Welcome to the master reference guide for Date & Time Formats.
When your formulas calculate a date or time, you can control exactly how that result is displayed to the user. By combining the formatting codes below, you can create anything from a short date (03/08/26) to a highly detailed timestamp (Monday, 03 August 2026 at 04:30 PM).
How to read this guide:
Format Code: The specific letters you type into your formatting settings. Note: Capitalization matters! For example, m is for minutes, but M is for months.
Output Example: What the user will actually see.
Description: The technical definition of the format.
Days
Control how the specific day of the month or week is displayed.
Format Code | Output Example | Description |
d | 3 | Day of the month (1-31) |
dd | 3 | Day of the month, 2-digits (01-31) |
ddd | Mon | Abbreviated day name (Mon-Sun) |
dddd | Monday | Full day name (Monday-Sunday) |
Months
Control how the month is displayed. Note that month codes use uppercase 'M' to distinguish them from minutes.
Format Code | Output Example | Description |
M | 8 | Month number (1-12) |
MM | 8 | Month number, 2-digits (01-12) |
MMM | Aug | Abbreviated month name (Jan-Dec) |
MMMM | August | Full month name (January-December) |
Years
Control the length of the year display.
Format Code | Output Example | Description |
yy | 26 | Two-digit year |
yyyy | 2026 | Four-digit year |
Time (Hours, Minutes, Seconds)
Control how the specific time is displayed, including 12-hour vs. 24-hour clocks. Note that minute codes use lowercase 'm'.
Format Code | Output Example | Description |
h | 4 | Hour, 12-hour clock (1-12) |
hh | 4 | Hour, 12-hour clock, 2-digits (01-12) |
H | 16 | Hour, 24-hour clock (0-23) |
HH | 16 | Hour, 24-hour clock, 2-digits (00-23) |
m | 5 | Minute (0-59) |
mm | 5 | Minute, 2-digits (00-59) |
s | 9 | Seconds (0-59) |
ss | 9 | Second, 2-digits (00-59) |
fff | 42 | Milliseconds (000-999) |
tt | PM | AM/PM designator |
zzz | +10:00 | UTC offset ±HH:mm (Timezone) |
Default System Formats
If you do not specify a custom format, Way We Do will automatically use these default structures based on the type of field you are using:
Field Type | Default Format Code | What the User Sees |
Date Only | dd MMM yyyy | 03 Aug 2026 |
Time Only | hh:mm tt | 4:30 PM |
Date/Time & Formula fields | dd MMM yyyy hh:mm tt | 03 Aug 2026 4:30 PM |
Building a Custom Format
You can combine any of the codes above, along with standard punctuation (like slashes, commas, or colons), to build your ideal layout.
MM/dd/yyyy outputs: 08/03/2026
dddd, MMMM dd, yyyy outputs: Monday, August 03, 2026
yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm outputs: 2026-08-03 16:30