The midnight kiss: why we kiss on New Year's Eve
At the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, as the countdown ends and the fireworks start, couples around the world turn and kiss. The midnight kiss is one of the few traditions almost everyone knows and almost no one can explain. Here is what it means, where it comes from, and how to share one when you will not be in the same place, or even the same time zone, when the year turns.
What a New Year's Eve kiss means
The midnight kiss marks the first moment of the new year with the person you love most. For couples it is a small promise: we start this year together. For people who are single or newly dating, it is the moment everyone notices, which is why the question of who you will kiss at midnight comes up every December.
Where the midnight kiss comes from
Nobody can point to a single origin, but three explanations come up again and again.
English and German folklore
An old belief held that the first person you met in a new year, and how you met them, set the tone for the months ahead. A kiss at midnight was said to keep love close all year; going without one was said to mean a lonely year.
Masquerade balls
Popular histories also point to European masquerade balls, where guests took off their masks at midnight, and a kiss sometimes went with the reveal.
The public countdown
In the 20th century, televised countdowns and big city celebrations turned the midnight kiss into a moment shared by millions at once, and New Year's films and songs did the rest.
These explanations are folklore and popular history rather than a documented chain of custom.
Midnight kiss etiquette
A few unwritten rules keep it a nice moment rather than an awkward one.
- It is never owed. A hug, a toast or a kiss on the cheek is just as much a happy new year.
- If you are hoping for one, stand near the person a minute before the countdown, not across the room.
- Couples at a party: find each other before "ten". The last seconds go fast.
- Apart this year? Agree on when you will call or send something, so neither of you is waiting.
Long distance? You get two midnights
If you and your partner live in different time zones, the new year arrives twice. That can feel like a disadvantage, but it gives you two moments to mark: your midnight and theirs. Many long-distance couples call at the first midnight and send something at the second, so it is waiting when the other person's year begins.
| When | What to do | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Their midnight | Send a kiss video so it arrives exactly as their year starts | Schedule the message, or set an alarm |
| Your midnight | A call, even a short one, or a reply to their message | Keep your phone charged and nearby |
| The next morning | A photo of where you were when the year turned | Start the year by sharing it |
Make a New Year's kiss video from two photos
With TryKiss AI you add one photo of each person, choose a scene, and get a kiss video with sound, 5, 10, 15 or 30 seconds long. For a New Year's version, choose "Write your own" and describe it, for example: "On a rooftop at midnight, city skyline behind them, fireworks bursting in the sky, they count down, laugh and kiss." A 10-second clip lines up nicely with a countdown. New accounts get 30 free credits, enough for a short one. If you only have separate photos, see how to make two separate photos kiss.
Rainy Street Kiss
City lights at night and pouring rain, with the camera circling the couple for a close-up kiss.
See the Rainy Street Kiss sceneSunset Water Kiss
The last sunset of the year: shoulder-deep in the water as the sky fades to purple and red.
See the Sunset Water Kiss sceneNew Year's kiss video ideas
Match the scene to how you will spend the night.
| Idea | Scene to use | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Fireworks at midnight | "Write your own": a rooftop or bridge, skyline and fireworks | 10 seconds, to match a countdown |
| A night out in the city | Rainy Street Kiss or Subway Train Kiss | 10 or 15 seconds |
| The last sunset of the year | Sunset Water Kiss | 15 or 30 seconds |
| A winter New Year | Northern Lights Kiss | 15 or 30 seconds |
| A quiet night in for two | Dinner Date Kiss or Bedroom Embrace Kiss | 10 or 15 seconds |