A leap year is not a hard thing to calculate, as many might assume it is. In case you are interested as to how to calculate a leap year, it would simply translate to picking up a special year having 366 days rather than 365 days. This is an added extra day to February, and hence it makes a total of 29 days. The leap years are there to keep our calendar to be in pace with the revolution of the Earth around the Sun. Without leap years, our calendar would lag gradually behind the seasons, and this would confuse in the long run.

The simple rule that can be used to find the leap years is to see whether you can divide the year by some numbers. The exception to these rules is made, however, particularly in century years. Here in this blog post, you will get to know about the tedious procedure and the guidelines to count the leap years with examples and tables that are clear.

Key Points:

• Leap years consist of 366 days with 29 th of February added.
• A leap year has to be a year which is divisible by 4, with some exceptions.
• To become a leap year, century years should be divisible by 400.

What is a Leap Year and Why is it?

A leap year is a year when an additional day, 29 February, is added to the year, and this is 366 days as against the 365 days ordinary year. The reason to make this adjustment is due to the fact that the Earth in its orbit does not orbit the sun in exactly 365 days, but rather about 365.2425 days. Without this additional day among every other four years, there would be a drift in our calendar until it finally became out of kilter with the seasons.

An example is in the case of the absence of leap years; in 100 years, the calendar would be about 24 days apart. In order to correct this, we introduce an additional day after every four years, and this averages out the days of a year to 365.25 days. This is, however, a tad too long, meaning that century years that are not multiples of 400 are non-leap years. This principle makes the calendar more accurate to the orbit of the planet.

What are the rules to compute a leap year?

To calculate whether a given year is a leap year or not, do the following:

• It should be divisible by 4: The year has to be divisible by 4. Let us take the example of 2024, which can be divided by ,4 i.e., 2024 4 = 506 and leaves no remainder, making 2024 a leap year.
• Century Years Exception: a century year (year ending with the digits 00, such as 1900, 2000) must then also be evenly divisible by 400 to be a leap year.
• Divisible by 100, and not 400: A year which would be divisible both by 100 and 400 is a leap year, but one divisible by 100 only is not. As an example, 1900 / 100 = 19 (divisible), but 1900 / 400 = 4.75 (not divisible), and therefore 1900 is not a leap year.
• Divisible by 400: A year which is a multiple of 400 is a leap year. To take an example, 2000/400 = 5 (this is divisible) and hence 2000 is a leap year.

Example Table:

What is the formula used in how to calculate leap year?

To learn more about the calculation, let us see some examples.

• Example 1: Is the year 2024 a leap year?

1. 2024/4 = 506 (without any remainder), thus it passes test no. 1.
2. The year 2024 is not a century year; thus, no additional checks are required.
3. Summing up, 2024 will be a leap year.

• Example 2: Is 1900 a leap year?

1. 1900 \ 4 = 475 ( no remainder ). The first, but not the second, test is passed.
2. The year 1900 can be divided by 100, leaving no remainder, i.e., 1900 100 = 19, hence is a century year.
3. 1900 / 400 = 4.75 (there is a remainder), and therefore it will not pass this test.
4. Conclusion: 1900 is not a leap year.

• Example 3: Is the year 2000 a leap year?

1. 2000/4 = 500 (0 is still even), and the first test is satisfied.
2. The year 2000 divided by 100 is 20 (no remainder) century year.
3. 2000 /400 = 5 (without remainder), does passes this test.
4. The answer is that the year 2000 is a leap year.

What errors should be avoided when learning how to calculate leap year?

Lots of individuals go wrong when computing leap years by not using the century rule or the divisible by 400 rule. Such are the errors which are in common:

• Taking the rule that each and every year which can be divisible by 4 will be a leap year.
• The failure to remember that the century years should be divisible with 400.
• The misconception of being divisible by 100 and being divisible by 400.

To prevent such pitfalls, the step-by-step rules should be observed.

What are the ways to use calculators and tools for how to calculate leap year?

Online leap year calculators. Once you want to know whether a year is a leap year or want to know all leap years within a given range in a short time, you can use online leap year calculators. These tools make the process automated and instantly process the result.

E.g., you can enter a year such as the year 2025 to see whether the year is a leap year or not. Or type in a range such as 2000-2050 to be given a table of all of the leap years between the years.

Table of Comparison Manual Calculation and Online Calculator:

Note: Calculation by hand ensures that you develop an understanding, but online calculators save a lot of time when it is something you use regularly.

Conclusion

The computation of leap years is easy when just aware of the few simple rules: a year has to be divided by 4; however, years that include a century must also be divided by 400. This system helps stay our calendar being equated to the orbit and seasons of the Earth.

The step-by-step rules and examples allow you to be able to solidly conclude as to whether a given year is a leap year or not. Alternatively, leap year calculators on the Internet can be useful tools, especially when it is desired to check a lot of years or make a check quickly.

Recall: Never forget to keep it in mind that you are supposed to use the century year rule to prevent failing to apply the leap year rule.

FAQ’s

What then is a leap year?
Leap year Day occurs once every four years in the 366 days to ensure that the calendar is in sync with the Earth’s orbit.

What is the need for leap years?
Leap years compensate for the additional or unmentioned amounts of the 0.2425 days in the orbit of the Earth that are not included in an ordinary 365-day year.

Does every 4 years have to be a leap year?
No, upon the hundred years that are divisible by a hundred are only leap years when they are by 400.

Is 2100 a leap year?
No since 2100 can be divided by none of 100, but not by 400.

How do I want to know that the year is a leap year fast?
Using leap year calculators online is possible, or applying the above-discussed divisibility rules.