The Tibetan calendar consists of 12 (or 13) lunar months, and Losar begins on the first day of the Tibetan year. The Tibetan calendar is lunisolar and almost identical to the Chinese calendar.

Tibetan New Year is the same as Chinese New Year, a day earlier, or a day later. The adding of a 30-day month is occasionally done differently (e.g. in 1966), making Tibetan New Year a month later than Chinese New Year.