Unix timestamps explained — converting, formatting, and avoiding the common mistakes

📰 Dev.to · William Andrews

Master Unix timestamps by learning conversion, formatting, and avoiding common mistakes in JavaScript, Python, SQL, and command line

intermediate Published 11 May 2026

Action Steps

Convert a Unix timestamp to a human-readable date using JavaScript's Date() function
Format a Unix timestamp in Python using the datetime module
Run a SQL query to convert a Unix timestamp to a datetime object
Use the command line to convert a Unix timestamp to a human-readable date using the date command
Avoid the milliseconds vs seconds trap by ensuring correct unit conversion

Who Needs to Know This

Developers, data scientists, and DevOps engineers can benefit from understanding Unix timestamps to work efficiently with date and time data in various programming languages and systems

Key Insight

💡 Unix timestamps are widely used, but conversions and timezones can be tricky - ensure correct unit conversion and consider timezone gotchas