Programming
programming
time
unix
What is Unix Timestamp?
Definition
A Unix timestamp (epoch time) is the number of seconds that have elapsed since January 1, 1970, 00:00:00 UTC (the Unix epoch). For example, 1700000000 represents November 14, 2023. Timestamps are timezone-independent integers.
Why It Matters
Unix timestamps are the standard way to store and compare times in databases, APIs, and logs. They avoid timezone ambiguity, are easy to sort and compare, and consume less storage than formatted date strings. Most JWT tokens use Unix timestamps for expiration.
Code Example
import time
timestamp = int(time.time())
print(timestamp) # 1700000000 (example)Language: python