There are two main ways to convert a string to a DateTime object in PHP. First, use new DateTime($time), which is suitable for standard formats such as '2025-04-05' or strings with time zones, but it needs to be handled with try-catch; second, use DateTime::createFromFormat('format', 'string'), which is used to parse non-standard formats such as '05/04/2025', where supported formats include Y (year), m (month), d (day), H (hour), i (minute), s (seconds), etc.; in addition, localized formats such as English month can be directly parsed, while non-English environments such as Chinese need to be preprocessed or extended with the help of intl; finally, the string in the specified format can be output through $date->format('Ym-d').
In PHP, converting strings to DateTime
objects is a common operation, especially when dealing with date and time-related logic. As long as the format is correct, it can be easily implemented using the built-in DateTime
class.

Basic usage: Use DateTime::__construct
The easiest way is to create an object through new DateTime($time)
. where $time
is a legal time string, such as:

$date = new DateTime('2025-04-05');
This method is suitable for most standard format strings, such as 'now'
, '2023-12-31'
or '2023-12-31 23:59:59 UTC'
with time zone information.
If the format of the string you passed in is not recognized, PHP will throw an Exception
, so it is recommended to use it with try-catch
:

try { $date = new DateTime('not a valid date'); } catch (Exception $e) { echo "Date format error:" . $e->getMessage(); }
Specify format parsing: Use DateTime::createFromFormat
If your date string format is special, such as "05/04/2025"
(day/month/year), using the constructor directly may cause errors or parse into an incorrect format. At this time, you should use:
$date = DateTime::createFromFormat('d/m/Y', '05/04/2025');
This method allows you to explicitly specify the format of the input string to ensure accurate parsing. Supported formats include:
-
Y
four-digit year -
m
months -
d
date -
H
hours (24-hour system) -
i
minute -
s
seconds
You can adjust the format parameters according to the actual input, such as:
$date = DateTime::createFromFormat('Ymd H:i:s', '2025-04-05 14:30:00');
Handle different regional formats or locale environments
Sometimes you may get a localized format, such as the English month name 'April 5, 2025'
, which can be parsed normally by default:
$date = new DateTime('April 5, 2025');
But if you are facing a non-English environment, such as Chinese month, you need to preprocess it first or use a third-party library such as intl
extension to process localized dates.
Tips: Get formatted results
Once you have the DateTime
object, you can easily output the format you need:
echo $date->format('Ym-d'); // Output: 2025-04-05
Common format examples:
-
Ymd H:i:s
full format -
Y/m/d
simple slash format -
l, F j, Y
English full week and month such asSaturday, April 5, 2025
Basically that's it. Master these methods and deal with various string conversion DateTime
. The key is to select the appropriate method according to the input format and pay attention to exception handling to avoid program crashes.
The above is the detailed content of php convert string to DateTime object. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!

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