Short answer
Yes. In Islam each day begins at sunset, so Ramadan begins at sunset on the evening the new moon is confirmed. Taraweeh starts that same night, you eat suhoor before dawn, and the first fast is the next day.
The Islamic day begins at sunset. Once the new moon of Ramadan is established by sighting, or Sha'ban has completed 30 days, the night that follows is the first night of Ramadan: taraweeh is prayed and the intention for the next day's fast is made. Likewise Eid begins at sunset after the last fast.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
The Islamic calendar is lunar. A new month begins when the crescent is seen after sunset on the 29th of the previous month, or after 30 days if it is not seen. The Prophet ﷺ said: fast when you see it and stop fasting when you see it, and if it is hidden from you, complete Sha'ban as thirty days.
Because the moon is looked for after sunset, the Islamic day starts at sunset, and each night comes before its day. So:
- The first night of Ramadan is the evening the moon is confirmed. Taraweeh begins that night.
- The first suhoor is before dawn the next morning.
- The first fast is that next day, from true dawn until sunset.
- Eid al-Fitr begins at sunset after the last fast, once the moon of Shawwal is seen or Ramadan completes 30 days. There is no taraweeh that night.
This is also why the odd nights of the last ten are the nights before the 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th and 29th days. See when the last ten nights start.
Communities differ on whether to follow local sighting, sighting from other countries or a calculated calendar. That difference changes which evening Ramadan starts, not the rule that it starts at sunset. The four schools agree on the rule. For the expected date, see the moon sighting page and the Ramadan countdown.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Baqara 2:185
شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ فِيهِ ٱلْقُرْءَانُ هُدًۭى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَٰتٍۢ مِّنَ ٱلْهُدَىٰ وَٱلْفُرْقَانِ ۚ فَمَن شَهِدَ مِنكُمُ ٱلشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ ۖ وَمَن كَانَ مَرِيضًا أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍۢ فَعِدَّةٌۭ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ أُخَرَ ۗ يُرِيدُ ٱللَّهُ بِكُمُ ٱلْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ ٱلْعُسْرَ وَلِتُكْمِلُوا۟ ٱلْعِدَّةَ وَلِتُكَبِّرُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ عَلَىٰ مَا هَدَىٰكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ ﴿١٨٥﴾
The month of Ramadhan [is that] in which was revealed the Qur'an, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. So whoever sights [the new moon of] the month, let him fast it; and whoever is ill or on a journey - then an equal number of other days. Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship and [wants] for you to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that [to] which He has guided you; and perhaps you will be grateful.
Ramadan begins with the new moon, which is seen after sunset.
Sahih al-Bukhari 1909
Sahih... صوموا لرؤيته وأفطروا لرؤيته فإن غبي عليكم فأكملوا عدة شعبان ثلاثين ...
"Fast when you see it and stop when you see it; if it is hidden from you, complete Sha'ban as thirty."
The month begins with the sighting of the crescent or the completion of thirty days.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Sawm, chapter on sighting the new moon. The month is established by sighting the crescent or by completing thirty days.
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Sawm, chapter on sighting the new moon. People look for the crescent on the evening of the 29th of Sha'ban.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.