The standard and preferred format for entering dates into a database when inserting data is the ISO 8601 format: 'YYYY-MM-DD' (year-month-day). This format is widely supported and recommended because it avoids ambiguity, allows for straightforward chronological sorting, and is accepted by most SQL databases such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server
Typical Usage in SQL Insert Statements
To insert a date into a database table, you use the syntax:
sql
INSERT INTO table_name (date_column) VALUES ('YYYY-MM-DD');
For example, to insert December 16, 2022, you would write:
sql
INSERT INTO events (event_date) VALUES ('2022-12-16');
Date and Time Formats in SQL
- DATE : 'YYYY-MM-DD' (e.g., '2024-05-07')
- DATETIME or TIMESTAMP : 'YYYY-MM-DD HH:MI:SS' (e.g., '2024-05-07 10:30:00')
Some databases also provide functions to insert the current date/time, such as
CURDATE() in MySQL or GETDATE() in SQL Server
Handling Different Formats
If your input date is in a different format, many databases offer functions to
convert it to the standard format before inserting. For example, MySQL’s
STR_TO_DATE() or SQL Server’s CONVERT() and TO_DATE() functions allow
parsing custom date strings into the proper format
Summary
- Use 'YYYY-MM-DD' format for date values when inserting into databases.
- Include time as 'YYYY-MM-DD HH:MI:SS' if needed.
- Use database-specific functions to convert or format dates if your input is in a different style.
- This format aligns with the international ISO 8601 standard and ensures consistency and portability across systems
This approach minimizes errors and ensures your date data is stored and interpreted correctly in the database.
