How to Change Date Format in JavaScript

Determining the current time/moment is an important part of every application. JavaScript supports a Date object that represents a single point in time. Date objects contain a number representing milliseconds since January 1, 1970 UTC, also known as milliseconds since the Unix epoch. JavaScript provides various ways to get a date in several formats.

Change Date Format Using Date() in JavaScript

This is a function built into JavaScript that returns the formatted date string. When called new Date(), it acts as a constructor and returns the Date object instead of a formatted string. It also offers various static methods like

• Date.now()
• Date.parse()
• Date.UTC()

The Date object also supports instance methods like

• Date.prototype.getDate(): This method will return the day of the month in the range of 1-31 for the given date according to local time.
• Date.prototype.getMonth(): This method will return the month in the range of 0-11 on the given date according to local time. The month will start from 0.
• Date.prototype.getYear(): This method will return the year on the given date according to local time. It returns the year usually 2-3 digits.
• Date.prototype.getFullYear(): This method will return the year as 4 digits for 4-digit years of the given date according to local time.

Syntax of Date() in JavaScript

Date();

Example code:

const today = new Date();
const month = [
  'January', 'February', 'March', 'April', 'May', 'June', 'July', 'August',
  'September', 'October', 'November', 'December'
];
const str =
    today.getDate() + ' ' + month[today.getMonth()] + ' ' + today.getFullYear();
console.log(str);

Output:

18 November 2021

The built-in Date object above allows you to change the date format to suit your needs. You can also use an external library like DateJS.

Change Date Format Using DateJS in JavaScript

JavaScript has an open-source Date library called DateJS for formatting, parsing, and processing. Learn how to import DateJS here.

Syntax of Date.parse() in DateJS

Date.parse($string);

Parameter of Date.parse()

• $string: It is a mandatory parameter. This field accepts any date string such as today, tomorrow, last Sunday, July 4th, t + 3d, etc. See the official document for more information.

Example code:

const parsedDate = Date.parse('tomorrow');
console.log(parsedDate);

Output:

Fri Nov 19 2021

Syntax of Date.toString() in DateJS

Date.parse($string);

Parameter of Date.toString()

• $string: It is an optional parameter. This field accepts any date string like M/d/yyyy, d-MMM-yyyy, HH:mm, MMMM dS, yyyy, etc. Default, native JavaScript Date.toString() function will be called if no format is provided.

Example code:

const parsedDate = Date.today().toString('MMMM dS, yyyy');
console.log(parsedDate);

Output:

November 18th, 2021