Oracle - Date and Time Functions

This article describes the date and time functions in Oracle.

Overview

Date and Time Function	Description
SYSDATE	Returns the current date and time
TRUNC(Date)	Truncates date to the specified part

Oracle - SYSDATE
Syntax	SYSDATE
Parameter	The function requires no arguments.
Description	Returns the current date and time set for the operating system on which the database resides.
Return Type	The datatype of the returned value is DATE, and the format returned depends on the value of the NLS_DATE_FORMAT initialization parameter.
Notice	You cannot use this function in the condition of a CHECK constraint.

Equivalents in Other Databases

Database	Equivalent
SQL Server	GETDATE - Returns the current system date and time.

Oracle - TRUNC(Date)
Syntax	TRUNC(date [, format])
Description	Truncates date to the part specified by format (DD - day, MM - month, YYYY - year, HH - hour, MI - minute). See Oracle SQL Reference for the full list of truncation options
Default	format is DD (day), truncation to year, month and day
Return Value	Return type is DATE

Example:

SELECT * FROM orders WHERE TRUNC(r_created)=TRUNC(SYSDATE);

Oracle TRUNC(Date) - Equivalents in Other Databases

Database	Equivalent
MySQL	DATE(date) - returns date (year, month, day)