Unix timestamp (also called Epoch time or POSIX time) represents seconds elapsed since January 1, 1970 00:00:00 UTC (the Unix Epoch). This is the standard way to represent time in programming languages, databases, APIs, and log files. Convert timestamps to human-readable dates in multiple formats (Local, UTC, ISO 8601, RFC 2822) and convert dates back to Unix timestamps in seconds or milliseconds.
Current Unix Timestamp
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Auto-detects seconds vs milliseconds
Click any example to test timestamp conversion with common time scenarios
Enter a Unix epoch timestamp (in seconds or milliseconds) to see the corresponding human-readable date and time in multiple formats, or select a date and time to convert it to a Unix timestamp. The tool auto-detects whether the input is in seconds (10 digits) or milliseconds (13 digits). The current Unix timestamp is displayed in real-time at the top and updates every second. Use quick test examples like '1 hour ago', 'tomorrow', 'yesterday' to instantly test common time scenarios. Results are shown in Local Time, UTC, ISO 8601, RFC 2822, relative time, day of year, and ISO week number formats.
Epoch timestamp conversion is essential for backend developers working with databases (MySQL TIMESTAMP, PostgreSQL TIMESTAMPTZ store epoch values), debugging API responses that include Unix timestamps in JSON payloads, analyzing server log files with epoch-based timestamps (Nginx, Apache access logs), working with JWT token expiration claims (exp, iat, nbf fields contain Unix timestamps), scheduling cron jobs and task schedulers, comparing event timestamps across different timezones, converting between human-readable dates and machine-readable epoch format for analytics and monitoring systems, parsing HTTP headers with RFC 2822 date formats, and validating timestamp values in automated tests.
Unix timestamps (also called Epoch time or POSIX time) count seconds since the Unix Epoch (January 1, 1970 00:00:00 UTC). This tool uses JavaScript's Date object for conversion, supporting dates from year -271821 to 275760. Millisecond timestamps (like JavaScript's Date.now()) are 13 digits; second timestamps are 10 digits. The tool outputs multiple standard formats: Local Time (user's browser timezone), UTC (Coordinated Universal Time), ISO 8601 (YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss.sssZ), RFC 2822 (Internet Message Format used in HTTP headers and emails), relative time (human-readable like '2 hours ago'), day of year (1-366), and ISO week number (1-53). All calculations run client-side in the browser with no data sent to servers.
A Unix timestamp (also called Epoch time or POSIX time) is a single integer representing a point in time - specifically, the number of seconds that have elapsed since January 1, 1970 at 00:00:00 UTC (the Unix Epoch). For example, 1700000000 represents November 14, 2023 at 22:13:20 UTC. This format is used universally in programming because it's timezone-agnostic and easy to store in databases.
An epoch converter is a tool that converts Unix timestamps (epoch time) to human-readable dates and vice versa. It translates numeric epoch values like 1700000000 into formatted dates like 'November 14, 2023' and converts calendar dates back to Unix timestamps. This is essential for developers working with timestamps in logs, databases, APIs, and programming languages.
Enter the Unix epoch timestamp (in seconds or milliseconds) and the tool instantly displays the corresponding date and time in multiple formats: Local Time (your timezone), UTC, ISO 8601, RFC 2822, relative time ('2 hours ago'), day of year, and ISO week number. The tool auto-detects whether your input is in seconds (10 digits) or milliseconds (13 digits).
A seconds-based Unix timestamp has 10 digits (e.g., 1700000000) and represents seconds since 1970. A milliseconds-based timestamp has 13 digits (e.g., 1700000000000) and represents milliseconds since 1970. JavaScript's Date.now() returns milliseconds, while most Unix systems, databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL), and programming languages (Python time.time(), PHP time()) use seconds by default.
The current Unix timestamp is displayed at the top of the tool and updates every second. In programming: JavaScript uses Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) for seconds or Date.now() for milliseconds. Python uses int(time.time()). PHP uses time(). Command line: date +%s (Unix/Linux/Mac) or Get-Date -UFormat %s (PowerShell).
RFC 2822 is the Internet Message Format standard used in HTTP headers (Last-Modified, Date) and email headers. Example: 'Tue, 14 Nov 2023 22:13:20 GMT'. This epoch converter displays timestamps in RFC 2822 format alongside other formats, making it useful for debugging web APIs and email systems.
ISO 8601 is the international standard for date and time representation. Example: '2023-11-14T22:13:20.000Z'. The 'T' separates date and time, and 'Z' indicates UTC timezone (zero offset). This format is used in JSON APIs, databases (PostgreSQL TIMESTAMPTZ), and JavaScript's toISOString() method. The epoch converter shows timestamps in ISO 8601 format for easy copy-paste into code.
JavaScript: Date.now() or new Date().getTime() returns milliseconds. Python: time.time() returns seconds as float. PHP: time() returns seconds as integer. Java: System.currentTimeMillis() returns milliseconds. C: time(NULL) returns seconds. Go: time.Now().Unix() returns seconds. Ruby: Time.now.to_i returns seconds. Each language has functions to convert between timestamps and formatted dates.
Unix timestamps are superior for storage and calculation: (1) Timezone-independent - always UTC-based, avoiding daylight saving issues. (2) Easy math - subtract two timestamps to get duration in seconds. (3) Compact storage - single integer instead of date string. (4) Universal - works across all programming languages and databases. (5) Sortable - numeric comparison is faster than date parsing. Format timestamps to human-readable dates only for display.
The Unix Epoch (January 1, 1970 00:00:00 UTC) is the reference point for Unix timestamps. This date was chosen when Unix was developed at Bell Labs because it was a recent, round date that fit within 32-bit signed integers (allowing dates until 2038). Modern systems use 64-bit timestamps, supporting dates far into the future. Timestamps before 1970 are negative numbers.
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