How to Work with Dates in Python

Python’s datetime module provides classes for working with dates and times. Here’s how to use them effectively.

Importing datetime

from datetime import datetime, date, time, timedelta

Getting Current Date and Time

from datetime import datetime, date

# Current date and time
now = datetime.now()
print(now)  # 2026-02-02 14:30:45.123456

# Current date only
today = date.today()
print(today)  # 2026-02-02

# Current time only
current_time = datetime.now().time()
print(current_time)  # 14:30:45.123456

Creating Dates and Times

from datetime import datetime, date, time

# Create a specific date
my_date = date(2026, 12, 25)
print(my_date)  # 2026-12-25

# Create a specific datetime
my_datetime = datetime(2026, 12, 25, 10, 30, 0)
print(my_datetime)  # 2026-12-25 10:30:00

# Create a specific time
my_time = time(14, 30, 45)
print(my_time)  # 14:30:45

Accessing Date/Time Components

from datetime import datetime

now = datetime.now()

print(now.year)       # 2026
print(now.month)      # 2
print(now.day)        # 2
print(now.hour)       # 14
print(now.minute)     # 30
print(now.second)     # 45
print(now.weekday())  # 0 (Monday=0, Sunday=6)

Formatting Dates (strftime)

Convert datetime to string:

from datetime import datetime

now = datetime.now()

# Common formats
print(now.strftime("%Y-%m-%d"))          # 2026-02-02
print(now.strftime("%d/%m/%Y"))          # 02/02/2026
print(now.strftime("%B %d, %Y"))         # February 02, 2026
print(now.strftime("%H:%M:%S"))          # 14:30:45
print(now.strftime("%I:%M %p"))          # 02:30 PM
print(now.strftime("%A, %B %d, %Y"))     # Monday, February 02, 2026

Common Format Codes

Code	Meaning	Example
%Y	Year (4 digits)	2026
%m	Month (01-12)	02
%d	Day (01-31)	02
%H	Hour (00-23)	14
%I	Hour (01-12)	02
%M	Minute (00-59)	30
%S	Second (00-59)	45
%p	AM/PM	PM
%A	Weekday name	Monday
%B	Month name	February

Parsing Dates (strptime)

Convert string to datetime:

from datetime import datetime

# Parse various formats
date1 = datetime.strptime("2026-02-02", "%Y-%m-%d")
date2 = datetime.strptime("02/02/2026", "%d/%m/%Y")
date3 = datetime.strptime("February 02, 2026", "%B %d, %Y")

print(date1)  # 2026-02-02 00:00:00

Date Arithmetic with timedelta

from datetime import datetime, timedelta

now = datetime.now()

# Add/subtract time
tomorrow = now + timedelta(days=1)
next_week = now + timedelta(weeks=1)
two_hours_ago = now - timedelta(hours=2)
in_30_minutes = now + timedelta(minutes=30)

print(tomorrow)       # 2026-02-03 14:30:45
print(next_week)      # 2026-02-09 14:30:45

# Calculate difference between dates
date1 = datetime(2026, 3, 1)
date2 = datetime(2026, 2, 1)
difference = date1 - date2

print(difference.days)  # 28

Comparing Dates

from datetime import datetime

date1 = datetime(2026, 1, 1)
date2 = datetime(2026, 12, 31)

print(date1 < date2)   # True
print(date1 > date2)   # False
print(date1 == date2)  # False

# Check if date is in the past
now = datetime.now()
past_date = datetime(2020, 1, 1)
print(past_date < now)  # True

Working with Timezones

from datetime import datetime, timezone, timedelta

# UTC time
utc_now = datetime.now(timezone.utc)
print(utc_now)  # 2026-02-02 12:30:45+00:00

# Create timezone offset
est = timezone(timedelta(hours=-5))
est_time = datetime.now(est)
print(est_time)  # 2026-02-02 07:30:45-05:00

# Convert between timezones
utc_time = datetime.now(timezone.utc)
est_time = utc_time.astimezone(timezone(timedelta(hours=-5)))

Practical Examples

from datetime import datetime, timedelta

# Calculate age
def calculate_age(birthdate):
    today = date.today()
    age = today.year - birthdate.year
    if (today.month, today.day) < (birthdate.month, birthdate.day):
        age -= 1
    return age

birth = date(1990, 6, 15)
print(f"Age: {calculate_age(birth)}")

# Check if date is a weekend
def is_weekend(dt):
    return dt.weekday() >= 5  # Saturday=5, Sunday=6

print(is_weekend(datetime.now()))

# Get start and end of current month
def month_range():
    today = date.today()
    start = today.replace(day=1)
    next_month = today.replace(day=28) + timedelta(days=4)
    end = next_month - timedelta(days=next_month.day)
    return start, end

start, end = month_range()
print(f"Month: {start} to {end}")

Summary

• Use datetime.now() for current date/time
• Use strftime() to format dates as strings
• Use strptime() to parse strings into dates
• Use timedelta for date arithmetic
• Compare dates with <, >, == operators
• Use timezone for timezone-aware datetimes