DATE
Supported, behaves as documentedCategory: Date and time · Last tested 2026-08-06
Real, executed compatibility results for the DATE function across Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets, and LibreOffice Calc — verified by actually running it. Syntax and links to each vendor’s official documentation are below.
Support matrix
| Engine | Documented | Live-tested | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Excel | Yes | Not yet | n/a |
| Google Sheets | Yes | Not yet | n/a |
| LibreOffice Calc | Yes | Yes (25.8.7.3, 2026-08-06) | Supported, behaves as documented |
LibreOffice version history
We executed the same test cases under each LibreOffice release to show exactly when DATE’s support changed — not documentation claims, real results.
| LibreOffice version | Verdict | Tested |
|---|---|---|
| 24.2.0.3 | Supported, behaves as documented | 2026-07-19 |
| 24.8.7.2 | Supported, behaves as documented | 2026-07-19 |
| 25.2.0.3 | Supported, behaves as documented | 2026-07-24 |
| 25.8.7.3 | Supported, behaves as documented | 2026-08-06 |
Executed test cases
LibreOffice Calc 25.8.7.3 (tested 2026-08-06)
| Formula | Description | Result | Expected | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| =DATE(2024,3,15) | Ordinary in-range y/m/d construction | 45366.0 | 45366 2024-03-15 = serial 45366 (1900 date system; Dec 31 2023 = 45291, Jan 1 2024 = 45292) |
Matched |
| =DATE(2024,13,1) | Documented rollover: month=13 adds 13 months worth of offset from January, landing in January of the FOLLOWING year rather than raising an error. Verified via https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/date-function-e36c0c8c-4104-49da-ab83-82328b832349 ("If month is greater than 12 ... DATE(2008,14,2) returns ... February 2, 2009") | 45658.0 | 45658 month 13 = 12 months past January 2024 -> January 2025; 2025-01-01 = serial 45658 (2024 is a leap year, 366 days after 45292) |
Matched |
| =DATE(2008,-3,2) | Documented rollback: month<=0 subtracts months backward across a year boundary. Verified via the same DATE documentation ("If month is less than 1 ... DATE(2008,-3,2) returns ... September 2, 2007") | 39327.0 | 39327 2007-09-02 = serial 39327 |
Matched |
Docs & syntax
- Excel: official documentation
- Google Sheets: official documentation
- LibreOffice Calc: official documentation
Related how-to recipes
- How to check if a year is a leap year
- How to count dates within a range
- How to get the day number of the year (1-365)
- How to get the quarter-end date for any date
- How to calculate a year-to-date (YTD) total