Rational
To displays the current date.
Description
The Excel TODAY function returns the current date in the selected cell. Example; to show the current date in Excel automatically, use TODAY(), empty parenthesis.
The TODAY function is useful in generating reports in digital or print format. Moreover, can be used by embedding with other functions in Excel.
Syntax
=TODAY()
Parameters
(Empty Parenthesis)
Return Value
The return value is a decimal number or date depending upon the cell format.
Key Notes
- The Excel TODAY function returns the result with no arguments. TODAY function only returns the current date whereas NOW function extracts current date and time.
- As with all dates in Excel, what you end up with is a serial number, but the Date formatting displays the date in a readable fashion.
- The TODAY function updates every time a user opens the worksheet. The cell can also update every time using keyboard shortcut F9 or F2+Enter.
- Shortcut to enter the current timestamp is ‘Ctrl + Shift + :’, the resulting value is static (It does not change).
Example
Keep Reading Similar Functions:
TIMEVALUE
The TIMEVALUE function returns the time serial number (in decimal). I.e., =TIMEVALUE(“12:45:30 PM”) as 0.53125 (proportion of total time value of a day).
DAY
The DAY function returns an integer value that represents the day element of a date. I.e.; to extract day component, use =DAY(“08-08-2017”) that returns ‘8’.
NOW
The NOW function returns the serial number of the current date and time. Example; to show the current date and time, use NOW(), empty parenthesis.