Fortnite Winterfest 2025 Drops Soon — Here’s When It Goes Live in Your Time Zone
Fortnite Winterfest 2025 is sliding in with Christmas-themed loot and headline collabs—from Harry Potter to Sabrina Carpenter. Here’s when the global rollout begins and what festive rewards are up for grabs.
Fortnite is about to swap out rocket launchers for tinsel again. Winterfest 2025 is locked in, and Epic is lining up a bunch of festive freebies and some big-name collabs. Here is when it hits, what looks locked, and what the leak crowd is buzzing about.
When Winterfest 2025 starts
Epic confirmed on X that Winterfest 2025 begins Thursday, December 18, 2025. The exact launch time is still under wraps, but here is a realistic window for when the update should land around the world. Treat these as estimates until Epic posts the official hour.
- US East (New York): 7:00 AM EST, Dec 18
- US Central (Chicago): 6:00 AM CST, Dec 18
- US Mountain (Denver): 5:00 AM MT, Dec 18
- US Alaska: 3:00 AM AKST, Dec 18
- US Hawaii: 2:00 AM HST, Dec 18
- US West (Pacific Time): 4:00 AM PT, Dec 18
- UK: 12:00 PM GMT, Dec 18
- Europe (Central): 1:00 PM CET, Dec 18
- Brazil: 9:00 AM BRT, Dec 18
- China: 8:00 PM CST, Dec 18
- Japan: 9:00 PM JST, Dec 18
- Korea: 9:00 PM KST, Dec 18
- India: 5:30 PM IST, Dec 18
- Philippines (Manila): 8:00 PM, Dec 18
- Australia (AEDT): 11:00 PM, Dec 18
- New Zealand (NZDT): 1:00 AM, Dec 19
No official end date yet, but expect it to wrap in the first week of January 2026 based on past years.
What to expect this year
Epic has not dumped the full patch notes yet, but the writing on the snow-covered wall is pretty clear.
Free gifts and a snowier island
Winterfest tradition is not changing: log in, open presents in the Winterfest Cabin, and grab free skins and cosmetics. The island should get a seasonal makeover again, with snow creeping across part of the map, which always tweaks sightlines and rotations in interesting ways.
Collabs: pop star, virtual idol, wizard school
The teaser Epic posted on X all but confirms a Harry Potter crossover this year. In the clip, four stockings with Hogwarts house symbols hang over the fireplace. Subtle is not the word I would use.
On the leak side, HYPEX says Sabrina Carpenter and Hatsune Miku are part of the Winterfest lineup, so expect festive skins tied to both. As always, take leaks with the usual pinch of salt until Epic presses publish, but HYPEX tends to be on the money with this stuff.
A December 20 bonus crossover
Separate from launch day, a Bleach x Fortnite crossover is set for Saturday, December 20. That is straight from the current promo runway, so plan on new items/skins dropping two days into Winterfest.
A new mode that is... five?
HYPEX also points to a new Battle Royale variant called 'Quints' arriving with the Winterfest update. Yes, five-player squads. It is an odd number in more ways than one, and it could shake up how teams draft and push, if it sticks.
The bottom line
Circle December 18 for the start, and pencil in December 20 for the Bleach crossover. Expect the usual free-gift grind, a snowy map refresh, and a rare mash-up of pop star, virtual idol, and wizarding cosmetics. If 'Quints' hits, that is the curveball to watch. I will update when Epic drops the exact launch time and full details.