 | This template is used onapproximately 1,020,000 pages, or roughly 2% of all pages. To avoid major disruption and server load, any changes should be tested in the template's/sandbox or/testcases subpages, or in your ownuser subpage. The tested changes can be added to this page in a single edit. Consider discussing changes on thetalk page before implementing them. |
 | This template usesLua: |
To promote consistent date formatting, place this template with other maintenance tags near the top of articles that use themmmm d, yyyydate format (below hatnotes, but above infoboxes, as per theManual of Style). The parameter|date= is intended to track the most recent month and year in which an editor orbot checked the article for inconsistent date formatting and, if any inconsistencies were found, fixed them to comply with this template's date formatting preference.
Wikipedia articles that usemmmm d, yyyy ("American") dates, either because of thefirst main contributor rule orclose national ties (seeWikipedia:Manual of Style/Dates and numbers, shortcut:WP:MOSNUM), are systematically tagged with{{Use mdy dates}} over time. The template is invisible except in edit mode.
The template lets editors know which date format to use when adding or editing dates in an article. It also facilitates article maintenance by enablingbots to recognize use of this format, and by adding the article to thehidden category calledUse mdy dates.
Use of this template is part of a continuing effort to monitor the date formats used in articles, to assist in maintaining consistent formatting within an article. It isnot a temporary "cleanup" template. Therefore, do not remove the template without valid reason, such as a determination that the article uses or should use a different date format.
After an article is tagged, periodic script or bot runs clean up formats, correct any new introductions since its last visit, andupdate the tracking date parameter in the{{Use mdy dates}} template.
The dmy and mdy templates have almost always been used to indicate date styles in the body of the articles; although itmay also indicate the flavour of dates in reference sections or parts thereof. Therefore, this template notice ought to be read in conjunction with the blurb atWikipedia:Date formattings.MOSNUM script documentation may also be relevant to those interested.
When a citation style does not expect differing date formats, it is permissible to normalize publication dates to the article body text date format, and/or access/archive dates to either, with date consistency being preferred (seeMOS:DATEUNIFY).
This template is intended for use in articles. It can be used on a template page in order to format citation dates on the template page itself, but it must be enclosed in<noinclude>...</noinclude> tags so that it is not transcluded into articles or other pages.
Citation Style 1 and2 (collectively cs1|2) templates automatically render dates (|date=,|access-date=,|archive-date=, etc.) in the style specified by this template. Because it is allowed byWP:MOSDATES, the cs1|2 templates can automatically format dates in a variety of styles. Editors may choose how cs1|2 templates render dates by the use of|cs1-dates=<keyword>. Something similar can be done with the dates in non-CS1 citation templates by usingModule:Auto date formatter.
| Keyword | Definition |
|---|---|
l | long-form publication and access- / archive-dates; this is the default case when |cs1-dates= is omitted or empty |
ll | |
ls | long-form publication dates; abbreviated access- / archive-dates |
ly | long-form publication dates; year-initial numeric access- / archive-dates (ymd) |
s | abbreviated publication and access- / archive-dates |
ss | |
sy | abbreviated publication dates; year-initial numeric access- / archive-dates (ymd) |
y | year-initial numeric publication, access- and archive-dates (ymd); cs1|2 cannot reformat Month YYYY, Season YYYY, date-ranges of any form, orJulian calendar dates into ymd format |
yy |
An example is given atHelp:Citation Style 1 § Auto-formatting citation template dates.
Nota bene: cs1|2 auto-date formatting does not apply when previewing an article section that does not contain a{{use xxx dates}} template. When editing with the visual editor, changes to this template do not take effect until the page is saved.
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2025}}
Notes:
TemplateData for Use mdy dates
This template should be placed near the top of articles that use the mmmm d, yyyy date format.
| Parameter | Description | Type | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month and year | date | The month and year that the article was last checked for inconsistent date formatting. May use "{{subst:DATE}}" template instead
| Date | suggested |
| cs1-dates | cs1-dates | How dates should be formatted in CS1 citations
| Unknown | optional |
If you determine that an article is incorrectly tagged with this template, e.g. due tostrong national ties orhistorical precedence, you should replace this template with the correct one or at least remove it. This will prevent scripts and bots from applying the "wrong" format.
d mmmm yyyy format