Chapter 12: Working with Dates and Times
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For example, if you need to enter June 18, 2010 into a cell, you can enter the date by typing June
18, 2010 (or any of several different date formats). Excel interprets your entry and stores the value
40347, the date serial number for that date. It also applies the default date format, so the cell con-
tents may not appear exactly as you typed them.Note
Depending on your regional settings, entering a date in a format such as June 18, 2010 may be interpreted as a
text string. In such a case, you need to enter the date in a format that corresponds to your regional settings,
such as 18 June, 2010. n
When you activate a cell that contains a date, the Formula bar shows the cell contents formatted by
using the default date format — which corresponds to your system’s short date format. The Formula
bar doesn’t display the date’s serial number. If you need to find out the serial number for a particu-
lar date, format the cell with a nondate number format.Tip
To change the default date format, you need to change a system-wide setting. From the Windows Control
Panel, select Regional and Language Options. The exact procedure varies, depending on the version of
Windows you use. Look for the drop-down list that enables you to change the Short Date Format. The setting
you choose determines the default date format that Excel uses to display dates in the Formula bar. n
Table 12.1 shows a sampling of the date formats that Excel recognizes (using the U.S. settings).
Results will vary if you use a different regional setting.TABLE 12.1Date Entry Formats Recognized by Excel
Entry Excel Interpretation (U.S. Settings)
6-18-10 June 18, 2010
6-18-2010 June 18, 2010
6/18/10 June 18, 2010
6/18/2010 June 18, 2010
6-18/10 June 18, 2010
June 18, 2010 June 18, 2010
Jun 18 June 18 of the current year
June 18 June 18 of the current year
6/18 June 18 of the current year
6-18 June 18 of the current year
18-Jun-2010 June 18, 2010
2010/6/18 June 18, 2010