Dates function
Excel DATE function
DATE takes a year, a month, and a day and gives you back a real Excel date. Use it when the parts live in separate columns, or when you want to shift a date by whole months or days and let Excel handle the rollover.
=DATE(year, month, day)Arguments
year- The year, like 2026. Always type all four digits.
month- The month number, 1 to 12. Bigger or smaller numbers roll into the next or previous year.
day- The day of the month. 0 means the last day of the previous month.
DATE examples
Every result below was calculated live from this sample sheet.
| A | B | C | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Year | Month | Day | Invoice date |
| 2 | 2026 | 3 | 15 | 2026-03-15 |
| 3 | 2026 | 11 | 30 | 2026-11-30 |
| 4 | 2025 | 12 | 1 | 2025-12-01 |
Result: Mar 15, 2026
Builds March 15, 2026 from three typed numbers.
Result: Nov 30, 2026
Joins year, month and day from separate cells into one date.
Result: Feb 1, 2027
Month 14 rolls over: you get February 1, 2027.
Result: Dec 1, 2026
The first day of the month after an invoice date.
How to use DATE
- Click the cell where the date should go.
- Type =DATE( and the year.
- Add the month and day, separated by commas.
- Press Enter. If you see a number, format the cell as a date.
Common DATE mistakes
Using a two-digit year
DATE(26,1,1) gives January 1, 1926, not 2026. Excel adds 1900 to years below 1900. Type all four digits.
The result shows as a number like 46096
That is the date serial number. Format the cell as Short Date or Long Date.
Typing the date as text inside DATE
DATE wants three numbers, not "3/15/2026". Split the parts or use the date cell directly.
DATE FAQ
How do I combine day, month and year columns into a date in Excel?
Use =DATE(year, month, day) with the three cells, for example =DATE(A2,B2,C2). The result is a real date you can sort and subtract.
How do I get the first day of next month in Excel?
Use =DATE(YEAR(A2),MONTH(A2)+1,1). DATE handles December for you, so it rolls into January of the next year.
Why does Excel show my date as a number?
Excel stores dates as serial numbers counting from January 1, 1900. The cell just needs a date format.
Practice DATE in these lessons
Guides that use DATE
- How to add months to a date in Excel
- How to use COUNTIF greater than in Excel
- COUNTIFS with multiple criteria in Excel
- SUMIFS with multiple criteria in Excel
Related functions
Updated 2026-10-31