What is a Unix timestamp?

A Unix timestamp (also called epoch time) is the number of seconds that have elapsed since January 1, 1970 00:00:00 UTC. It is a widely used format for representing points in time as a single integer, making it easy to store, compare, and transmit across systems regardless of timezone.

How it works

Timestamps can be expressed in seconds (10 digits, e.g., 1700000000) or milliseconds (13 digits). Common human-readable formats include ISO 8601 (e.g., 2024-01-15T10:30:00Z), RFC 3339, and RFC 2822 (used in email headers). Converting between these formats requires knowing the timezone offset.

How to use this tool

• Enter a Unix timestamp (seconds or milliseconds) to see the corresponding date and time
• Enter a human-readable date to convert it to a Unix timestamp
• View the result in multiple formats: ISO 8601, RFC 2822, local time, and relative time
• Select a timezone to see the conversion in a specific region

Common use cases

• Converting timestamps from API responses or database records to readable dates
• Generating Unix timestamps for exp and iat claims in JWTs
• Debugging time-related bugs by comparing timestamps across timezones
• Converting between ISO 8601, RFC 2822, and epoch formats