Full Moon November 2026: The Beaver Moon, Date, Time and Meaning
The full moon of November 2026 is the Beaver Moon, and it is full at 9:53 a.m. EST on Tuesday 24 November. Across the rest of the country that is 8:53 a.m. CST, 7:53 a.m. MST and 6:53 a.m. PST, all on the same morning. Because the exact moment falls in daylight everywhere in the US, there are two good nights to watch: the evening of Monday 23 November, when the moon is a few hours short of full, and the evening of Tuesday 24 November, when it is a few hours past. To the eye both look full.
It is also the full moon of Thanksgiving week. The holiday falls on Thursday 26 November 2026, and the moon will still be bright and nearly round over the table. For a practitioner that is a gift: the one week of the American year when most people already stop to give thanks lines up with the moon that closes the harvest.
Why it is called the Beaver Moon
The name comes from the North American almanac tradition. In late autumn beavers finish their lodges and lay in branches under the water before the ponds freeze, and they are busy and easy to see. The other explanation in the almanacs is less pleasant: it was the month to set beaver traps before the ice came, when the pelts were thickest. Either way the name points at the same thing, which is the last hard work before winter.
The other common names say much the same. Frost Moon marks the first hard frosts in most of the northern states. Mourning Moon is a Neopagan name used in many Wiccan moon lists, and it follows naturally from Samhain three weeks earlier, when the dead were honoured. Our guide to full moon names month by month covers where each of these lists comes from, and which attributions are on firmer ground than others.
The November 2026 moon calendar
For the Beaver Moon table
| Phase | Date | Time (US Eastern) |
|---|---|---|
| New moon | 9 November | 2:02 a.m. EST |
| Full moon (Beaver Moon) | 24 November | 9:53 a.m. EST |
| Thanksgiving | 26 November | waning gibbous moon |
| Next full moon (Cold Moon) | 23 December | 8:28 p.m. EST |
US daylight saving time ended on 1 November 2026, so every time in this guide is standard time. If you keep a lunar diary, this is the month to check that the clock on your notes matches the clock on the wall. Our moon phase guide for 2026 has the rest of the year in one place.
What the Beaver Moon is for
The beaver is a good teacher for November. It does not wait for the ice; it builds while the water is still open. In modern practice the Beaver Moon is used for preparation, shelter and thanks.
Prepare
Look at the winter ahead the way the beaver looks at the pond. What needs doing before the cold sets in: a bill, a repair, a conversation, a store of something you will need in February. Write a short list under the full moon and do the first item the next morning.
Shelter
This is a strong moon for house protection and household blessings. Walk the doors and windows, sweep the threshold outward, and renew whatever charm hangs by the door. Our guide to protection spells that work has several that take less than an evening.
Give thanks
With Thanksgiving two days away, gratitude does not need inventing. The difference between a gratitude practice and a polite list is specificity: name the person, the day, the thing. The waning days after this full moon are traditionally the gratitude phase anyway, as our piece on the waning gibbous moon explains.
Mourn, briefly
If the Mourning Moon name speaks to you, use it. Light a candle for someone who is not at the table this year. It does not have to be long, and it often makes the holiday itself easier.
A Thanksgiving week ritual
More for the supermoon
This one is built to fit around a busy week rather than compete with it. On the evening of 23 or 24 November, before the cooking starts, set a candle on the table you will eat at. Our moon phase candle suits the night, but any plain candle works. Lay a cloth if you have one; a moon phases tablecloth will carry on through to the holiday meal.
Light the candle with the moon up. Write three names on a slip of paper: three people who carried you through 2026. Under them, write one thing you are preparing for this winter. Read it aloud, fold the paper and leave it under the candle until it burns down. On Thanksgiving, set the folded paper under your plate or tuck it into a napkin. Nobody else needs to know it is there.
The ritual borrows from older Mabon practice, which many pagans already call the pagan Thanksgiving; our article on Mabon as the pagan Thanksgiving covers the comparison. For the general shape of full moon work, see full moon power, and if you want a second task for the night, making moon water under a cold November sky is one of the simplest.
Watching and photographing it
The moon rises around sunset on both evenings, and in late November sunset comes early: before 5 p.m. in most of the country. That makes the Beaver Moon one of the easiest full moons of the year to see without staying up. Look east as the light fades. Near the horizon the moon looks larger and warmer in colour. The size is the moon illusion, a trick of perception; the colour is real and comes from the extra atmosphere the light passes through. For photographs, find a tree line or a rooftop to give scale, and shoot in the first half hour after moonrise.
The Beaver Moon of 2026 is a supermoon. At full, the moon is about 360,800 km (224,200 miles) from Earth, near its closest point of the month, so it looks a little larger and brighter than an average full moon. There is no eclipse with it.
Traditional correspondences
Modern practitioners tend to work the Beaver Moon with brown, deep grey and dark blue, the colours of water under the first ice. Common stones are smoky quartz, onyx and garnet. Common herbs are sage and rosemary for the house, and cinnamon for warmth. These are modern conventions rather than ancient lore. Our guide to moon phases and crystals goes further if stones are part of your practice, and a piece like the Hecate wheel necklace keeps the cycle in view through the darker months.
One candle for Thanksgiving week
Frequently Asked Questions About the November 2026 Full Moon
When is the full moon in November 2026?
The full moon is at 9:53 a.m. EST on 24 November 2026, which is 8:53 a.m. CST, 7:53 a.m. MST and 6:53 a.m. PST. The best nights to watch are the evenings of 23 and 24 November.
Why is it called the Beaver Moon?
In the almanac tradition it is the month beavers finish their lodges and store food before the ponds freeze, and the month beaver traps were set while the pelts were thick.
Is the November 2026 full moon a supermoon?
Yes, by the usual definition. The moon is about 360,800 km (224,200 miles) away at full, close to perigee. There is no eclipse.
What phase is the moon on Thanksgiving 2026?
Waning gibbous. On 26 November the moon is two days past full and still very bright, rising in the early evening.
Watch it rise on the 23rd or the 24th, name the people who carried you this year, and get one winter job done before the ice. The Beaver Moon is a practical moon, and it rewards practical work.
Related Reads
