Here are four ways to enter the current date/time into a cell:
=NOW() – enters the current system data and time. The value will update whenever the worksheet is recalculated.
=TODAY() – enters only the current system date (not the time). The value will update whenever the worksheet is recalculated.
Cntl + ; (Hold down the control key and press the semi-colon). – Enters the current system date as a static value, that is, it doesn’t change.
Cntl + : (Hold down the control key and press the colon). – Enters the current system time as a static value. For most users, the colon is above the semi-colon so the key combination is Cntl+Shift+Semi-Colon.
Thanks a lot for this very useful page. I was wondering if you could help me out with a problem I came across.
I would like to get only the current system time in a cell, not the date and time information, as this messes up a calculation i’m performing on the ‘system time cell’ and another cell, with a fixed starting time in it.
What I am trying to do is calculate the amount of time that has passed between the fixed starting time and the current system time, and output the value as decimal (in hours). Thanks a lot in advance!
Rik: I think you want
=Now()-Int(Now())
What would be the formula for outputting the value as days not hours? Tks