Create a DateTime from a Timestamp With this New Method Coming to PHP 8.4

Published on by

Create a DateTime from a Timestamp With this New Method Coming to PHP 8.4 image

Creating a DateTime from a Unix timestamp will be more convenient in PHP 8.4 with the new createFromTimestamp() method. It will support both a typical Unix timestamp as well as timestamps containing microseconds:

$dt = DateTimeImmutable::createFromTimestamp(1718337072);
$dt->format('Y-m-d'); // 2024-06-14
 
$dt = DateTimeImmutable::createFromTimestamp(1718337072.432);
$dt->format('Y-m-d h:i:s.u'); // 2024-06-14 03:51:12.432000

With PHP 8.3 and below, you need to use the createFromFormat() method to convert a timestamp into a DateTime or DateTimeImmutable instance. As you can see below, it's not too complicated, but it'll be nice to have a new method to take care of both cases below:

$dt = DateTimeImmutable::createFromFormat('U', (string) 1718337072);
// DateTimeImmutable @1718337072 {#7948
// date: 2024-06-14 03:51:12.0 +00:00,
// }
 
$dt = DateTimeImmutable::createFromFormat('U.u', (string) 1718337072.432);
// DateTimeImmutable @1718337072 {#7950
// date: 2024-06-14 03:51:12.432 +00:00,
// }

For those using the Carbon PHP library, it already has a createFromTimestamp() method available! It is encouraging that PHP is getting this new method at the language level as well!

Carbon\Carbon::createFromTimestamp(1718337072.432);
// Carbon\Carbon @1718337072 {#7981
// date: 2024-06-14 03:51:12.432 UTC (+00:00),
// }
 
Carbon\CarbonImmutable::createFromTimestamp(1718337072);
// Carbon\CarbonImmutable @1718337072 {#7999
// date: 2024-06-14 03:51:12.0 UTC (+00:00),
// }
Paul Redmond photo

Staff writer at Laravel News. Full stack web developer and author.

Filed in:
Cube

Laravel Newsletter

Join 40k+ other developers and never miss out on new tips, tutorials, and more.

image
Laravel Code Review

Get expert guidance in a few days with a Laravel code review

Visit Laravel Code Review
Harpoon: Next generation time tracking and invoicing logo

Harpoon: Next generation time tracking and invoicing

The next generation time-tracking and billing software that helps your agency plan and forecast a profitable future.

Harpoon: Next generation time tracking and invoicing
Acquaint Softtech logo

Acquaint Softtech

Acquaint Softtech offers AI-ready Laravel developers who onboard in 48 hours at $3000/Month with no lengthy sales process and a 100 percent money-back guarantee.

Acquaint Softtech
PhpStorm logo

PhpStorm

The go-to PHP IDE with extensive out-of-the-box support for Laravel and its ecosystem.

PhpStorm
Tinkerwell logo

Tinkerwell

The must-have code runner for Laravel developers. Tinker with AI, autocompletion and instant feedback on local and production environments.

Tinkerwell
Lucky Media logo

Lucky Media

Get Lucky Now - the ideal choice for Laravel Development, with over a decade of experience!

Lucky Media
No Compromises logo

No Compromises

Joel and Aaron, the two seasoned devs from the No Compromises podcast, are now available to hire for your Laravel project. ⬧ Flat rate of $9500/mo. ⬧ No lengthy sales process. ⬧ No contracts. ⬧ 100% money back guarantee.

No Compromises
Kirschbaum logo

Kirschbaum

Providing innovation and stability to ensure your web application succeeds.

Kirschbaum
SaaSykit: Laravel SaaS Starter Kit logo

SaaSykit: Laravel SaaS Starter Kit

SaaSykit is a Multi-tenant Laravel SaaS Starter Kit that comes with all features required to run a modern SaaS. Payments, Beautiful Checkout, Admin Panel, User dashboard, Auth, Ready Components, Stats, Blog, Docs and more.

SaaSykit: Laravel SaaS Starter Kit
Laravel Cloud logo

Laravel Cloud

Easily create and manage your servers and deploy your Laravel applications in seconds.

Laravel Cloud
Shift logo

Shift

Running an old Laravel version? Instant, automated Laravel upgrades and code modernization to keep your applications fresh.

Shift

The latest

View all →
Scheduler List: A Web Dashboard for Laravel's Scheduled Tasks image

Scheduler List: A Web Dashboard for Laravel's Scheduled Tasks

Read article
Community Laravel Extension for Zed image

Community Laravel Extension for Zed

Read article
Advanced Eloquent Query Filtering with Filterable image

Advanced Eloquent Query Filtering with Filterable

Read article
Bulk Job Dispatching with Bus::bulk() in Laravel 13.13 image

Bulk Job Dispatching with Bus::bulk() in Laravel 13.13

Read article
Audit Laravel Apps for Security Issues with Checkpoint image

Audit Laravel Apps for Security Issues with Checkpoint

Read article
In-Memory Eloquent Models with Truffle image

In-Memory Eloquent Models with Truffle

Read article