Custody Schedules, Explained

Updated July 2026

Every custody schedule is a trade-off between fewer handoffs and shorter gaps. These guides explain each common rotation — with the two-week grid, the real overnight math, and who each one actually suits.

• 2-2-3 (50/50) — Two days with each parent, then an alternating three-day weekend — no one goes more than three days without seeing the kids.
• 2-2-5-5 (50/50) — The same two weekdays with each parent every week, with alternating five-day stretches built around the weekends.
• 3-4-4-3 (50/50) — Three days with one parent, four with the other — then it flips the next week.
• Week-On / Week-Off (50/50) — One full week with each parent. The simplest rotation there is — a single handoff per week.
• Every Other Weekend (~80/20) — One primary home on weekdays, with the other parent taking alternating Friday-to-Sunday weekends.
• Every Other Weekend + Midweek (~70/30) — The classic every-other-weekend arrangement, plus a standing midweek overnight that shortens the gaps.
• 4-3 (Every Weekend Split) (~60/40) — Four weekdays with one parent, Friday-to-Sunday with the other — the same split every single week.
• Two Weeks On / Two Weeks Off (50/50) — Extended fourteen-day blocks in each home — a rotation built for distance.
• Nesting (Birdnesting) (varies) — The children stay in one home — the parents are the ones who rotate in and out.
• Stepped-Up (Infants & Toddlers) (graduated) — A schedule that grows with the child — frequent short visits first, overnights added in stages.

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