Date Format Converter — Make, Zapier, n8n & Code

Why date formats are confusing in automations

Every tool has its own date tokens. In Make and Zapier, DD is the day of the month and YYYY the year (Moment.js style). In n8n, which uses Luxon, the day is dd and the year yyyy — and DD means something else entirely. Python uses %d, PHP uses d. Copying a format from one tool to another is a classic source of dates like “2026-10-Mo” or wrong months, because mm means minutes almost everywhere while MM is the month.

Most common mix-ups

Using formats in each tool

• Make: {{formatDate(1.date; "DD.MM.YYYY")}}; to read a custom date string first use parseDate(1.text; "DD.MM.YYYY"). Make formats in the scenario’s time zone (scenario settings).
• Zapier: Formatter → Date/Time → Format, then pick or type the format in “To Format”. Set the time zone in the step to avoid off-by-one-day dates.
• n8n: {{ $json.date.toDateTime().toFormat('dd.MM.yyyy') }} or {{ $now.toFormat('yyyy-MM-dd') }}.
• Code: date-fns format(date, 'dd.MM.yyyy'), Python strftime, PHP date().

Literal text must be escaped: in brackets for Make/Moment ([at]), single quotes for Luxon and date-fns ('at'), backslashes in PHP (\a\t). The converter handles this automatically. To turn timestamps into readable dates and back, use the Unix Timestamp Converter; for time zones, the Time Zone Converter; and to find the right field path in a webhook payload, the JSON Path Finder.

Tools that pair well with the Date Format Converter

• Date Difference Calculator — Count the days between two dates — including business days and a years/months/days breakdown — add or subtract time from a date, or run a live countdown.
• Cron Expression Generator — Build a crontab schedule without memorising the syntax — or paste an existing expression to see what it means in plain English and exactly when it will run next.
• HubSpot Form Styler — Design your HubSpot form with a live preview — inputs, labels, two-column rows, checkboxes, error messages and the submit button — then copy the CSS, the full embed code, or a ready-made Code Embed for Webflow.