PHP provides two functions for formatting dates: date() and DateTime::format().
date()
The date() function takes a Unix timestamp as input and returns a formatted date string. The format of the output string is specified by the second parameter.
Here are some examples of how to use the date() function:
PHP
// Get the current date and time.
$now = time();
// Format the date and time as andquot;2023-10-29 15:12:55andquot;.
$formattedDate = date(andquot;Y-m-d H:i:sandquot;, $now);
// Format the date as andquot;October 29, 2023andquot;.
$formattedDate = date(andquot;F j, Yandquot;, $now);
// Format the time as andquot;15:12andquot;.
$formattedTime = date(andquot;H:iandquot;, $now);
DateTime::format()
The DateTime::format() method returns a formatted date string, given a DateTime object. The format of the output string is specified by the first parameter.
Here are some examples of how to use the DateTime::format() method:
PHP
// Create a DateTime object for the current date and time.
$now = new DateTime();
// Format the date and time as andquot;2023-10-29 15:12:55andquot;.
$formattedDate = $now-andgt;format(andquot;Y-m-d H:i:sandquot;);
// Format the date as andquot;October 29, 2023andquot;.
$formattedDate = $now-andgt;format(andquot;F j, Yandquot;);
// Format the time as andquot;15:12andquot;.
$formattedTime = $now-andgt;format(andquot;H:iandquot;);
Date formats
The following table shows some common date formats that can be used with the date() function and the DateTime::format() method:
| Character | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| d | The day of the month (01 to 31) | 29 |
| D | A textual representation of a day (three letters) | Sun |
| j | The day of the month without leading zeros (1 to 31) | 29 |
| l (lowercase and#39;Land#39;) | A full textual representation of a day | Sunday |
| N | The ISO-8601 numeric representation of a day (1 for Monday, 7 for Sunday) | 7 |
| S | The English ordinal suffix for the day of the month (2 characters st, nd, rd or th. Works well with j) | st |
| w | A numeric representation of the day (0 for Sunday, 6 for Saturday) | 0 |
| z | The day of the year (from 0 through 365) | 303 |
| L | Whether itand#39;s a leap year (1 if it is a leap year, 0 otherwise) | 1 |
| o | The ISO 8601 week-numbering year | 2023 |
| Y | A four digit representation of a year | 2023 |
| y | A two digit representation of a year | 23 |
| a | Lowercase am or pm | am |
| A | Uppercase AM or PM | AM |
| B | Swatch Internet time (000 to 999) | 1512 |
| g | 12-hour format of an hour (1 to 12) | 3 |
| G | 24-hour format of an hour (0 to 23) | 3 |
| h | 12-hour format of an hour (01 to 12) | 03 |
| H | 24-hour format of an hour (00 to 23) | 03 |
| i | Minutes with leading zeros (00 to 59) | 12 |
| s | Seconds, with leading zeros (00 to 59) | 55 |
| u | Microseconds (added in PHP 5.2.2) | 000000 |
| e | The timezone identifier (Examples: UTC, GMT, Atlantic/Azores) | PST |
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Conclusion
PHP provides a variety of options for formatting dates. You can use the date() function or the DateTime::format() method, depending on your needs.