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NOW
NOW() is a volatile function that returns the current date combined with the current time as a decimal serial number, where the integer part is the date and the fractional part is the time of day. Use it to timestamp records, measure elapsed time in hours or minutes, or display a live clock in a cell.
Excel
=NOW()Google Sheets
=NOW()✓
Verified example
Computed by a real spreadsheet engine on the sample data below.
| Event | Timestamp |
| Login | 2025-05-27 09:15 |
| Submit | 2025-05-27 09:32 |
| Logout | 2025-05-27 10:01 |
=NOW()→46169.62
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How it works
- 1Enter =NOW() with no arguments; format the cell as Date+Time to see both components.
- 2Subtract a previous NOW() snapshot (stored as a value) to measure elapsed time: =(NOW()-A2)*24 gives elapsed hours.
- 3Because NOW() is volatile it recalculates on every change; paste-as-values to freeze a timestamp.
Need a version for your data?
Try: “Stamp the current date and time in a cell that updates automatically”