How to Write Dates Correctly in English

The English language has its own style for written dates and can be expressed in several formats. Learning how to correctly write dates in English can prove useful in formal settings and international interactions. English date formats are quite simple to learn and understand, and you can get familiar with them by following this comprehensive guide on how to write dates correctly in English.

How to Write Dates in British English Format 

The correct British format for writing a date is the “DD/MM/YYYY” Format, achieved by writing the day first, followed by the month, and then the year. For example, if we are writing the date for the last day of December 2025 in British format, we will have the following:

• 31/12/2025
• 31-12-2025
• 31 December
• 31 December 2025
• 31st December 2025
• The 31st of December 2025
• Wednesday, 31 December 2025.
• Wednesday, the 31st of December 2025.

If you pay attention, you will notice that the smaller units of the date come first in the British English style. For official purposes, you can write dates using all numerical figures or by writing the day of the month, the month, and the year. Writing the day of the week is optional unless specifically required.

How to Write Dates in American English Format 

The correct American format for writing a date is the “MM/DD/YYYY” Format, achieved by writing the month first, followed by the day of the month, and then the year. For example, if we are writing the date for the last day of December 2025 in American format, we will have the following:

• 12/31/2025
• 12-31-2025
• December 31
• December 31, 2025
• Wednesday, December 31, 2025

The American date writing style does not typically use the “of” And “the” References common in British date formats. 

How to Write Dates in Numbers in English

If you want to write a numerical date in English, you must first note the day of the month, the month number, and the year. The day and month numbers are formally written as two digits (like in DD/MM), using a leading zero for single numbers (e.g., 01/09).

Once you have all the components of your date, you can assemble them in either of the following numerical forms:

• DD/MM/YYYY (British format) 
  • Example: 31/12/2025
• MM/DD/YYYY (American format) 
  • Example: 12/31/2025
• DD-MM-YYYY (British format) 
  • Example: 31-12-2025
• MM-DD-YYYY (American format) 
  • Example: 12-31-2025
• DD.MM.YYYY (British format) 
  • Example: 31.12.2025
• MM.DD.YYYY (American format)
  • Example: 12.31.2025

Using the provided guide, the date 31st December 2025 in numerical form will be 31/12/2025 in British style. Date formats with the slash ‘/’ are the most common ways of writing numerical dates in English.

How to Write Year in Dates

In English, years in dates are typically cited in numerical form for simplicity and clarity. Instead of writing the year 2025 as “Two thousand and twenty-five,” The numerical form “2025” Is preferable and suitable for almost any context.

When writing a date that includes the day and month, the year usually comes at the end. For example, the year comes at the end in the expression “Wednesday, the 31st of December 2025” And in the numerical format “31/12/2025”. 

In English essays or expressions, you can also refer to the year directly or use references such as “The year” And “in”. The following are all correct samples of writing a year in English expressions:

• The year 2020 brought the COVID-19 pandemic….
• 2020 was the pandemic year…
• In 2020, the world faced the COVID-19 pandemic….

While there are other ways of positioning the year in English sentences, the above expressions only aim to paint a picture. 

How to Write Month and Day in Dates

In English, the day of the month can either be written numerically or alphabetically, while the month is typically written by its name or number. Let’s break it down further:

• Day numbers: When writing a date using numbers (like 1, 2, 3), you generally use the basic number even though you would pronounce it as “first, second, third.” 
  • Example: “January 12, 2025” Or “12 January 2025”
• Use of commas (US style): Put a comma after the day and usually after the year if the sentence continues.
  • Example: “On January 12, 2025, John travelled to the United States.”
• Use of commas (UK style): In the UK style of writing dates, commas are not used, except in cases where the day of the week is added. 
  • Example: “On 12 January 2025 John travelled to the United Kingdom.” 
• When to use “1st, 2nd, 3rd” (ordinals): Ordinal numbers are typically used when using the phrase “the [day] of [month]”.
  • Example: “John travelled on the 12th of January” or “John traveled on the twelfth.”
• Including the day of the week: When mentioning the day of the week, place it before the date, followed by a comma. The first letters of the days of the week are usually written in capital letters:
  • Example: “On Sunday, 12 January 2025 John travelled to the United Kingdom.”

In British English, it is more common to write or say “the 1st of January” or “1st January”. The case is not the same for American English, where there is a less common use of “the” and “of” in dates. 

The International English Standard for Writing Dates

The international format for writing dates in English is YYYY/MM/DD, where the year comes first, followed by the month and then the day of the month. For example, if we are writing the date for the last day of December 2025 using the international format, we will have the following:

• 2025/12/31
• 2025-12-31
• 2025 January 1

Due to the differences in the British and American styles of writing dates, the international standard was introduced to avoid confusion. This date format is quite popular across Asia and may not be as mainstream as the British or American date formats outside the continent. 

How to Write Century Date References

A century is a period of 100 years. In English, centuries are numbered using ordinal numbers (like 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.). The first 100 years is known as the first century, just as 1900-2000 is known as the 20th century. 

When writing century date references, you can choose to write the starting year of the century and add “s” Or you can use the ordinal number followed by “Century’. This can either be written in words or numbers. See examples: 

• The 1700s was a time of great cultural and scientific change.
• The 21st century has seen significant technological advancements.
• The eighteen hundreds was a time of great cultural and scientific change.
• The twenty-first century has seen significant technological advancements.

Apostrophes are not used when referring to centuries, e.g., 1800s (this is not correct). And centuries should not be capitalized unless they appear at the beginning of the sentence, e.g., 20th Century (this is not correct). 

How to Write Decade Date References

A decade is a period of 10 years. Decades are usually referred to by the “tens” part of the years they cover. To further break it down, the years between 1980 and 1989 are referred to as the 1980s because they include the years 1980, 1981, 1982, and so on. 

Here’s a guide to writing about decades in English expressions:

• Use the full year followed by ‘s’. Do not use an apostrophe before the ‘s’. For example, “Music in the 1990s was very diverse.”
• You can also shorten the year, in which case you use an apostrophe to show the missing digits. For example, “What were fashion trends like in the ‘80s?” This style is mostly used for informal purposes.
• To write decades in words, write the number of the decade in plural form. For example, “The eighties were known for big hair and iconic fashion trends.” 

Conclusion

To learn how to write dates in English, carefully study the explanations, guidelines, and examples outlined in this comprehensive guide to get familiar with the English date formats. Always take note of the context or your audience to know which date format or style to use in your writing.