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In this article we will discuss about how to Insert Date and Timestamp in Excel. Adding date and time stamps to emails might seem like a waste of time, since your email client and mail servers already add these stamps to the email headers when the email is sent. You can also go to the official Microsoft excel support site to know more information.
But for the rest of your email processing and handling needs, especially when working with public or shared mail folders, Bells & Whistles lets you automatically stamp every outgoing email with the date and time it was sent. Microsoft Word lets you make business documents like letters, forms, and ads that look like they were made by a professional.
When you type a letter, you might want to add the date so that you and the person you are writing to will know when it was written. Usually, you have to manually change the date if you make changes to the document later. A timestamp is something you use to keep track of what’s going on.
Ways to Insert Date and Timestamp in Excel
Using keyboard shortcuts
The static method is helpful when you only need to add the Date and Timestamp to a few cells. You can quickly add the Date and Timestamp by hand with a keyboard shortcut. To do the same, follow the steps below:
- Select the cell into which the current date or time needs to be inserted.
- Use this shortcut – Ctrl + ; (Control + semicolon) to insert the current date.
- Use this shortcut – Ctrl + Shift + ; (Control + Shift + semicolon) to insert the current time.
- Use this shortcut – Press the combination (Ctrl + ;) and (Ctrl + Shift + ;) to insert the current time and time.
Using Formulas
With the NOW() and TODAY() functions, you can put in the current date and time, which will automatically change. When changes are made to the worksheet, this method automatically changes the date and time.
- NOW(): To insert current date and time.
- TODAY(): To insert the current date.
To do the same, follow the steps below:
- Select the cell into which the current date or time needs to be inserted.
- Enter the function NOW() or TODAY().
- Press the Enter key.
- The current date-time or date will be inserted into the selected cell.
Using VBA To Insert Timestamp Automatically While Entering Data In a Different Column
If you know how to work with VBA, there is another way to automatically add the timestamp to your Excel sheet using VBA. To do the same, follow the steps below:
- To open Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications, press Alt + F11. The VBA window will open. Now go to Insert and select the Module to open a blank module.
- Now, add the code given below to your blank module and save the code.
- Go back to your worksheet and type the below formula in your cell in which you want to insert timestamp.
- Now, if you insert the entry in a column, you will get the date and time in the adjoining cell automatically.
Insert Timestamp Automatically While Entering Data In Different Column
With this method, the timestamp can be added to a column while data is being added to another column. Take the two columns A and B in your worksheet as an example. As you add information to a cell in column A, the current date and time will be added to the corresponding cell in column B. To do the same, follow the steps below:
- Click File -> Options and the Excel Options dialogue box will appear. Now from the left pane, select the Formulas option. You will see Enable interactive calculation in the right pane below Calculation options. Check this option and select OK.
- In this next adjoining column (say column B), enter this formula:
=IF(A1<>"",IF(B1<>"",B1,NOW()),"")
- Drag and select cells to auto-fill the formula.
- You can also customize the format of the date and time. To do this, right-click on the selected formula cells, go to the context menu, and select Format Cells. You will see the Format cells dialogue box. Go to the bottom and select Custom. In the right pane select the suitable format for your cells.
- Now when you enter the data in a column, you will get the date and time in your chosen format in the adjoining cell.