How to Format a Date in SQL

Do you need to format a date in SQL? Whether you're trying to display the date in a specific format or you need to compare two dates, SQL has you covered! In this post, we'll look at how to format a date in SQL and provide some examples to help you get started.

The Solution

The solution is to use the DATE_FORMAT() function. This function takes two arguments: the date you want to format and the format you want to use. For example, if you wanted to format the date 2020-01-01 as January 1, 2020, you would use the following query:

SELECT DATE_FORMAT('2020-01-01', '%M %d, %Y')

This query would return the result January 01, 2020.

Examples

Let's look at a few examples of how this function can be used. Suppose you have a table called orders with the following data:

If you wanted to display the dates in the order_date column as January 1, 2020, February 1, 2020, and March 1, 2020, respectively, you would use the following query:

SELECT DATE_FORMAT(order_date, '%M %d, %Y') FROM orders;

This query would return the results January 01, 2020, February 01, 2020, and March 01, 2020.

Additional Info

The DATE_FORMAT() function is supported by most major databases, including MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server. However, the syntax may vary slightly depending on the database you are using. For more information, check out the documentation for your particular database. 🤓