PHP Date - Format the Date

The first parameter in the date() function specifies how to format the date/time. It uses letters to represent date and time formats. Here are some of the letters that can be used:

d - The day of the month (01-31)
m - The current month, as a number (01-12)
Y - The current year in four digits

An overview of all the letters that can be used in the format parameter, can be found in our PHP Date reference.

Other characters, like"/", ".", or "-" can also be inserted between the letters to add additional formatting:

<?php
echo date("Y/m/d");
echo "<br />";
echo date("Y.m.d");
echo "<br />";
echo date("Y-m-d");
?>

Output of the code:

2006/07/11
2006.07.11
2006-07-11