"Game night starts at 8 PM" means a different time for every member of an international server, and someone always shows up an hour late. Discord timestamps solve this. You write the time once as a special code, and Discord shows it to each reader in their own time zone and their own date format.

A timestamp looks like <t:1791835200:F>. The number is a Unix timestamp: the number of seconds since 1 January 1970 UTC. It is the same everywhere in the world, which is why Discord can convert it into each reader's local time. The letter after the second colon chooses the format. If you leave it out, Discord uses the default short date and time.

t: short time, like 4:20 PM. T: long time with seconds, like 4:20:30 PM. d: short date, like 10/12/2026. D: long date, like October 12, 2026. f: short date and time, like October 12, 2026 4:20 PM. This is the default. F: long date and time with the weekday, like Monday, October 12, 2026 4:20 PM. R: relative time, like "in 3 hours" or "2 days ago". The exact wording depends on each reader's language and region settings, so a member in the UK sees 12/10/2026 where an American sees 10/12/2026.

R updates on its own while the message is on screen: "in 2 hours" becomes "in 1 hour" and then "1 minute ago". It is perfect for event announcements. A common pattern is to show both: "Game night starts <t:1791835200:F> (<t:1791835200:R>)", which gives the exact time and a live countdown.

You need the Unix time for the moment you mean, in your own time zone. Boxtype's Timestamp Generator lets you pick a date and time and copy the finished code in every format. Developers can get it from code: Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) in JavaScript, or date +%s on macOS and Linux. Bots can create timestamps too: many event and reminder bots post them automatically.

Timestamps work in messages, threads, forum posts, bot and webhook messages and embed descriptions, on desktop, browser and mobile. They don't work in names or anywhere Discord shows plain text without formatting. Hovering (or long-pressing on mobile) over a timestamp shows the full date and time.

1. Open Boxtype's Timestamp Generator and pick the date and time in your own time zone. 2. Choose a style. F (long date and time) is the clearest for events. 3. Copy the code, which looks like <t:1791835200:F>. 4. Paste it into your Discord message. Discord shows it as a highlighted time, converted for each reader. Hover over a timestamp on desktop, or tap it on mobile, to see the full date and time.

The most common mistake is picking the wrong AM or PM, which moves the event by twelve hours; always check the preview before copying. Another is using a timestamp in a channel name or nickname, where Discord shows the raw code instead of a time. If you copy a Unix timestamp from another tool, make sure it is in seconds, not milliseconds. A 13-digit number is in milliseconds; drop the last three digits.

Beyond announcements, timestamps are useful in channel topics ("Next tournament: <t:…:F>"), in scheduled event descriptions, and in pinned messages that list regular sessions. Because a timestamp always refers to an exact moment, it stays correct when daylight saving time starts or ends, unlike "8 pm EST" written by hand.

For events, combine long date and time with relative time: "Friday, October 23, 2026 8:00 PM (in 3 days)". For deadlines in a busy channel, the relative style alone is often enough, because people mostly want to know how long they have. For daily schedules where the date is obvious, short time (t) keeps the message compact. For historical notes, like when a rule changed, short date (d) is clean and unambiguous.

Many Discord bots post timestamps automatically, which is why you see them in event and reminder messages. If you are writing a bot or an automation that posts through a webhook, use the same <t:unix:style> format in the message text. The timestamp is just text in the message, so it works anywhere Discord renders Markdown, including embeds.