What Unix time is
Unix time counts seconds since the epoch, 00:00:00 UTC on 1 January 1970, ignoring leap seconds. It is a single integer with no time zone, which makes it the easiest way to store and compare moments in time: 1,700,000,000 is the same instant everywhere on Earth. Converting it to a calendar date is where time zones come in, and that is what this tool does.
Seconds, milliseconds and beyond
Different systems count in different units. The shell (date +%s), PHP time(), Python time.time() and JWT claims use seconds. JavaScript Date.now() and Java System.currentTimeMillis() use milliseconds. Databases and tracing systems sometimes use microseconds or nanoseconds. The converter guesses the unit from the number of digits: 10 digits is seconds (until the year 2286), 13 is milliseconds, 16 microseconds, 19 nanoseconds.
The year 2038 problem
A signed 32-bit integer overflows at 2,147,483,647, which is 03:14:07 UTC on 19 January 2038. Systems that still store time in 32 bits will wrap to 13 December 1901. Modern operating systems and languages use 64 bits, but embedded devices, old file formats and some database columns do not.
Formats you will meet
| Format | Example | Where |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 8601 | 2026-10-18T12:30:00Z | APIs, JSON, logs. Z means UTC; +02:00 is an offset. |
| RFC 2822 | Sun, 18 Oct 2026 12:30:00 +0000 | Email headers, HTTP Date (RFC 7231 uses GMT) |
| Unix seconds | 1792326600 | Everything on Unix |
| ISO week | 2026-W42 | Planning, payroll, EU scheduling |
Questions
How do I get the current Unix timestamp?
Shell: date +%s. JavaScript: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000). Python: int(time.time()). Go: time.Now().Unix(). PostgreSQL: extract(epoch from now()). The live value is shown at the top of this page.
Why is my timestamp 1000 times too big?
It is in milliseconds. JavaScript, Java and many logging systems use ms. Divide by 1000, or let the converter detect the unit.
Does Unix time include leap seconds?
No. Each day is exactly 86,400 seconds in Unix time; a leap second is handled by repeating or smearing a second at the OS level. That is why Unix time is not exactly the count of SI seconds since 1970.
What time zone is a Unix timestamp in?
None; it is an absolute instant. The same number converts to 14:30 in Belgrade and 12:30 in London. Choose the zone you want in the drop-down.
What is the maximum date for a 32-bit timestamp?
19 January 2038, 03:14:07 UTC (2,147,483,647 seconds). 64-bit timestamps are good for about 292 billion years.