Unix Timestamp Converter

Utilities

Convert between Unix timestamps and dates

Current Unix Timestamp
0
1/1/1970, 12:00:00 AM

Unix Date

Date Unix

Accepts timestamps in seconds or milliseconds. Date strings can be ISO 8601 or other parseable formats.

Learn More About Unix Timestamp Converter

2 articles to help you understand and use this tool effectively

Unix Timestamp Converter FAQ

Common questions about using the Unix Timestamp Converter tool

A Unix timestamp is the number of seconds (or milliseconds) since January 1, 1970, 00:00:00 UTC (the Unix epoch). It's a universal way to represent time as a single number, independent of timezone, used extensively in programming and databases.

To convert a timestamp: 1) Enter the Unix timestamp, 2) Select seconds or milliseconds, 3) See the human-readable date instantly. In JavaScript: new Date(timestamp * 1000) for seconds, new Date(timestamp) for milliseconds.

In JavaScript: Date.now() returns milliseconds, Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) for seconds. In Python: import time; time.time(). In command line: date +%s (Unix/Mac). Our tool shows the current timestamp updating in real-time.

Seconds timestamps are 10 digits (e.g., 1705276800), milliseconds are 13 digits (e.g., 1705276800000). JavaScript Date uses milliseconds, Unix traditionally uses seconds. Check digit count to determine format. Our tool auto-detects and handles both.

Enter a date/time in the input field and get the timestamp. In JavaScript: new Date('2024-01-15').getTime() for milliseconds, divide by 1000 for seconds. Use Date.UTC() for UTC-based conversion without timezone offset.

32-bit systems store timestamps as signed integers, maxing out at 2,147,483,647 (January 19, 2038, 03:14:07 UTC). After this, timestamps overflow and become negative. 64-bit systems extend this by billions of years. Most modern systems are 64-bit.

Unix timestamps are always UTC - they represent a single moment in time. When displaying, convert to local timezone: new Date(timestamp * 1000).toLocaleString(). Store/transmit as UTC, convert to local only for display.

ISO 8601 is the international standard format: 2024-01-15T14:30:00Z. The T separates date and time, Z indicates UTC. With offset: 2024-01-15T14:30:00+05:30. It's unambiguous, sortable, and widely supported. Use toISOString() in JavaScript.

Subtract timestamps to get difference in seconds/milliseconds. Convert to meaningful units: diff / 60 for minutes, / 3600 for hours, / 86400 for days. For complex calculations (months, years), use libraries like date-fns or Luxon.

Yes, negative timestamps represent dates before January 1, 1970. For example, -86400 is December 31, 1969. JavaScript handles negative timestamps correctly: new Date(-86400000) works. Useful for historical dates.