Unix Timestamp
Converter
Convert between Unix timestamps and human-readable dates instantly
Timestamp to Date
Enter a Unix timestamp — seconds or milliseconds are detected automatically.
Date to Timestamp
Pick a date and time to get the corresponding Unix timestamp.
Common Unix timestamps
| Timestamp | Event | Date (UTC) |
|---|---|---|
| Unix epoch | 1 January 1970, 00:00:00 UTC | |
| Y2K | 1 January 2000, 00:00:00 UTC | |
| 1 billion seconds | 9 September 2001, 01:46:40 UTC | |
| 2 billion seconds | 18 May 2033, 03:33:20 UTC | |
| Year 2038 problem | 19 January 2038, 03:14:07 UTC |
What is a Unix timestamp?
A Unix timestamp is the number of seconds that have elapsed since 00:00:00 UTC on 1 January 1970 — a moment known as the Unix epoch. It is used universally in computing to represent a specific point in time as a single integer, making it the standard way servers, databases, and APIs store and exchange dates.
Unix timestamps are useful because they are timezone-independent — the same integer always refers to the same instant worldwide. They always increase monotonically, are trivial to compare and sort, and occupy far less storage than formatted date strings like "2026-03-15 14:30:00 UTC".
One well-known limitation is the Year 2038 problem. Older 32-bit systems store Unix timestamps as a signed 32-bit integer, which will overflow on 19 January 2038 at 03:14:07 UTC — the largest value a signed 32-bit integer can hold. Most modern systems now use 64-bit integers, which will not overflow for billions of years.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Unix timestamp?
A Unix timestamp is the count of seconds since the Unix epoch — midnight UTC on 1 January 1970. For example, the timestamp 1704067200 represents 1 January 2024 at 00:00:00 UTC. Enter any timestamp in the converter above to see the corresponding date in UTC, your local time zone, and ISO 8601 format.
What is the Unix epoch?
The Unix epoch is the reference point for all Unix timestamps: 00:00:00 Coordinated Universal Time on Thursday, 1 January 1970. It was chosen by early Unix developers as a convenient, fixed starting point. Timestamp 0 represents exactly this moment, and every second since then adds one to the count.
How do I convert a Unix timestamp to a date?
Enter the timestamp in the "Timestamp to Date" card above. Clockr automatically detects whether you entered seconds or milliseconds and displays the result in UTC, your local time zone, ISO 8601 format, and a human-readable relative time such as "3 days ago." You can also click any value in the reference table to populate the converter instantly.
What is the Year 2038 problem?
On 19 January 2038 at 03:14:07 UTC, 32-bit signed integers used to store Unix timestamps will roll over from 2,147,483,647 to −2,147,483,648, causing dates to appear as December 1901 on affected systems. This mirrors the Y2K problem but for Unix time. Modern 64-bit systems are not affected — their range extends far beyond any practical date.
Why do some timestamps use milliseconds instead of seconds?
JavaScript and many APIs use millisecond timestamps because they need sub-second precision — for example, measuring how long a page load takes or ordering events within the same second. A millisecond timestamp is simply the Unix timestamp multiplied by 1,000. Clockr's converter detects which format you enter automatically based on the number of digits.
What is the difference between Unix time and UTC?
UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) is a time standard — a way of labelling hours and minutes on the clock. Unix time is a count of seconds from a fixed epoch, always measured in UTC with no daylight saving adjustments. When you convert a Unix timestamp, you can display it in UTC or convert it to any local time zone, but the underlying timestamp itself is always UTC-based.
How do I get the current Unix timestamp in JavaScript?
Use Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) for seconds or
Date.now() for milliseconds. The live ticker at the
bottom of this page shows the current Unix timestamp updating
every second — click "Use current timestamp" in the converter to
populate it automatically.
What is an epoch timestamp?
"Epoch timestamp" is another name for a Unix timestamp — the number of seconds (or milliseconds) since the epoch. Different systems use different epochs (Windows uses 1 January 1601, for example), but in most programming contexts "epoch time" refers specifically to the Unix epoch of 1 January 1970.