Guide
Typing dates
Many people find it faster to type a date than to click through months. The picker understands what they type:
| Typed | en-GB | en-US |
|---|---|---|
3/4/2026 |
3 April 2026 | 4 March 2026 |
18.09.26 |
18 September 2026 | |
2026-09-18, 2026/9/18 |
18 September 2026 | 18 September 2026 |
18092026, 1809 |
18 September (this year for 4 digits) | |
18 sep, Sept 18th, 2026, 18 September 2026 |
18 September | 18 September |
today, tomorrow, yesterday |
||
friday, next friday, last mon |
the coming Friday, the one after, the previous Monday | |
in 2 weeks, 3 days ago, +10d, -1m, +1y |
||
end of month, start of month, next month |
Numbers follow the locale's order. Two-digit years land within 80 years back and 20 years ahead.
Arabic and Urdu work too:
- Words: اليوم, بكرة, أمس and بعد ٣ أيام are recognised, as are weekday names such as الجمعة or جمعہ.
- Digits: Arabic-Indic and Persian digits are read anywhere in the text.
In a Hijri or Persian picker, numbers are read in that calendar: 1/9/1447 is 1 Ramadan 1447.
When it's read
While the calendar is open, the grid follows what's typed and the footer previews the date, e.g. Friday, 25 September 2026. The value is committed on Enter or when the field loses focus. Enter never submits a form with an unread date.
A date that can't be read, or one that isn't allowed, is left as typed. The field is then marked invalid, with a message the browser shows on submit:
- Enter a valid date.
- That date isn't available.
Size
The parser, with its English, Arabic and Urdu word tables, loads the first time the field is focused (about 2 KB compressed). The widget itself doesn't wait for it: ISO dates and clicks work immediately.
Turn typing off entirely with typing: false.