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Unix Timestamp Converter

The live epoch, plus conversion between any timestamp and a readable date.

The Unix epoch counts seconds since 1 January 1970 UTC. It is the least ambiguous way to record an instant, because it carries no time zone, no format and no locale. This page shows the live epoch and converts any timestamp you paste in — auto-detecting whether you have given seconds or milliseconds.

Seconds or milliseconds?

Unix tools and databases usually use seconds; JavaScript and most modern APIs use milliseconds. A ten-digit number is almost certainly seconds and a thirteen-digit number milliseconds, which is the rule this converter applies. Get it wrong and you land in 1970 or in the year 50,000 — the classic epoch bug, covered in Unix epoch time explained.

The 2038 boundary

A signed 32-bit counter of seconds overflows on 19 January 2038. Most modern systems have moved to 64-bit values, but embedded devices and old file formats have not, which is what makes the Year 2038 problem a real migration rather than a curiosity.

Guides about Epoch Converter

Concepts explained The Year 2038 Problem: When 32-Bit Time Runs Out Why 32-bit systems stop being able to tell the time at 03:14:07 UTC on 19 January 2038, which parts of the stack are already fixed, and which are not. 5 min read Concepts explained Unix Epoch Time Explained: Seconds Since 1970 What a Unix timestamp actually counts, why the origin is 1 January 1970, how to tell seconds from milliseconds, and why the number carries no time zone of its own. 6 min read Concepts explained Why You Should Store Dates in UTC (and When You Should Not) The case for keeping every recorded instant in UTC, the two daylight saving failures that destroy local timestamps, and the one situation where UTC alone is not enough. 6 min read

More localdatetime.now pages

Local Date & Time Every format at once — ISO 8601, RFC 2822, epoch, week number, day of year — each one copyable. ISO 8601 Formatter Turn any date and time into every ISO 8601 form — extended, basic, week date and ordinal. UTC Offset Check Your current offset, your standard offset, your IANA zone, and whether daylight saving is in effect.

Frequently asked questions

What is the current Unix timestamp?
It is shown live above in both seconds and milliseconds, counting from 1 January 1970 UTC.
Does the epoch include leap seconds?
No. Unix time deliberately ignores them, treating every day as exactly 86,400 seconds, which is why it does not perfectly track atomic time.
Can a timestamp be negative?
Yes. Negative values represent instants before 1970, and most modern date libraries handle them correctly.