The format specifiers allow you to customize how the date and time are displayed when using the The following table shows the most common format specifiers, their descriptions, and examples of using them:Linux date Command Output Format Options
date command.
| Format | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
%Y |
Full year (4 digits). | date +"%Y" outputs 2024. |
%m |
Month (01-12). | date +"%m" outputs 10. |
%d |
Day of the month (01-31). | date +"%d" outputs 08. |
%H |
Hour (00-23, 24-hour format). | date +"%H" outputs 14. |
%M |
Minute (00-59). | date +"%M" outputs 45. |
%S |
Second (00-59). | date +"%S" outputs 30. |
%A |
Full weekday name. | date +"%A" outputs Tuesday. |
%a |
Abbreviated weekday name. | date +"%a" outputs Tue. |
%B |
Full month name. | date +"%B" outputs October. |
%b |
Abbreviated month name. | date +"%b" outputs Oct. |
%p |
AM or PM indicator (12-hour format). | date +"%I %p" outputs 02 PM. |
%I |
Hour (01-12, 12-hour format). | date +"%I" outputs 02. |
%T |
Time in 24-hour format (HH:MM). | date +"%T" outputs 14:45:30. |
%D |
Date in MM/DD/YY format. | date +"%D" outputs 10/08/24. |