Unix Timestamp Converter

What is Unix time?

Unix time counts the seconds since the Unix epoch, 1 January 1970 at 00:00:00 UTC. Because it is just a number, it is easy to store, compare and sort, and it means the same instant everywhere. Time zones only come in when you display it. That is why APIs, log files, JWT claims like exp and databases use it so widely.

Seconds, milliseconds, microseconds or nanoseconds?

Different platforms count in different units. For present-day dates, the number of digits gives it away:

If a converted date lands in January 1970 or tens of thousands of years in the future, the unit is wrong. Use the unit buttons above to override the automatic guess.

Get the current Unix timestamp

// JavaScript (milliseconds → seconds)
Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000)

# Python
import time; int(time.time())

// Go
time.Now().Unix()

// Java
Instant.now().getEpochSecond()

# Bash
date +%s

-- PostgreSQL
SELECT extract(epoch FROM now())::bigint;

-- MySQL
SELECT UNIX_TIMESTAMP();

Convert a Unix timestamp to a date

// JavaScript: Date wants milliseconds
new Date(1767225600 * 1000).toISOString()   // "2026-01-01T00:00:00.000Z"

# Python
from datetime import datetime, timezone
datetime.fromtimestamp(1767225600, tz=timezone.utc)

// Go
time.Unix(1767225600, 0).UTC()

# Bash (GNU date / macOS)
date -u -d @1767225600
date -u -r 1767225600

-- PostgreSQL
SELECT to_timestamp(1767225600);

-- MySQL
SELECT FROM_UNIXTIME(1767225600);

Things that trip people up

• Time zones. A timestamp has none. datetime.fromtimestamp(ts) in Python without tz= returns the server’s local time, which changes when the code moves to a server in another zone.
• Precision. JavaScript numbers lose precision above 2⁵³, so 19-digit nanosecond timestamps can’t be stored exactly in a Number. Use BigInt or keep them as strings.
• Negative values. Dates before 1970 are negative timestamps. -86400 is 31 December 1969.
• 2038. Signed 32-bit timestamps run out at 2147483647 (19 January 2038, 03:14:07 UTC). The converter warns you when a timestamp is past that point.

Frequently asked questions