Grilled fish and chimichurri steak tacos served during the Detroit Free Press and Metro Detroit Chevy Dealers dining series on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025.

Foodies can celebrate the ultimate Taco Tuesday when National Taco Day rolls around this year.

National Taco Day will be observed on Tuesday, Oct. 7, this year, but it hasn't always fallen on a Tuesday.

In 2024, the National Day Calendar, which tracks celebratory dates, moved National Taco Day from Oct. 4 to the first Tuesday in October.

While it may seem like an obvious choice to celebrate the day on a Tuesday because of popular "Taco Tuesday" deals, there was pushback over the rightful ownership of the alliteration.

Here's what to know about the National Taco Day saga, and how you can celebrate with a deal from Taco Bell.

When is National Taco Day? Why is it on a Tuesday?

National Taco Day is observed on the first Tuesday of October, according to National Day Calendar.

This year, that means National Taco Day is on Tuesday, Oct. 7.

Before 2024, National Taco Day was celebrated on Oct. 4 every year, regardless of what day it fell on. However, Taco Bell pushed to move the day exclusively to Tuesdays.

"We learned about the magic of the National Day Calendar, and made our case to move one of the biggest taco holidays of the year so that it would always land on the best taco day of the week – and now, we’re able to celebrate National Taco Day on Taco Tuesday this year, and every year in the future," Taco Bell's Chief Marketing Officer Taylor Montgomery previously told USA TODAY in a statement.

Before the change could be made, though, the trademark for "Taco Tuesday" had to be released for use by its owner, Taco John's.

The company relinquished the trademark for the term in July 2023 after Taco Bell started an online petition to have the "Taco Tuesday" trademark released, therefore allowing all restaurants to use it "to make, sell, eat, and celebrate tacos."

National Taco Day: How to get Taco Bell deals

Taco Bell will offer National Taco Day deals on Tuesday, Oct. 7, but only to members of its Taco Bell Rewards loyalty program in the Taco Bell app.

Taco Bell Rewards members can get $5 off Party Packs all day long when they order in the Taco Bell app. DoorDash will also offer buy-one-get-one-free tacos for delivery on National Taco Day.

The planned schedule of deals begins at noon ET with an exclusive T-shirt giveaway, followed by drops of deals for $1 Cantina Chicken Soft Tacos every other hour.

Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. She can be reached at melina.khan@usatoday.com.

Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When is National Taco Day? Why it hasn't always been on a Tuesday

Reporting by Melina Khan and Mike Snider, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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