PHP Date Format Examples

PHP date() formats a timestamp using a token string. Each character has meaning, so small mistakes can change the output.

Common tokens

• Y four digit year
• m two digit month
• d two digit day
• H 24-hour hour
• i minutes
• s seconds

Code examples

echo date('Y-m-d');
echo date('Y-m-d H:i:s');
echo date(DATE_ATOM);

Common errors

Use i for minutes. m is month. Set date_default_timezone_set() or configure date.timezone so output is predictable.

Related tool

Try the PHP Date Format Tester.