JavaScript date setting methods

Use the 'Set Date' method to set the date value of the date object (year, month, day, hour, minute, second, millisecond).

Date setting methods

Setting methods are used to set a specific part of the date. The following are the most commonly used methods (sorted in alphabetical order):

Method Description
setDate() Set the day (1-31) as a number
setFullYear() Set the year (optional month and day)
setHours() Set the hours (0-23)
setMilliseconds() Set the milliseconds (0-999)
setMinutes() Set the minutes (0-59)
setMonth() Set the month (0-11)
setSeconds() Set the seconds (0-59)
setTime() Set the time (milliseconds since January 1, 1970):

setFullYear() method

setFullYear() Set the year of the date object. This example is set to 2020:

Example

<script>
var d = new Date();
d.setFullYear(2020);
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = d;
</script>

Try It Yourself

setFullYear() The method canSelectSet the month and day:

Example

<script>
var d = new Date();
d.setFullYear(2020, 11, 3);
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = d;
</script>

Try It Yourself

setMonth() method

setMonth() Set the month of the date object (0-11):

Example

<script>
var d = new Date();
d.setMonth(11);
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = d;
</script>

Try It Yourself

setDate() method

setDate() Set the day of the date object (1-31):

Example

<script>
var d = new Date();
d.setDate(15);
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = d;
</script>

Try It Yourself

setDate() The method can also be used to add daysAddTo date:

Example

<script>
var d = new Date();
d.setDate(d.getDate() + 50);
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = d;
</script>

Try It Yourself

If you add days, switch months or years, the change will be automatically handled by the Date object.

setHours() method

setHours() Set the hours of the date object (0-23):

Example

<script>
var d = new Date();
d.setHours(22);
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = d;
</script>

Try It Yourself

setMinutes() method

setMinutes() Set the minutes of the date object (0-59):

Example

<script>
var d = new Date();
d.setMinutes(30);
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = d;
</script>

Try It Yourself

setSeconds() method

setSeconds() Set the seconds of the date object (0-59):

Example

<script>
var d = new Date();
d.setSeconds(30);
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = d;
</script>

Try It Yourself

Compare Dates

Dates can be easily compared.

The following example compares today with January 16, 2049:

Example

var today, someday, text;
today = new Date();
someday = new Date();
someday.setFullYear(2049, 0, 16);
if (someday > today) {
  text = "Today is before January 16, 2049";
}
  text = "Today is after January 16, 2049";
}
document.getElementById("demo").innerHTML = text;

Try It Yourself

JavaScript counts months from 0 to 11. January is 0. December is 11.

Complete JavaScript Date Reference Manual

For a complete date reference manual, please visit our full JavaScript Date Reference Manual.

This manual includes descriptions and examples of all date properties and methods.