How Can I Convert a String to a Date and DateTime Object in PHP?

Converting a String to Date and DateTime

A PHP string in the format of mm-dd-YYYY (e.g., 10-16-2003) can be converted to a Date and DateTime using the following steps:

Converting to Date:

• Use the strtotime() function to convert the string to a Unix timestamp:

$time = strtotime('10/16/2003');

• Convert the timestamp back to a Date using date('Y-m-d'):

$date = date('Y-m-d', $time);

echo $date; // 2003-10-16

Converting to DateTime:

• Alternatively, you can use DateTime::createFromFormat() to create a DateTime object:

$dateTime = DateTime::createFromFormat('m/d/Y', '10/16/2003');

echo $dateTime->format('Y-m-d'); // 2003-10-16

Note:

• There is a difference between using forward slash / and hyphen - in the strtotime() function. Follow the rules specified in the PHP documentation to avoid ambiguity.
• For maximum accuracy and compatibility, consider using ISO 8601 (YYYY-MM-DD) date format or DateTime::createFromFormat() when possible.

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