Every Other Weekend Custody Calendar & Calculator
The every-other-weekend schedule is the arrangement California parents ask about most: one parent handles the school week, and the children spend alternating weekends with the other parent. Use the calendar below to see exactly how it repeats, get your precise parenting-time percentage, and print a copy.
How the every other weekend schedule works
Children live primarily with one parent (shown as Parent 1) and spend every other weekend — typically Friday evening through Sunday or Monday morning — with the other parent. The pattern repeats on a two-week cycle, so exchanges land on the same weekends month after month, which makes school, activities, and work planning predictable.
Courts often pair this schedule with a mid-week visit or phone/video time so the weekend parent stays involved between visits. In the tool you can select Wednesday + Alternating Weekends from the dropdown to see that variant.
What percentage is every other weekend?
It depends on how the weekend is defined, and it's worth getting the math right before you rely on a number:
- Friday and Saturday overnights only: 4 of every 28 overnights — about 14% (an 86/14 split).
- Friday through Sunday overnight (Monday-morning return): 6 of every 28 overnights — about 21%, which is why this version is commonly called an 80/20 schedule.
- With a weekly Wednesday overnight added: about 29% — close to a 70/30 split.
To model your exact arrangement, click Customize This Schedule in the tool and tap the days you actually exchange. The percentage updates instantly, counting overnights across a repeating 28-night cycle — the method commonly used when estimating parenting timeshare.
Printing your calendar
Click the Print button inside the tool for a clean copy of the 4-week calendar — useful for mediation sessions, your parenting plan binder, or the refrigerator door. Add notes first under Advanced Options (for example, exchange times and locations) and they'll print with the calendar.
Common Questions
Is every other weekend the standard custody schedule?
It is one of the most common arrangements California courts order when one parent is the primary caretaker during the school week, when parents live far apart, or when children are very young. But California has no single mandatory schedule — courts order what serves the child's best interests.
What is the 1st, 3rd and 5th weekend version?
Instead of strictly alternating, some orders give the non-custodial parent the first, third, and fifth weekends of each calendar month. Months with five weekends give that parent two weekends in a row. You can preview this variant in the tool's dropdown.
Can I print this calendar for court?
Yes — the Print button produces a clean 4-week calendar you can attach to a proposed parenting plan. It is a planning aid, not a court form: your actual schedule is set by your custody order or parenting plan.
How do I calculate my exact percentage?
Choose Customize This Schedule, tap each day to match your real arrangement, and read the exact percentage from the Time Split card. It counts overnights over a 28-night cycle.
More custody schedules
Compare this arrangement with the other common California parenting schedules, or open the full custody schedule calculator:
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