PHP Date and Time

Handling dates and times is a core part of web development, whether for displaying post dates, scheduling tasks, or recording transaction times. PHP's date() function is the primary tool for formatting local dates and times.

1. The date() Function

The date() function formats a local date and time, and returns the formatted date string.

Syntax: date(format, timestamp)

Basic Date Formatting

• d - Represents the day of the month (01 to 31)
• m - Represents a month (01 to 12)
• Y - Represents a year (in four digits)
• l (lowercase 'L') - Represents the day of the week

<?php
    echo "Today is " . date("Y/m/d") . "<br>";
    echo "Today is " . date("Y-m-d") . "<br>";
    echo "Today is " . date("l"); // e.g: Monday
?>

2. Time Formatting

You can also format time using the following characters:

• h - 12-hour format of an hour (01 to 12)
• i - Minutes with leading zeros (00 to 59)
• s - Seconds with leading zeros (00 to 59)
• a - Lowercase Ante meridiem and Post meridiem (am or pm)

<?php
    echo "The time is " . date("h:i:sa");
?>

3. Setting the Timezone

By default, the time returned by date() depends on the server's configuration. To get the time for a specific location, you must set the timezone.

<?php
    date_default_timezone_set("Asia/Dhaka");
    echo "The time in Dhaka is " . date("h:i:sa");
?>

Formatting Reference