The 3-4-4-3 schedule
A 3-4-4-3 schedule gives one parent three nights and the other four, then reverses it the following week, so over two weeks each parent has seven nights. It is a 50/50 schedule with four handovers every two weeks and no stretch longer than four nights.
Also called 4-3-3-4, 3-4 rotation.
Two weeks of the 3-4-4-3 schedule
Parent A: 7 nightsParent B: 7 nights
- Nights every two weeks
- 7 and 7, an even split
- Handovers every two weeks
- 4
- Longest time away from either parent
- 4 nights
- Weekends
- All with Parent B
- Cycle starts on
- Monday
How the 3-4-4-3 schedule works, night by night
- Week 1, Monday night to Wednesday night: Parent A, 3 nights
- Week 1, Thursday night to Sunday night: Parent B, 4 nights
- Week 2, Monday night to Thursday night: Parent A, 4 nights
- Week 2, Friday night to Sunday night: Parent B, 3 nights
Then the two weeks repeat.
Advantages
- An even split with short gaps: never more than four nights from either parent.
- Four handovers every two weeks, two fewer than 2-2-3.
- Started on a Monday, the same parent has the start of every school week.
Drawbacks
- Started on a Monday, one parent has every Friday and Saturday night, so the weekends do not alternate.
- The changeover days differ from week to week, which is harder to remember.
- Thursday nights move between homes, so a Thursday activity changes hands every week.
Who the 3-4-4-3 schedule suits
Families who want an even split with short gaps but fewer handovers than 2-2-3, and who are happy for one home to have the weekends, or who start the cycle midweek so they are shared.
Common variations
The start day decides who has the weekends. Counted from a Monday, one parent has every Friday and Saturday night; counted from a Wednesday, both parents have part of every weekend. Some families describe the same rotation as 4-3-3-4, starting from the four-night block.
Questions about the 3-4-4-3 schedule
Is 3-4-4-3 a 50/50 schedule?
Yes. One parent has three nights and the other four, and the next week it reverses, so each has seven nights in every two weeks.
What is the difference between 3-4-4-3 and 2-2-5-5?
Both are 50/50 with four handovers every two weeks. 2-2-5-5 alternates the weekends and has five-night stretches. 3-4-4-3 never goes past four nights, but counted from a Monday it gives every weekend to the same parent.
Can Coparia run a 3-4-4-3 schedule?
Yes. 3-4-4-3 is one of the schedules built into Coparia, counted from a Monday. Choose a different start day and the two-week preview shows exactly which nights move before you save it.
Setting it up in Coparia
3-4-4-3 is one of Coparia's built-in schedules. Choose it and the Monday the first week starts, and the calendar fills in from there.
Both parents see the same calendar, each day colored by whose it is, and a single day can be swapped without touching the pattern.
Create an account