle ten days begin | Thursday 18 February 2027 | Day 11 |
| Saudi Founding Day | Monday 22 February 2027 | A Saudi public holiday on day 15 of Ramadan |
| Last ten nights begin | Sunday 28 February 2027 | Day 21 (from the evening of 27 February) |
| Eid Al Fitr | Tuesday 9 or Wednesday 10 March 2027 | After 29 or 30 days of fasting |
The start and end dates are projections; both countries confirm them by moon sighting the evening before. Plan for the projected date and keep the first and last days flexible by one day.
Ramadan campaign planner
Set the expected first day, how long Ramadan runs, your total budget, how many weeks your creative needs, and the kind of campaign. The planner builds the milestones and phases, shows the budget per phase and per day, and exports everything as a calendar file.
Your Ramadan 2027 marketing plan, working backwards
8 weeks before (by 14 December): lock the offer
Decide what you are selling, to whom, and at what price before anyone designs anything. A Ramadan offer is usually a bundle, a gift set, a family pack or a giving-back mechanic rather than a plain discount. Set the total budget and the split between markets now; the rest of the plan depends on it.
6 weeks before (by 28 December): start production
Brief the creative for every phase at once: warm-up, the first and middle ten days, the last ten nights and Eid. Write the Arabic natively rather than translating the English, and make vertical video for Snapchat, TikTok and Reels as well as static formats. If you shoot video or record voice-over, start earlier; the planner lets you set the lead time.
4 weeks before (by 11 January): check the plumbing
Test the pixel and server-side events, product catalogues, landing pages and the checkout on a phone, in both languages. If you use WhatsApp, get your marketing and utility templates approved now; marketing messages are the expensive category, so read our WhatsApp API pricing guide before you budget broadcasts.
3 weeks before (18 January to 7 February): warm up
Use the weeks before the month to build audiences you can retarget later: video viewers, engaged followers, site visitors and existing customers. Tease the offer, collect sign-ups and test which creative works while the auction is still calm.
Days 1 to 10 (8 to 17 February)
Launch the main offer. Routines change in the first days of the month, so watch hourly and daily results closely and move budget towards the hours that convert. Compare against your own data from Ramadan 2026 rather than anyone else’s schedule.
Days 11 to 20 (18 to 27 February)
Refresh creative before it tires and retarget the people who engaged in the first ten days. Saudi brands have a second moment here: Founding Day on 22 February. Decide early whether it gets its own creative or stays inside the Ramadan campaign.
The last ten nights (28 February to 8 or 9 March)
For gifting and e-commerce this is usually the busiest stretch: Eid shopping, gifts and outfits. Shorten delivery promises you can’t keep, show clear cut-off dates for delivery before Eid, and keep enough budget for the final week.
Eid Al Fitr (9 or 10 March)
Prepare Eid greetings and offers for both possible dates and switch them on when the moon sighting is announced. After Eid, thank new customers, ask for reviews and move them into your regular retention flows.
How to split a Ramadan budget
These are the starting splits the planner uses. They are planning assumptions, not industry averages: the right split is the one your own last Ramadan supports, so move money towards the phases that sold.
| Phase | Balanced | E-commerce and gifting | Brand and awareness |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warm-up (3 weeks before) | 15% | 10% | 25% |
| First ten days | 25% | 15% | 30% |
| Middle ten days | 20% | 20% | 20% |
| Last ten nights | 25% | 35% | 15% |
| Eid (first three days) | 15% | 20% | 10% |
Split by market as well as by phase. A campaign that serves both countries from one budget lets the cheaper market take the spend, which is rarely where the profit is.
Know your ROAS floor before the auction gets busy
When more advertisers compete for the same audiences, costs can rise quickly. Decide in advance the lowest return each campaign may run at, per market, and pause what falls below it. The break-even ROAS calculator works it out with VAT (5% in the UAE, 15% in Saudi Arabia), cash-on-delivery refusals and payment fees included.
UAE vs Saudi Arabia: what to plan separately
| UAE | Saudi Arabia | |
|---|---|---|
| Weekend | Saturday and Sunday | Friday and Saturday |
| VAT inside prices | 5% | 15% |
| Extra moment in Ramadan 2027 | None | Founding Day, 22 February |
| Language | Arabic and English audiences side by side | Mostly Arabic-first audiences |
Run separate campaigns, or at least separate ad sets, per country so you can see and steer each market’s results.
Ramadan 2027 checklist
- Offer, budget and market split agreed by 14 December 2026.
- Creative briefed for every phase, Arabic written natively, Eid versions for both dates.
- Pixel, server events, catalogues and landing pages tested in both languages by 11 January 2027.
- WhatsApp templates approved and a payment method on the account.
- Break-even and target ROAS set per market.
- Delivery cut-off dates for Eid agreed with your courier and shown on the site.
- Daily reporting in place from day one, with someone who can act on it every day.
We plan and run Ramadan campaigns on Meta, Google, TikTok and Snapchat for brands in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, in Arabic and English. See Performance Advertising, or start the conversation before the December deadline.
Questions and answers
When does Ramadan 2027 start in the UAE and Saudi Arabia?
Ramadan 2027 is expected to begin on Monday 8 February 2027, according to the projection reported by The National. The exact date is confirmed by moon sighting the evening before.
When is Eid Al Fitr 2027?
Eid Al Fitr 2027 is expected on Tuesday 9 or Wednesday 10 March 2027, depending on whether Ramadan lasts 29 or 30 days.
When should brands start planning Ramadan 2027 campaigns?
Lock the offer and budget about eight weeks before the first day, which is mid-December 2026 for a start on 8 February 2027. Start creative production about six weeks before, and earlier for video.
How should I split a Ramadan ad budget?
Start from a split per phase (warm-up, first ten days, middle ten days, last ten nights, Eid) and adjust it to what sold in your last Ramadan. E-commerce and gifting brands usually weight the last ten nights and Eid; brand campaigns weight the warm-up and the first days.
Does Saudi Founding Day fall in Ramadan 2027?
Yes. Founding Day is on 22 February, which is expected to be the 15th day of Ramadan 2027.
Sources
- Ramadan 2027 in the UAE: expected dates and Eid Al Fitr holiday, The National (updated 6 October 2026), citing the UAE’s Astronomy Centre
Dates are projections and will be confirmed by moon sighting. We will update this plan when the official announcements are made.
