The NOW function in Excel returns the current date and time from your system clock. NOW Function: A Brief The NOW function in Excel returns the current date and time based on your computer’s system clock. The NOW function will update every time the worksheet recalculates or when the file is opened. It can be useful for the following scenarios: Logging timestamps Tracking task updates Calculating durations or deadlines from the present moment. NOW Function: A Syntax =NOW() // Returns the current date and time from your device clock. Objective Value Returned by the function Aim to return the date and time. NOW Function in Excel will return the date and time based on your device’s clock, and it varies real-time, whenever the file is opened. NOW Function: Introduced In The NOW function was introduced in Excel 1.0 and is a built-in function. If you want to recreate the working of the NOW function using formulas, you will need to manually combine functions as shown below. =TODAY() + (HOUR(NOW())/24 + MINUTE(NOW())/1440) By combining functions like TODAY, HOUR, NOW, and MINUTE with mathematical operations, you can get the current date and time based on your system clock. However, this type of formula is static. Once it returns a result, it does not update automatically every time you reopen the file, unlike the NOW function, which refreshes with the current date and time whenever the sheet is opened or recalculated. By default, a formula may show only the date or only the time in a cell. To display both date and time, right-click the cell and choose the Format Cells option. In the Number tab, choose Custom, then in the Type field, select the dd-mm-yyyy hh:mm, and click the OK button. Now, the content in the cell will be updated with the date and time value as shown in the image below. Formatting cells will display both date and time. Examples of Using NOW Function With Other Nested Functions: In the example below, I’ve included 13 different scenarios showing how to use the NOW function together with other nested functions. Each case includes the formula, the output, and a brief explanation for clarity. Example’s Explanation: Case 1: The formula checks whether the current time is before noon or afternoon. If HOUR(NOW()) is less than 12, it returns “Morning” or otherwise, it shows “Afternoon” as the output value. Case 2: EOMONTH returns the last day of the current month. By subtracting TODAY(), the formula shows how many days are left in the month. Based on the current device’s clock, it may return 6 days remaining. Case 3: The formula TEXT(NOW(), “hh:mm:ss”) displays only the current time, removing the date portion and showing it in HH:MM:SS format. Case 4: It uses the WEEKDAY function to check if today is a weekday or weekend. If the result is 6 or 7, it returns “Weekend” or otherwise, it returns “Weekday” as the output. Case 5: This formula calculates total hours passed since midnight using HOUR(NOW()) + MINUTE(NOW()) / 60. The result is shown as a decimal, such as 12.38. Case 6: It calculates how many hours are left in the day by subtracting the total passed hours from 24. Case 7: This checks if the current time is within typical office hours (9 AM to 5 PM) using IF and AND with HOUR(NOW()). If true, it returns “Yes” as the output. Case 8: The formula adds 15 minutes to the current time using NOW() + TIME(0,15,0), useful for setting reminders or future triggers. Case 9: It subtracts 2 hours from the current time with NOW() – TIME(2,0,0), showing a time 2 hours earlier. Case 10: TEXT(NOW(), “dddd”) returns the full name of the day, like “Thursday“, which is useful in dynamic headers or reports. Case 11: FLOOR(NOW(), “1:00”) rounds the current time down to the nearest hour, removing minutes and seconds. Case 12: The formula checks whether today is a Monday using WEEKDAY(NOW(), 2). If the result is 1, it returns “Yes”. Case 13: SECOND(NOW()) extracts the current second value from the time. You can download the NOW with other Nested Function Worksheets here: Download Now with Nested Functions.xls Functions Used in the Examples: Function Used for NOW Returns the current system date and time IF Performs logical checks to return different values based on a condition HOUR Extracts the hour portion from a time value MINUTE Extracts the minute portion from a time value SECOND Extracts the second portion from a time value TEXT Formats numbers/dates as text in a specified format EOMONTH Returns the last day of the month, x months before or after a given date TODAY Returns the current date without time WEEKDAY Returns a number representing the day of the week AND Checks if multiple conditions are TRUE TIME Creates a time value from hours, minutes, and seconds FLOOR Rounds a number down toward zero to the nearest multiple That’s it. This tutorial was originally published on How to Use Excel NOW Function? The NOW function in Excel returns the current date and time from your system clock. NOW Function: A Brief The NOW function in Excel returns the current date and time based on your computer’s system clock. The NOW function will update every time the worksheet recalculates or when the file is opened . It can be useful for the following scenarios: current date and time worksheet recalculates opened Logging timestamps Tracking task updates Calculating durations or deadlines from the present moment. Logging timestamps Tracking task updates Calculating durations or deadlines from the present moment. NOW Function: A Syntax =NOW() // Returns the current date and time from your device clock. =NOW() // Returns the current date and time from your device clock. Objective Value Returned by the function Aim to return the date and time. NOW Function in Excel will return the date and time based on your device’s clock, and it varies real-time, whenever the file is opened. Objective Value Returned by the function Aim to return the date and time. NOW Function in Excel will return the date and time based on your device’s clock, and it varies real-time, whenever the file is opened. Objective Value Returned by the function Objective Objective Value Returned by the function Value Returned by the function Aim to return the date and time. NOW Function in Excel will return the date and time based on your device’s clock, and it varies real-time, whenever the file is opened. Aim to return the date and time. Aim to return the date and time. NOW Function in Excel will return the date and time based on your device’s clock, and it varies real-time, whenever the file is opened. NOW Function in Excel will return the date and time based on your device’s clock, and it varies real-time, whenever the file is opened. NOW Function: Introduced In The NOW function was introduced in Excel 1.0 and is a built-in function. If you want to recreate the working of the NOW function using formulas, you will need to manually combine functions as shown below. Excel 1.0 =TODAY() + (HOUR(NOW())/24 + MINUTE(NOW())/1440) =TODAY() + (HOUR(NOW())/24 + MINUTE(NOW())/1440) By combining functions like TODAY , HOUR , NOW , and MINUTE with mathematical operations, you can get the current date and time based on your system clock. However, this type of formula is static . Once it returns a result, it does not update automatically every time you reopen the file, unlike the NOW function, which refreshes with the current date and time whenever the sheet is opened or recalculated. TODAY TODAY HOUR HOUR NOW MINUTE MINUTE static not update automatically NOW By default, a formula may show only the date or only the time in a cell. To display both date and time, right-click the cell and choose the Format Cells option. In the Number tab, choose Custom , then in the Type field, select the dd-mm-yyyy hh:mm , and click the OK button. date time Format Cells Custom Type dd-mm-yyyy hh:mm OK Now, the content in the cell will be updated with the date and time value as shown in the image below. Formatting cells will display both date and time. Examples of Using NOW Function With Other Nested Functions: In the example below, I’ve included 13 different scenarios showing how to use the NOW function together with other nested functions . Each case includes the formula , the output , and a brief explanation for clarity. 13 different scenarios NOW nested functions formula output explanation Example’s Explanation: Example’s Explanation: Case 1: The formula checks whether the current time is before noon or afternoon. If HOUR(NOW()) is less than 12, it returns “Morning” or otherwise, it shows “Afternoon” as the output value. Case 2: EOMONTH returns the last day of the current month. By subtracting TODAY(), the formula shows how many days are left in the month. Based on the current device’s clock, it may return 6 days remaining. Case 3: The formula TEXT(NOW(), “hh:mm:ss”) displays only the current time, removing the date portion and showing it in HH:MM:SS format. Case 4: It uses the WEEKDAY function to check if today is a weekday or weekend. If the result is 6 or 7, it returns “Weekend” or otherwise, it returns “Weekday” as the output. Case 5: This formula calculates total hours passed since midnight using HOUR(NOW()) + MINUTE(NOW()) / 60. The result is shown as a decimal, such as 12.38. Case 6: It calculates how many hours are left in the day by subtracting the total passed hours from 24. Case 7: This checks if the current time is within typical office hours (9 AM to 5 PM) using IF and AND with HOUR(NOW()). If true, it returns “Yes” as the output. Case 8: The formula adds 15 minutes to the current time using NOW() + TIME(0,15,0), useful for setting reminders or future triggers. Case 9: It subtracts 2 hours from the current time with NOW() – TIME(2,0,0), showing a time 2 hours earlier. Case 10: TEXT(NOW(), “dddd”) returns the full name of the day, like “Thursday“, which is useful in dynamic headers or reports. Case 11: FLOOR(NOW(), “1:00”) rounds the current time down to the nearest hour, removing minutes and seconds. Case 12: The formula checks whether today is a Monday using WEEKDAY(NOW(), 2). If the result is 1, it returns “Yes”. Case 13: SECOND(NOW()) extracts the current second value from the time. Case 1: The formula checks whether the current time is before noon or afternoon. If HOUR(NOW()) is less than 12, it returns “Morning” or otherwise, it shows “Afternoon” as the output value. Case 1: Case 2: EOMONTH returns the last day of the current month. By subtracting TODAY(), the formula shows how many days are left in the month. Based on the current device’s clock, it may return 6 days remaining. Case 2: Case 3: The formula TEXT(NOW(), “hh:mm:ss”) displays only the current time , removing the date portion and showing it in HH:MM:SS format. Case 3: current time HH:MM:SS Case 4: It uses the WEEKDAY function to check if today is a weekday or weekend. If the result is 6 or 7, it returns “ Weekend ” or otherwise, it returns “ Weekday ” as the output. Case 4: Weekend Weekday Case 5: This formula calculates total hours passed since midnight using HOUR(NOW()) + MINUTE(NOW()) / 60. The result is shown as a decimal, such as 12.38 . Case 5: 12.38 Case 6: It calculates how many hours are left in the day by subtracting the total passed hours from 24. Case 6: Case 7: This checks if the current time is within typical office hours (9 AM to 5 PM) using IF and AND with HOUR(NOW()). If true, it returns “ Yes ” as the output. Case 7: Yes Case 8: The formula adds 15 minutes to the current time using NOW() + TIME(0,15,0), useful for setting reminders or future triggers. Case 8: 15 minutes Case 9: It subtracts 2 hours from the current time with NOW() – TIME(2,0,0), showing a time 2 hours earlier. Case 9: Case 10: TEXT(NOW(), “dddd”) returns the full name of the day, like “ Thursday “, which is useful in dynamic headers or reports. Case 10: Thursday Case 11: FLOOR(NOW(), “1:00”) rounds the current time down to the nearest hour , removing minutes and seconds. Case 11: current time hour Case 12: The formula checks whether today is a Monday using WEEKDAY(NOW(), 2). If the result is 1, it returns “Yes”. Case 12: Monday Case 13: SECOND(NOW()) extracts the current second value from the time. Case 13: You can download the NOW with other Nested Function Worksheets here: Download Now with Nested Functions.xls You can download the NOW with other Nested Function Worksheets here: Download Now with Nested Functions.xls NOW with other Nested Function Worksheets Now with Nested Functions.xls Functions Used in the Examples: Function Used for NOW Returns the current system date and time IF Performs logical checks to return different values based on a condition HOUR Extracts the hour portion from a time value MINUTE Extracts the minute portion from a time value SECOND Extracts the second portion from a time value TEXT Formats numbers/dates as text in a specified format EOMONTH Returns the last day of the month, x months before or after a given date TODAY Returns the current date without time WEEKDAY Returns a number representing the day of the week AND Checks if multiple conditions are TRUE TIME Creates a time value from hours, minutes, and seconds FLOOR Rounds a number down toward zero to the nearest multiple Function Used for NOW Returns the current system date and time IF Performs logical checks to return different values based on a condition HOUR Extracts the hour portion from a time value MINUTE Extracts the minute portion from a time value SECOND Extracts the second portion from a time value TEXT Formats numbers/dates as text in a specified format EOMONTH Returns the last day of the month, x months before or after a given date TODAY Returns the current date without time WEEKDAY Returns a number representing the day of the week AND Checks if multiple conditions are TRUE TIME Creates a time value from hours, minutes, and seconds FLOOR Rounds a number down toward zero to the nearest multiple Function Used for Function Function Used for Used for NOW Returns the current system date and time NOW NOW Returns the current system date and time Returns the current system date and time IF Performs logical checks to return different values based on a condition IF IF Performs logical checks to return different values based on a condition Performs logical checks to return different values based on a condition HOUR Extracts the hour portion from a time value HOUR HOUR Extracts the hour portion from a time value Extracts the hour portion from a time value MINUTE Extracts the minute portion from a time value MINUTE MINUTE Extracts the minute portion from a time value Extracts the minute portion from a time value SECOND Extracts the second portion from a time value SECOND SECOND Extracts the second portion from a time value Extracts the second portion from a time value TEXT Formats numbers/dates as text in a specified format TEXT TEXT Formats numbers/dates as text in a specified format Formats numbers/dates as text in a specified format EOMONTH Returns the last day of the month, x months before or after a given date EOMONTH EOMONTH Returns the last day of the month, x months before or after a given date Returns the last day of the month, x months before or after a given date TODAY Returns the current date without time TODAY TODAY Returns the current date without time Returns the current date without time WEEKDAY Returns a number representing the day of the week WEEKDAY WEEKDAY Returns a number representing the day of the week Returns a number representing the day of the week AND Checks if multiple conditions are TRUE AND AND Checks if multiple conditions are TRUE Checks if multiple conditions are TRUE TIME Creates a time value from hours, minutes, and seconds TIME TIME Creates a time value from hours, minutes, and seconds Creates a time value from hours, minutes, and seconds FLOOR Rounds a number down toward zero to the nearest multiple FLOOR FLOOR Rounds a number down toward zero to the nearest multiple Rounds a number down toward zero to the nearest multiple That’s it. This tutorial was originally published on How to Use Excel NOW Function? How to Use Excel NOW Function?
