Date in Java

Date in Java

In Java, handling dates and calendars can be done using different APIs depending on which version of Java you’re working with:

✅ Modern Approach (Java 8 and later)

Java 8 introduced the java.time package (JSR-310), which provides a much better and cleaner API for date and time handling.

Common Classes:

  • LocalDate → Date without time (e.g., 2025-08-18)
  • LocalTime → Time without date (e.g., 10:15:30)
  • LocalDateTime → Date and time without timezone
  • ZonedDateTime → Date and time with timezone
  • Period → Difference in years, months, days
  • Duration → Difference in hours, minutes, seconds
  • DateTimeFormatter → Formatting and parsing dates

Example:

import java.time.LocalDate;
import java.time.LocalDateTime;
import java.time.format.DateTimeFormatter;

public class DateExample {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Current date
        LocalDate today = LocalDate.now();
        System.out.println("Today's Date: " + today);

        // Current date and time
        LocalDateTime now = LocalDateTime.now();
        System.out.println("Current DateTime: " + now);

        // Specific date
        LocalDate birthday = LocalDate.of(1995, 8, 18);
        System.out.println("Birthday: " + birthday);

        // Formatting date
        DateTimeFormatter formatter = DateTimeFormatter.ofPattern("dd-MM-yyyy HH:mm");
        System.out.println("Formatted DateTime: " + now.format(formatter));
    }
}

⚠️ Legacy Approach (Before Java 8)

Older Java versions used java.util.Date and java.util.Calendar, but they are considered outdated and confusing.

Example:

import java.util.Date;
import java.util.Calendar;

public class OldDateExample {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Current date
        Date date = new Date();
        System.out.println("Current Date: " + date);

        // Using Calendar
        Calendar calendar = Calendar.getInstance();
        System.out.println("Year: " + calendar.get(Calendar.YEAR));
        System.out.println("Month: " + (calendar.get(Calendar.MONTH) + 1)); // 0-based
        System.out.println("Day: " + calendar.get(Calendar.DAY_OF_MONTH));
    }
}

🔑 Key Takeaway:

  • Use java.time (Java 8+) for modern and clean date handling.
  • Use Calendar / Date only if you’re working with legacy code.

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