Why is the Date format changing?

Question

I have an Excel spreadsheet where there is a date column, and the date is entered in the format of dd/mm/yyyy.

When I open this file in My Excel, the Date column converts to date, but in the format of mm/dd/yyyy automatically.

i.e., 12/03/2009 4:44:44 (12March) but it takes it as 3rd Dec 09..

Would you please shed some light on the matter.

Thanks & Regards

Ashok Kr Gpta

Answer 1

You need to set the formatting of the cell to ensure that the format is displayed properly.

Right-click on the cell, Format Cell.

Select Date

Choose the proper format

Answer 2

Try Changing the cell formatting.

Format Cells -> Number -> Date

You might have to change the locale from English(US) to the appropriate localization.

Answer 3

Just because the date appears in a certain format doesn't mean it will accept that format as input as well.

I believe the format accepted for input depends on your regional settings in Windows. (Start > Control Panel > Regional and Language Options)

If you just want to show the same format as was inputted, you need to change the cell's format options. (Right-click the cell and choose Format)