Today’s vs. Todays: Discover the Correct Spelling!

You are typing a quick email, a school note, or a calendar invite. You reach the word and stop. Is it “today’s meeting” or “todays meeting”? That tiny apostrophe looks optional, but it is not.

This guide gives you the answer first, then explains the grammar in plain words. You will see real examples from classes, meetings and daily life, learn where the word came from, and get a few memory tricks that actually work. Everything here reflects how the word is used in 2026, including what autocorrect, voice typing and search engines do to it.

Today’s or Todays: The Definition

Today’s is the correct spelling. It is the possessive form of “today,” used to show that something belongs to or happens on the current day, as in “today’s meeting.” It is also a short form of “today is” or “today has,” as in “Today’s Monday.” Todays without an apostrophe is almost always a spelling mistake.

Todays or Today’s – Quick Answer

Use today’s in nearly every sentence where the word comes before a noun or stands for “today is.”

Situation	Correct	Incorrect
Something belongs to this day	today’s schedule	todays schedule
Short form of “today is”	Today’s a big day.	Todays a big day.
Short form of “today has”	Today’s been busy.	Todays been busy.
Asking for the date	What is today’s date?	What is todays date?
Just naming the day	I start today.	I start today’s.

That is the whole rule in one table. If a noun follows the word, add the apostrophe and the s. If no noun follows and you mean the day itself, use plain “today.”

Today’s vs Todays: Examples

Seeing the word in sentences makes the rule stick faster than any definition. Here are examples across common settings.

Correct sentences with today’s:

• Today’s weather is cooler than yesterday’s.
• Please read today’s newsletter before the call.
• Today’s the day we launch the new site.
• Check today’s date before you sign the form.
• Today’s special is tomato soup.
• Many of today’s phones charge in under an hour.
• Her story captures the spirit of today’s youth.

Incorrect sentences with todays:

• Todays weather is cooler than yesterday’s.
• Please read todays newsletter before the call.
• Check todays date before you sign the form.
• Todays special is tomato soup.

Notice that every incorrect sentence has a noun right after the word. That is your clue. When a noun follows, the word needs the apostrophe.

Today’s vs Todays: Grammar Explained

English uses an apostrophe plus s to show that one thing belongs to another. We write “Sara’s bag,” “the dog’s bowl,” and “the company’s policy.” The word “today” works the same way. “Today’s plan” means “the plan of today.”

Here is the grammar broken into three simple ideas.

1. Today’s as a possessive

When you write “today’s meeting,” the meeting is linked to today. The apostrophe tells the reader that the second word belongs to the first. Grammarians also call this a time expression, the same family as “a week’s notice,” “a day’s pay,” and “yesterday’s news.”

2. Today’s as a contraction

An apostrophe can also replace missing letters. In “Today’s Friday,” the word stands for “today is.” In “Today’s been a long one,” it stands for “today has.” Both are common in spoken and casual written English.

3. Todays as a plural

“Todays” would only be correct if you meant more than one “today” as a noun. That is rare. A writer might say “all our todays and tomorrows” in a poem or a speech, but ordinary writing almost never needs it. For everyday use, treat “todays” as an error.

One more point worth clearing up. Some pages online suggest that you can swap “todays” for “these days” to test it. That trick does not work. “These days” has a different meaning and is not a reliable check. A better test is simple: if you can replace the word with “today is,” “today has,” or “of today,” you need the apostrophe.

The expansion test

Say the sentence out loud with “the … of today” or “today is” in place of the word.

• “The meeting of today” works, so write today’s meeting.
• “Today is a holiday” works, so write Today’s a holiday.

If neither version makes sense, you may be looking at a different word.

Today or Today’s: Class

Schools are one of the most common places where this word appears. Teachers write it on boards, students type it in notes, and parents read it in portals.

Examples for the classroom:

• Today’s class starts at 9:00 a.m.
• Please open your books to today’s lesson.
• Today’s homework is due on Friday.
• Today I learned how to use apostrophes.
• Today’s quiz covers chapters four and five.

Look at the fourth sentence. It uses plain “today” because no noun belongs to it. The word works as an adverb that tells us when the learning happened. Compare it with “today’s lesson,” where the lesson belongs to today.

Teacher tip: Ask students to underline the noun after the word. If there is one, circle the apostrophe. This two-second habit prevents most mistakes in student writing.

Today or Today’s: Activity

Activities and events follow the same pattern. Use the apostrophe whenever the activity belongs to the day.

Examples for activities:

• Today’s activity is a group puzzle.
• What is on today’s activity list?
• We did not finish today’s workout.
• Today we are painting the fence.
• Today’s game was postponed because of rain.

Here is a quick practice round. Choose the correct option.

1. We enjoyed (today / today’s) picnic. Answer: today’s
2. (Today / Today’s) we are baking cookies. Answer: Today
3. (Todays / Today’s) the last day of camp. Answer: Today’s
4. Did you see (today / today’s) results? Answer: today’s

If you got all four right, you already understand the rule. Number three is the tricky one because the word is a contraction, not a possessive.

Today’s or Todays: Meeting

Meetings are where this mistake costs the most. A missing apostrophe in a client email can make a professional message look careless.

Examples for meetings:

• Today’s meeting has moved to 3:30 p.m.
• Please send the notes from today’s call.
• Today’s agenda is attached.
• Today’s standup will be short.
• Thanks for joining today’s webinar.

Incorrect versions to avoid:

• Todays meeting has moved to 3:30 p.m.
• Please send the notes from todays call.
• Todays agenda is attached.

Subject lines matter too. “Today’s Meeting Reminder” looks polished. “Todays Meeting Reminder” looks rushed. In busy inboxes, small details shape first impressions.

Today’s Means Today Is

Many writers forget that the apostrophe has two jobs. Besides showing ownership, it can shrink two words into one. When “today’s” stands for “today is,” there is no ownership at all.

Full form	Short form
Today is Monday.	Today’s Monday.
Today is going to be sunny.	Today’s going to be sunny.
Today has been quiet.	Today’s been quiet.
Today is the big day.	Today’s the big day.

In formal writing such as reports, legal text and academic papers, many editors prefer the full “today is.” In emails, chats and blog posts, the short form is perfectly fine.

The Origin of Todays / Today’s

The word has a long history. It began as a two-word phrase in Old English, “tō dæge,” which meant “on this day” or “at this day.” Over time, English speakers joined the pieces into one adverb. Reference sources such as etymology dictionaries trace it back to before the year 900.

The spelling then went through three stages:

1. Two words: “to day,” used in Old and Middle English.
2. Hyphenated: “to-day,” common for centuries and still seen in writing from the late 1800s and early 1900s. You will find it in older novels and newspapers.
3. One word: “today,” the modern standard.

Words like “tonight” and “tomorrow” followed the same path. They once started as “to night” and “to morrow.”

The apostrophe has its own story. In early English, the possessive was formed with an ending like “-es.” When writers began dropping the “e,” they used the apostrophe to mark the missing letter. Over time, the mark became the standard sign of possession. So when you write “today’s,” you are using a tool that is several centuries old.

There is a useful lesson here. “Todays” never became a separate word in the history of English. The plural idea simply was not needed, because a “today” is, by nature, one day. That is why modern dictionaries list “today” and not “todays.”

British English vs. American English Spelling

Here is some good news. There is no spelling difference between British and American English for this word. Both use “today” and “today’s” in exactly the same way.

Feature	American English	British English
Standard spelling	today	today
Possessive	today’s	today’s
Old hyphenated form	to-day (obsolete)	to-day (obsolete, lasted a little longer)
“Todays” without apostrophe	Incorrect	Incorrect

The old hyphenated form lingered a bit longer in British writing, but it is now considered outdated in both. If you see “to-day” today, it is a historical quirk, not a regional choice.

Which Spelling Should You Use?

Use today’s whenever a noun follows or whenever you mean “today is” or “today has.” Use plain today when no noun follows and you simply mean “on this day.”

Follow this short checklist before you publish:

1. Is there a noun right after the word? If yes, use today’s.
2. Does the word mean “today is” or “today has”? If yes, use today’s.
3. Does the word just tell us when something happens? If yes, use today.
4. Did you type “todays”? Change it.
5. Did you type “todays’” with the apostrophe after the s? Change it to “today’s.”

This five-step check works in school essays, business emails, product pages and social media captions.

Common Mistakes with Todays / Today’s

Even confident writers slip here. These are the errors that appear most often.

1. Dropping the apostrophe

• Wrong: Todays date is October 27.
• Right: Today’s date is October 27.

2. Putting the apostrophe in the wrong place

• Wrong: Todays’ meeting is cancelled.
• Right: Today’s meeting is cancelled.

3. Adding an apostrophe when you only need “today”

• Wrong: I will call you today’s.
• Right: I will call you today.

4. Mixing up today and today’s before a noun

• Wrong: Please check today agenda.
• Right: Please check today’s agenda.

5. Using “today morning” or “today night”

• Wrong: I saw him today morning.
• Right: I saw him this morning.

6. Treating “todays” as a normal plural

• Wrong: We have many todays to plan.
• Right: We have many days to plan.

7. Trusting autocorrect blindly

Autocorrect tools usually fix “todays” for you, but not always. Voice typing, quick mobile typing and some chat apps can leave the apostrophe out. A fast proofread still matters.

Today’s / Todays in Everyday Examples

The word shows up in more places than you might expect. Here is how to handle it in real life.

In emails and work messages

• Subject line: Today’s Meeting Notes
• Body: Here is a summary of today’s discussion.
• Sign-off: Thanks for your time today.

In news and media

• Today’s top stories
• Today’s headlines
• Today’s forecast

In shopping and marketing

• Today’s deals
• Today’s offer ends at midnight
• Today’s special

Brands that skip the apostrophe in headlines often look careless to readers. A small typo can lower trust in a sales page.

In social media

• Today’s mood
• Today’s outfit
• Today’s reminder

Hashtags are the exception. Because hashtags cannot contain an apostrophe, you will see #todaysoutfit or #todaysmood. That is acceptable inside a hashtag, but in the caption itself, write “today’s outfit.”

In casual conversation

• Today’s been wild.
• Today’s my day off.
• What’s today’s plan?

In 2026 specifically

A few things have changed in how people meet this word in 2026. Voice assistants and dictation tools now write most of the short messages people send, and spoken English gives no sign of the apostrophe. As a result, “todays” appears more often in raw drafts than it used to. AI writing assistants and built-in editors in email apps catch many of these slips, but they can miss them inside names, hashtags, product titles and code comments.

Search behavior matters too. People often type “todays date” into a search box without an apostrophe, because search engines treat the two forms the same. That does not make “todays” correct. It only means the search box is forgiving, while your published page, email or report is not.

If you manage a website, one simple habit helps: search your own pages for “todays” and fix every instance that sits in visible text. Titles, buttons, menu labels and alt text are places where the error hides.

Todays or Today’s – Usage Trends

Writers search for this pair because the confusion is common. The pattern behind it is easy to explain.

• Sound: “Today’s” and “todays” sound identical when spoken. Nothing in the speech signals the apostrophe.
• Speed: Mobile typing and short messages push people to skip punctuation.
• Search habits: People type queries without apostrophes, so the wrong form feels familiar.
• Formal vs casual: In casual chats and hashtags, “todays” slips through. In formal writing, it is flagged immediately.

Here is how the two forms are generally used in the real world.

Setting	Most common form	Notes
Newspapers and magazines	today’s	Style guides require the apostrophe
Business emails	today’s	Missing apostrophes are seen as careless
School and academic writing	today’s	Marked as an error when missing
Social media captions	today’s or todays	Casual writing often skips the mark
Hashtags	todays	Apostrophes are not allowed in tags
Search queries	todays or today’s	Search engines treat both alike

The takeaway is simple. The more formal and public your writing, the more the apostrophe matters.

Keyword Comparison Table

This table puts the main forms side by side so you can scan the differences in seconds.

Form	Is it correct?	Meaning	Example
today	Yes	This present day (adverb or noun)	I will finish it today.
today’s	Yes	Possessive: of today	Today’s agenda is short.
today’s	Yes	Contraction: today is or today has	Today’s Tuesday.
todays	No (in normal use)	Mistaken spelling	Todays agenda is short.
todays’	No	Misplaced apostrophe	Todays’ agenda is short.
to-day	Outdated	Old hyphenated spelling	To-day we leave.
this day’s	Rare but correct	Formal, old-fashioned alternative	This day’s work is done.

You can use this table as a quick reference whenever you edit your own work.

FAQ’S

Which one is correct, today or today’s?

Both are correct, but they do different jobs. Use today when you simply mean “on this day,” as in “I will call you today.” Use today’s when something belongs to today or when you mean “today is,” as in “today’s meeting” or “Today’s my birthday.” If a noun follows the word, you almost always need today’s.

Is it today’s meeting or todays meeting?

It is today’s meeting. The meeting belongs to today, so the apostrophe and s are required. “Todays meeting” is a spelling mistake. The same rule applies to today’s call, today’s class, today’s agenda and today’s schedule.

Which is correct: “for todays” or “for today’s”?

“For today’s” is correct when a noun follows or is understood, as in “for today’s session” or “for today’s needs.” If nothing follows, you would write “for today,” as in “That is all for today.” “For todays” is not correct in standard English.

What is today’s meaning?

Today’s has two meanings. First, it is the possessive of “today,” meaning “of or belonging to the present day,” as in “today’s news.” Second, it is a contraction of “today is” or “today has,” as in “Today’s Friday” or “Today’s been long.” It can also describe the present era, as in “today’s world” or “today’s technology.”

Conclusion

The rule is short and dependable. Write today’s whenever something belongs to today or when you mean “today is” or “today has.” Write plain today when you only need to say when something happens. Treat todays as a typo in everyday writing.

Before you hit send or publish, scan for the word and check the next word. If a noun comes after it, the apostrophe belongs there. Add one last proofread to catch voice typing slips and autocorrect misses, and your writing will look clean, careful and trustworthy.