This post goes over how to use the date command on macOS.
date
Display the current date and time:
date
Tue Oct 20 20:20:20 EDT 2020
format
Get the date in YYYY-MM-DD format:
date +%Y-%m-%d
2020-10-20
epoch
Get the seconds since epoch:
date +%s
1603239620
adjust
Adjust the date with the -v option:
date -j -v <ADJUSTMENT> -f "%Y-%m-%d" $(date +%Y-%m-%d)
Adjust the date 1 day from now (+1d):
date -j -v +1d -f "%Y-%m-%d" $(date +%Y-%m-%d)
Wed Oct 21 20:20:20 EDT 2020
Adjust the date 2 hours before now (-2H):
date -j -v -2H -f "%Y-%m-%d" $(date +%Y-%m-%d)
Tue Oct 20 18:20:20 EDT 2020
What each value represents:
| val | representation |
|---|---|
| y | year |
| m | month |
| w | week |
| d | day |
| H | hour |
| M | minute |
| S | second |
manual
Read the date manual:
man date