Date Parsing in PHP
Date parsing is an essential function in PHP that allows users to convert a string representation of a date into a timestamp or a DateTime object. This function is useful in scenarios where dates are stored as strings, and it is necessary to perform date arithmetic or comparison operations. In this article, we will explore the various aspects of date parsing in PHP and provide a step-by-step guide to using the date_parse_from_format() function.
Understanding Date Parsing
Before we dive into the specifics of date parsing in PHP, it is important to understand what date parsing is and how it works. Date parsing refers to the process of extracting a date or time from a string representation of a date. For example, the string «2023-03-03» can be parsed into a timestamp or a DateTime object, which can then be used for various operations.
Date parsing can be challenging due to the various formats that dates can be represented in, such as «YYYY-MM-DD,» «MM/DD/YYYY,» «DD-MMM-YYYY,» and so on. To parse a date correctly, it is necessary to specify the format of the input string using a format string.
The date_parse_from_format() Function
In PHP, the date_parse_from_format() function is used to parse a date string using a specific format. This function returns an associative array containing detailed information about the parsed date, including the year, month, day, hour, minute, second, timezone, and more.
The syntax of the date_parse_from_format() function is as follows:
date_parse_from_format($format, $date_string);Where $format is a string specifying the format of the input date string, and $date_string is the input date string that needs to be parsed.
Let’s take a look at an example:
$date_string = "2023-03-03 10:30:00"; $format = "Y-m-d H:i:s"; $date_array = date_parse_from_format($format, $date_string); print_r($date_array);The output of this code will be:
Array ( [year] => 2023 [month] => 3 [day] => 3 [hour] => 10 [minute] => 30 [second] => 0 [fraction] => [warning_count] => 0 [warnings] => Array() [error_count] => 0 [errors] => Array() [is_localtime] => [zone_type] => 1 [zone] => -14400 [is_dst] => )
As you can see, the date_parse_from_format() function has successfully parsed the input date string «2023-03-03 10:30:00» using the format string «Y-m-d H:i:s.»
Using the date_parse_from_format() function, you can parse dates represented in various formats, including the day of the week, the month name, the AM/PM indicator, and more. You can also specify optional or alternative date and time formats using square brackets and the pipe symbol, respectively.
Conclusion
In conclusion, date parsing is an essential function in PHP that allows you to convert a string representation of a date into a timestamp or a DateTime object.
Php parsing string to date
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date_parse_from_format
Returns associative array with detailed info about given date/time.
Parameters
Documentation on how the format is used, please refer to the documentation of DateTimeImmutable::createFromFormat() . The same rules apply.
String representing the date/time.
Return Values
Returns associative array with detailed info about given date/time.
The returned array has keys for year , month , day , hour , minute , second , fraction , and is_localtime .
If is_localtime is present then zone_type indicates the type of timezone. For type 1 (UTC offset) the zone , is_dst fields are added; for type 2 (abbreviation) the fields tz_abbr , is_dst are added; and for type 3 (timezone identifier) the tz_abbr , tz_id are added.
The array includes warning_count and warnings fields. The first one indicate how many warnings there were. The keys of elements warnings array indicate the position in the given datetime where the warning occurred, with the string value describing the warning itself. An example below shows such a warning.
The array also contains error_count and errors fields. The first one indicate how many errors were found. The keys of elements errors array indicate the position in the given datetime where the error occurred, with the string value describing the error itself. An example below shows such an error.
The number of array elements in the warnings and errors arrays might be less than warning_count or error_count if they occurred at the same position.
Changelog
| Version | Description |
|---|---|
| 7.2.0 | The zone element of the returned array represents seconds instead of minutes now, and its sign is inverted. For instance -120 is now 7200 . |
Examples
Example #1 date_parse_from_format() example
The above example will output:
Array ( [year] => 2009 [month] => 1 [day] => 6 [hour] => 13 [minute] => 0 [second] => 0 [fraction] => [warning_count] => 0 [warnings] => Array ( ) [error_count] => 0 [errors] => Array ( ) [is_localtime] => 1 [zone_type] => 1 [zone] => 3600 [is_dst] => )
Example #2 date_parse_from_format() with warnings example
$date = «26 August 2022 22:30 pm» ;
$parsed = date_parse_from_format ( «j F Y G:i a» , $date );
echo «Warnings count: » , $parsed [ ‘warning_count’ ], «\n» ;
foreach ( $parsed [ ‘warnings’ ] as $position => $message ) echo «\tOn position < $position >: < $message >\n» ;
>
?>
The above example will output:
Warnings count: 1 On position 23: The parsed time was invalid
Example #3 date_parse_from_format() with errors example
$date = «26 August 2022 CEST» ;
$parsed = date_parse_from_format ( «j F Y H:i» , $date );
echo «Errors count: » , $parsed [ ‘error_count’ ], «\n» ;
foreach ( $parsed [ ‘errors’ ] as $position => $message ) echo «\tOn position < $position >: < $message >\n» ;
>
?>
The above example will output:
Errors count: 3 On position 15: A two digit hour could not be found On position 19: Data missing
See Also
User Contributed Notes
- Date/Time Functions
- checkdate
- date_add
- date_create_from_format
- date_create_immutable_from_format
- date_create_immutable
- date_create
- date_date_set
- date_default_timezone_get
- date_default_timezone_set
- date_diff
- date_format
- date_get_last_errors
- date_interval_create_from_date_string
- date_interval_format
- date_isodate_set
- date_modify
- date_offset_get
- date_parse_from_format
- date_parse
- date_sub
- date_sun_info
- date_sunrise
- date_sunset
- date_time_set
- date_timestamp_get
- date_timestamp_set
- date_timezone_get
- date_timezone_set
- date
- getdate
- gettimeofday
- gmdate
- gmmktime
- gmstrftime
- idate
- localtime
- microtime
- mktime
- strftime
- strptime
- strtotime
- time
- timezone_abbreviations_list
- timezone_identifiers_list
- timezone_location_get
- timezone_name_from_abbr
- timezone_name_get
- timezone_offset_get
- timezone_open
- timezone_transitions_get
- timezone_version_get
Converting and Parsing a String into Date & Time
How to guess the date and time from a string with the help of strtotime() function and change the format according to your needs. You’ll also use the date_parse() and date_parse_from_format() functions which work similarly to the strtotime() function and return an associative array of date and time information.
Example: Guess date from a string and change its format
Example: Guess dates with strtotime() function
$format = 'd M Y'; echo 'Today: '. date($format).'
'; # Prints: Today: 09 Aug 2022 $yesterday = strtotime('Yesterday'); echo 'Yesterday: '. date($format, $yesterday) . '
'; # Prints: Yesterday: 08 Aug 2022 $tommorow = strtotime('Tomorrow'); echo 'Tomorrow: '. date($format, $tommorow). '
'; # Prints: Tomorrow: 10 Aug 2022 $lmonth = strtotime('Last Month'); echo 'Last month: '. date($format, $lmonth).'
'; # Prints: Last month: 09 Jul 2022 $nmonth = strtotime('Next Month'); echo 'Next month: '. date($format, $nmonth); # Prints: Last month: 09 Sep 2022The whole magic is put into the PHP function strtotime() , it parses about any English textual date/time description into a UNIX timestamp. The date() function reads the given timestamp and outputs a formatted date according to the provided format keywords.
date_parse()
Unlike the strtotime() function which converts a “date/time” string into timestamp, the date_parse() function converts a “date/time” string into an array describing that time and date. It returns false if it failed to parse the string.
int(1989) ["month"]=> int(8) ["day"]=> int(9) ["hour"]=> bool(false) ["minute"]=>bool(false) ["second"]=>bool(false) ["fraction"]=> bool(false) ["warning_count"]=> int(0) ["warnings"]=> array(0) < >["error_count"]=> int(0) ["errors"]=> array(0) < >["is_localtime"]=> bool(false) > */
date_parse_from_format()
This function parses a date/time string into an associative array representing a date/time. The string date/time is given in the format specified by $format parameter, using the same character codes as described in date() tutorial, see Date formattng symbols.
int(2022) ["month"]=> int(8) ["day"] => int(2) ["hour"] => int(17) ["minute"]=> int(1) ["second"]=> int(0) ["fraction"] => float(0) ["warning_count"]=> int(0) ["warnings"]=> array(0) < >["error_count"]=> int(0) ["errors"]=> array(0) < >["is_localtime"]=> bool(true) ["zone_type"]=> int(1) ["zone"] => int(7200) ["is_dst"] => bool(false) > */
The Date and Time Tutorials:
