Dates and Times

Dates and times should always be clear, complete, and unambiguous. Abbreviated or partial dates confuse users in different countries and users reading content after it was published.

What to avoid

• 3/4/25 - March 4, April 3, or something else?
• Monday at 6 - AM or PM? Which Monday?
• Next Tuesday - relative to when written, or when read?
• This fall - vague and becomes incorrect once the season passes

Best practice

<p>Join us Monday, April 14, 2025 at 6:00 PM for our book club.</p>

<!-- With timezone for online events -->
<p>6:00 PM Pacific Time (9:00 PM Eastern)</p>

Key rules

• Spell out the month: April, not 4 or Apr
• Include the full 4-digit year
• Use 12-hour time with AM/PM, or 24-hour time consistently
• Include timezone for online events
• Avoid relative dates ("next week", "upcoming") in permanent content

Machine-readable dates

Use the HTML <time> element with a datetime attribute to provide both a human-readable display and a machine-readable value. This benefits search engines, calendar applications, and assistive technology:

<time datetime="2025-04-14T18:00">
  Monday, April 14, 2025 at 6:00 PM
</time>

WCAG criteria