DateTime::createFromFormat
You don't need to calculate the exact difference if you just want to know what date comes earlier:
<?php
date_default_timezone_set('Europe/Madrid');
$d1 = new DateTime('1492-01-01');
$d2 = new DateTime('1492-12-31');
var_dump($d1 < $d2);
var_dump($d1 > $d2);
var_dump($d1 == $d2);
?>
bool(true)
bool(false)
bool(false)
DateTime::diff
(PHP 5 >= 5.3.0)
DateTime::diff — Returns the difference between two DateTime objects
Description
Returns the difference between two DateTime objects.
Parameters
- datetime
-
The date to compare to.
- absolute
-
Whether to return absolute difference. Defaults to FALSE.
Return Values
The difference between two dates.
add a note
User Contributed NotesDateTime::diff
Anonymous
04-Aug-2009 12:17
04-Aug-2009 12:17
thinice at gmail dot com
17-Jul-2009 07:29
17-Jul-2009 07:29
Some stuff to help you get started:
<?php
// See what's inside
$oDT = new DateTime();
var_dump($oDT);
?>
To do a date difference:
<?php
$oDT = new DateTime(); //Sets the object to now
$oDTDiff = $oDT->diff(new DateTime('2009-08-18 00:00:01'));
var_dump($oDTDiff);
echo "Days of difference: ". $oDTDiff->days;
?>