Hi Dev, welcome to our comprehensive guide on how to get the date without time in SQL Server. If you are a developer working with SQL Server databases, then you must have encountered the issue of extracting the date without the time. The time part in the date field can cause problems while performing calculations, sorting or filtering data, or when dealing with date-time operations. In this article, we will explore various methods to get the date without time in SQL Server.
Method 1: Using CAST Function
The CAST function in SQL Server can be used to convert one data type to another. We can use this function to convert the datetime data type to the date data type, which will exclude the time part.
Here’s an example:
Original Date |
Date without Time |
|---|---|
2022-01-01 10:20:30.000 |
2022-01-01 |
To use the CAST function, we need to specify the data type to which we want to convert the original datetime value. In this case, we want to convert it to the date data type. Here’s the syntax:
SELECT CAST(GETDATE() AS DATE) AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return the current system date without time.
Let’s see how we can get the date without time from a specific datetime value:
SELECT CAST('2022-01-01 10:20:30.000' AS DATE) AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return ‘2022-01-01’ as the output.
Now, let’s discuss a few FAQs related to this method:
FAQs
Q. What is the data type returned by the CAST function?
The CAST function returns the date data type.
Q. Can we use the CAST function to get the time only?
No, the CAST function cannot be used to get the time only. It will always return the date without time.
Q. Can we use the CAST function to convert any data type to the date data type?
No, we can only use the CAST function to convert a datetime data type to the date data type.
Method 2: Using CONVERT Function
The CONVERT function in SQL Server can also be used to convert one data type to another, including datetime to date. The syntax of the CONVERT function is similar to that of the CAST function.
Here’s an example:
Original Date |
Date without Time |
|---|---|
2022-01-01 10:20:30.000 |
2022-01-01 |
To use the CONVERT function, we need to specify the data type to which we want to convert the original datetime value. In this case, we want to convert it to the date data type. Here’s the syntax:
SELECT CONVERT(DATE, GETDATE()) AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return the current system date without time.
Let’s see how we can get the date without time from a specific datetime value:
SELECT CONVERT(DATE, '2022-01-01 10:20:30.000') AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return ‘2022-01-01’ as the output.
Now, let’s discuss a few FAQs related to this method:
FAQs
Q. What is the data type returned by the CONVERT function?
The CONVERT function returns the date data type.
Q. Can we use the CONVERT function to get the time only?
No, the CONVERT function cannot be used to get the time only. It will always return the date without time.
Q. Can we use the CONVERT function to convert any data type to the date data type?
No, we can only use the CONVERT function to convert a datetime data type to the date data type.
Method 3: Using DATE Function
The DATE function in SQL Server can be used to extract only the date part from a datetime value. The DATE function takes a datetime value as input and returns only the date part.
Here’s an example:
Original Date |
Date without Time |
|---|---|
2022-01-01 10:20:30.000 |
2022-01-01 |
To use the DATE function, we need to pass the datetime value as an argument. Here’s the syntax:
SELECT DATEADD(DAY, DATEDIFF(DAY, 0, GETDATE()), 0) AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return the current system date without time.
Let’s see how we can get the date without time from a specific datetime value:
SELECT DATEADD(DAY, DATEDIFF(DAY, 0, '2022-01-01 10:20:30.000'), 0) AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return ‘2022-01-01’ as the output.
Now, let’s discuss a few FAQs related to this method:
FAQs
Q. What is the data type returned by the DATE function?
The DATE function returns the datetime data type.
Q. Can we use the DATE function to get the time only?
No, the DATE function cannot be used to get the time only. It will always return the date without time.
Q. Can we use the DATE function to extract any part of the datetime value?
No, the DATE function can only be used to extract the date part from a datetime value. If you want to extract any other part, such as time or year, you need to use other functions.
Method 4: Using DATEADD and DATEDIFF Functions
The combination of the DATEADD and DATEDIFF functions in SQL Server can also be used to get the date without time. The idea here is to subtract the number of days between the original datetime value and the zero date (1900-01-01) from the original datetime value, which will exclude the time part.
Here’s an example:
Original Date |
Date without Time |
|---|---|
2022-01-01 10:20:30.000 |
2022-01-01 |
Here’s the syntax to get the current system date without time:
SELECT DATEADD(DAY, DATEDIFF(DAY, 0, GETDATE()), 0) AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return the current system date without time.
Let’s see how we can get the date without time from a specific datetime value:
SELECT DATEADD(DAY, DATEDIFF(DAY, 0, '2022-01-01 10:20:30.000'), 0) AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return ‘2022-01-01’ as the output.
Now, let’s discuss a few FAQs related to this method:
FAQs
Q. What is the data type returned by the DATEADD and DATEDIFF functions?
The DATEADD and DATEDIFF functions return the datetime data type.
Q. Can we use the DATEADD and DATEDIFF functions to get the time only?
No, the DATEADD and DATEDIFF functions cannot be used to get the time only. They will always return the datetime value with the time part.
Q. Can we use the DATEADD and DATEDIFF functions to perform other date-time calculations?
Yes, the DATEADD and DATEDIFF functions can be used to perform various date-time calculations, such as adding or subtracting days, weeks, months, or years from a datetime value.
Method 5: Using FORMAT Function
The FORMAT function in SQL Server can also be used to get the date without time. The FORMAT function takes a datetime value as input and returns a string representation of the date in the specified format. We can use the ‘yyyy-MM-dd’ format to get the date without time.
Here’s an example:
Original Date |
Date without Time |
|---|---|
2022-01-01 10:20:30.000 |
2022-01-01 |
To use the FORMAT function, we need to pass the datetime value and the format string as arguments. Here’s the syntax:
SELECT FORMAT(GETDATE(), 'yyyy-MM-dd') AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return the current system date without time.
Let’s see how we can get the date without time from a specific datetime value:
SELECT FORMAT('2022-01-01 10:20:30.000', 'yyyy-MM-dd') AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return ‘2022-01-01’ as the output.
Now, let’s discuss a few FAQs related to this method:
FAQs
Q. What is the data type returned by the FORMAT function?
The FORMAT function returns the string data type.
Q. Can we use the FORMAT function to get the time only?
No, the FORMAT function cannot be used to get the time only. It will always return the date without time in the specified format.
Q. Can we use the FORMAT function to format the date in any other format?
Yes, we can use the FORMAT function to format the date in any custom format by specifying the appropriate format string.
Method 6: Using TRUNC Function
The TRUNC function in SQL Server can also be used to get the date without time. The TRUNC function takes a datetime value as input and returns the datetime value with the time part truncated to the specified unit. We can use the ‘day’ unit to get the date without time.
Here’s an example:
Original Date |
Date without Time |
|---|---|
2022-01-01 10:20:30.000 |
2022-01-01 |
To use the TRUNC function, we need to pass the datetime value and the unit as arguments. Here’s the syntax:
SELECT TRUNC(GETDATE(), 'day') AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return the current system date without time.
Let’s see how we can get the date without time from a specific datetime value:
SELECT TRUNC('2022-01-01 10:20:30.000', 'day') AS DateWithoutTime;
The above query will return ‘2022-01-01’ as the output.
Now, let’s discuss a few FAQs related to this method:
FAQs
Q. What is the data type returned by the TRUNC function?
The TRUNC function returns the datetime data type.
Q. Can we use the TRUNC function to get the time only?
No, the TRUNC function cannot be used to get the time only. It will always return the datetime value with the time part truncated to the specified unit.
Q. Can we use the TRUNC function to truncate the datetime value to any other unit?
Yes, we can use the TRUNC function to truncate the datetime value to any other unit, such as hour, minute, month, or year.
Conclusion
In this article, we have discussed various methods to get the date without time in SQL Server. We have explored the CAST, CONVERT, DATE, DATEADD, DATEDIFF, FORMAT, and TRUNC functions and their usage to extract the date without the time part. You can choose any of these methods based on your requirement and preference. We hope this article was helpful to you.