format date in c#

Solution 1:

It's almost the same, simply use the DateTime.ToString() method, e.g:

DateTime.Now.ToString("dd/MM/yy");

Or:

DateTime dt = GetDate(); // GetDate() returns some date
dt.ToString("dd/MM/yy");

In addition, you might want to consider using one of the predefined date/time formats, e.g:

DateTime.Now.ToString("g");
// returns "02/01/2009 9:07 PM" for en-US
// or "01.02.2009 21:07" for de-CH

These ensure that the format will be correct, independent of the current locale settings.

Check the following MSDN pages for more information

DateTime.ToString() method
Standard Date and Time Format Strings
Custom Date and Time Format Strings

Some additional, related information:

If you want to display a date in a specific locale / culture, then there is an overload of the ToString() method that takes an IFormatProvider:

DateTime dt = GetDate();
dt.ToString("g", new CultureInfo("en-US")); // returns "5/26/2009 10:39 PM"
dt.ToString("g", new CultureInfo("de-CH")); // returns "26.05.2009 22:39"

Or alternatively, you can set the CultureInfo of the current thread prior to formatting a date:

Thread.CurrentThread.CurrentCulture = new CultureInfo("en-US");
dt.ToString("g"); // returns "5/26/2009 10:39 PM"

Thread.CurrentThread.CurrentCulture = new CultureInfo("de-CH");
dt.ToString("g"); // returns "26.05.2009 22:39"

Solution 2:

string.Format("{0:dd/MM/yyyy}", DateTime.Now)

Look up "format strings" on MSDN to see all formatting options.

Use yy, yyyy, M, MM, MMM, MMMM, d, dd, ddd, dddd for the date component

Use h, hh, H, HH, m, mm, s, ss for the time-of-day component

Solution 3:

In you can also write

DateTime aDate = new DateTime(); 
string s = aDate.ToShortDateString();

for a short notation

DateTime aDate = new DateTime(); 
string s = aDate.ToLongDateString();

for a long notation like "Sunday, Febuary 1, 2009".

Or take a look at MSDN for the possibities of .ToString("???");

Solution 4:

Try this :

String.Format("{0:MM/dd/yyyy}", DateTime.Now); // 01/31/2009
String.Format("{0:dd/MM/yyyy}", DateTime.Now); // 31/01/2009
String.Format("{dd/MM/yyyy}", DateTime.Now); // 31/01/2009

Solution 5:

Better yet, use just

DateTime.Now.ToString()

DateTime.Now.ToString(CultureInfo.CurrentCulture)

to use the format the user prefers.