Organic reach is pretty hard to find for brands in 2021, with the rare exception of social media holidays. When coupled with the right hashtag, these holidays provide businesses with an occasion to reach a like-minded crowd.
Who makes social media holidays up?
Some days are the byproducts of marketing campaigns. Some were declared by official organizations such as the United Nations. Others seem to have been manifested by the sheer absurdity of the Internet.
Some days have multiple holidays, such as May 7, which happens to be National Beer Day in the United States and World Health Day. Some days are about serious issues, other days are National Just Because Day (August 27). Some are strictly social media holidays, while many are holidays off social media, too.
Not every social media holiday is worth celebrating. Find the holidays that fit your niche.
This approach increases the odds of connecting with people around shared values and interests rather than gimmicks.
Bonus: Download our free, customizable social media calendar template to easily plan and schedule all your content in advance.
2021 social media holiday calendar
Scroll below to see the list of social media holidays in 2021 — or use this calendar!
You can add this calendar to your Google Calendar by clicking the + icon in the bottom right:
Then, follow the prompts to sign in and add the Calendar to your Google account:
That’s it! You can now change viewing and notification settings in the left-hand side panel.
January social media holidays
Financial Wellness Month
January 4: National Trivia Day #NationalTriviaDay
January 15: National Hat Day #NationalHatDay
January 15: National Bagel Day #NationalBagelDay
January 17: Ditch Your Resolution Day #DitchYourResolutionDay
January 25: Opposite Day #OppositeDAy
Blue Monday: Third Monday of January
Community Manager Appreciation Day #CMAD: Fourth Monday of January
February social media holidays
Black History Month (US)
February 2: Groundhog Day
February 8: Safer Internet Day
February 9: National Pizza Day #NationalPizzaDay
February 11: International Day of Women and Girls in Science #WomenInScience
February 13: Galentine’s Day
February 17: #RandomActsOfKindnessDay
February 21: Family Day (Canada, except Quebec)
National Skip the Straw Day: Fourth Friday in February
March social media holidays
Women’s History Month
Endometriosis Awareness Month
March 1: Zero Discrimination Day
March 3: World Wildlife Day #WorldWildlifeDay
March 4: World Book Day #WorldBookDay
March 8: International Women’s Day #InternationalWomensDay #IWD[YEAR]
March 14: Pi Day #PiDay
March 18: Global Recycling Day
March 19: World Sleep Day
March 20: International Day of Happiness #InternationalDayofHappiness
March 22: World Water Day #WorldWaterDay #Water2me
March 24: Equal Pay Day
March 29: National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day
March 31: International Transgender Day of Visibility #TransDayofVisibility #TDOV
National Day of Unplugging #DayOfUnplugging: First Friday of March
April social media holidays
Move More Month
National Poetry Month
Celebrate Diversity Month
April 1: Walk to Work Day
April 6: National Carbonara Day
April 7: National Beer Day (US)
April 7: World Health Day
April 10: Siblings’ Day #NationalSiblingsDay
April 11: National Pet Day #NationalPetDay
April 20: 420
April 22: Earth Day
April 24: World Immunization Week
April 28: National Superhero Day
April 29: International Dance Day #InternationalDanceDay
May social media holidays
Asian Heritage Month
Skin Cancer Awareness Month
National Teen Self Esteem Month (US)
National Clean Air Month (US)
Mental Health Awareness Month
May 3-7: Teacher Appreciation Week
May 4: Thank a Teacher Day #ThankATeacher
May 4: Star Wars Day #StarWarsDay, #MayThe4thBeWithYou
May 12: International Nurses Day
May 17: Tax Day (US)
May 17: International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia
May 18: International Museums Day
May 28: World Hunger Day
June social media holidays
LGBTQ Pride Month
June 1: International Children’s Day
June 3: Global Running Day
June 3: World Bicycle Day
June 4: National Cheese Day (US)
June 4: National Donut Day (US) #NationalDonutDay
June 6: Higher Education Day #HigherEducationDay
June 8: Best Friends Day #BestFriendsDay
June 8: World Oceans Day #WorldOceansDay
June 19: Juneteenth (US)
June 21: World Music Day
June 21: National Selfie Day #NationalSelfieDay
June 30: Social Media Day #SMDay, #SocialMediaDay
July social media holidays
July 3: International Plastic Bag Free Day
July 6: International Kissing Day
July 7: World Chocolate Day #WorldChocolateDay
July 15: Social Media Giving Day
July 15: National Clean Beauty Day (US)
July 17: World Emoji Day #WorldEmojiDay
July 18: National Ice Cream Day
July 18: World Listening Day
July 30: International Friendship Day
August social media holidays
Black Business Month
August 8: International Cat Day #InternationalCatDay
August 8: National CBD Day
August 9-16: Shark Week #SharkWeek
August 12: International Youth Day #YouthDay
August 13: Black Women’s Equal Pay Day #BlackWomensEqualPayDay
August 14: National Financial Awareness Day
August 19: World Photo Day #WorldPhotoDay
August 26: National Dog Day (US) #NationalDogDay
September social media holidays
World Alzheimer’s Month
National Hispanic Heritage Month (US)
September 12: National Video Games Day #NationalVideoGamesDay
September 21: World Alzheimer’s Day
September 30: International Podcast Day #InternationalPodcastDay
October social media holidays
Black History Month (UK)
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Global Diversity Awareness Month
National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month
National Cyber Security Awareness Month
October 1: International Coffee Day #InternationalCoffeeDay
October 4-10: World Space Week
October 5: International Teachers Day #WorldTeachersDay
October 10: World Mental Health Day #WorldMentalHeathDay
October 11: Indigenous Peoples’ Day
October 11: National Coming Out Day
October 29: National Cat Day (US)
November social media holidays
Men’s Health Awareness Month (aka No-Shave November and “Movember”)
November 8: Social Media Kindness Day
November 8: STEM Day #STEMDay
November 13: World Kindness Day #WKD
November 13–19: Transgender Awareness Week
Black Friday: Friday following Thanksgiving Day (US)
Small Business Saturday: Saturday following Thanksgiving Day (US)
Cyber Monday: Monday following Thanksgiving Day (US)
Giving Tuesday: Tuesday following Thanksgiving Day (US)
December social media holidays
AIDs Awareness Month
December 3: International Day of Persons with Disabilities
December 4: National Cookie Day
8 examples of great social media holiday posts
Fenty Beauty: Black History Month
Fenty Beauty inaugurated this year’s Black History Month with a little history lesson of its own, courtesy of its founder, Rihanna.
Way back in 2011, a Twitter user offensively asked why Rihanna’s hair looked “so nappy,” in the music video for her song “Man Down.” In response, the music and business mogul clapped back: “Cuz I’m black bitch!!!!” Seven years later, Fenty Beauty launched a liquid eyeliner with the iconic name: “Cuz I’m black.”
The unapologetic, empowering line speaks both to Fenty Beauty’s brand purpose and audience. We give it a Clapback-lipstick-wearing chef’s kiss.
Knix: International Women’s Day
Knix CEO Joanna Griffiths delivered a supportive message on International Women’s Day… in the midst of delivering twin girls. It really doesn’t get more on-brand than that.
Heartfelt and urgent, the post demonstrates the intimate apparel founder’s priorities, which includes rejecting investors who frown upon fundraising while pregnant.
Food for Soul: Carbonara Day
While we’d all like to celebrate Carbonara Day, it suits some organizations, such as Food for Soul, more than others. Founded by Italian chef Massimo Bottura and Lara Gilmore, the non-profit organization used its food-salvaging ingenuity with a banana-peel carbonara recipe. Putting the “care” in #CAREbonara day, followers were encouraged to donate and share with others.
Time’s Up: International Transgender Day of Visibility
As a charity that advocates for victims of sexual harassment, this post from Time’s Up is a meaningful expression of solidarity with the transgender community. The simple gesture received more than six times the engagement than the post that followed.
National Women’s Law Center: Equal Pay Day
In this TikTok video, the folks behind the National Women’s Law Center break down the significance of Equal Pay Day with cold, hard facts. The explainer drew in more than 47 times more views than the account’s previous post.
@nationalwomenslawcenter now that you really get it, are you ready to fight back? check out nwlc.org/wagegap to learn more about #equalpaynow ‼️ #wagegap #equalpay #feminism
♬ Many Colors – Bryan Rheude
Thrive Market: Teacher Appreciation Week
Thrive Market showed its appreciation to teachers with a giveaway. The contest also served as a reminder that the wholesale online grocery store offers free membership to teachers all year round.
WWF #WorldWithoutNature: World Wildlife Day
Inspired by One Minute Briefs, World Wildlife Fund challenged brands to participate in World Wild Life day by removing nature from their logos. The goal behind the campaign was to create a stark portrait of a world without nature.
?Today nature has disappeared from the logos of the world’s biggest brands ? Here’s why: A #WorldWithoutNature is a world that is incomplete ?? pic.twitter.com/cd8lSfLcAJ
— WWF (@WWF) March 3, 2021
As planned, #WorldWithoutNature generated a great deal of social awareness and conversation, including an astute observation from climate activist Greta Thunberg:
We're today discussing a #WorldWithoutNature as if it meant that “our children won't be able to see pandas in the future” or that “we won't be able to eat certain types of food”.
A world without nature is no world. Stop separating “humans” and “nature”. Humans are part of nature.— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) March 3, 2021
B Corp: National Beer Day
B Corp tapped National Beer Day to highlight its community of certified brewers. These posts benefited from strength in numbers, as they were able to signal-boost by tagging relevant accounts. By touting breweries by region, B Corp’s National Beer Day celebrations shared the tour-de-force scope of its community.
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