Timestamps in MySQL are generally used to track changes to records, and are often updated every time the record is changed. If you want to store a specific value you should use a datetime field.

If you meant that you want to decide between using a UNIX timestamp or a native MySQL datetime field, go with the native DATETIME format. You can do calculations within MySQL that way ("SELECT DATE_ADD(my_datetime, INTERVAL 1 DAY)") and it is simple to change the format of the value to a UNIX timestamp ("SELECT UNIX_TIMESTAMP(my_datetime)") when you query the record if you want to operate on it with PHP.

Also, as of MySQL 8.0.19 the DATETIME supports time zone offsets, so there's even less reason to use TIMESTAMP now.

Answer from blivet on Stack Overflow
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MySQL
dev.mysql.com › doc › refman › 8.4 › en › datetime.html
MySQL :: MySQL 8.4 Reference Manual :: 13.2.2 The DATE, DATETIME, and TIMESTAMP Types
The DATETIME type is used for values that contain both date and time parts. MySQL retrieves and displays DATETIME values in 'YYYY-MM-DD hh:mm:ss' format. The supported range is '1000-01-01 00:00:00' to '9999-12-31 23:59:59'. The TIMESTAMP data type is used for values that contain both date ...
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W3Schools
w3schools.com › sql › func_mysql_timestamp.asp
MySQL TIMESTAMP() Function
❮ Previous ❮ MySQL Functions Next ❯ · Return a datetime value based on the arguments: SELECT TIMESTAMP("2017-07-23", "13:10:11"); Try it Yourself » · The TIMESTAMP() function returns a datetime value based on a date or datetime value.
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MySQL
dev.mysql.com › doc › refman › 9.6 › en › datetime.html
MySQL :: MySQL 9.6 Reference Manual :: 13.2.2 The DATE, DATETIME, and TIMESTAMP Types
The DATETIME type is used for values that contain both date and time parts. MySQL retrieves and displays DATETIME values in 'YYYY-MM-DD hh:mm:ss' format. The supported range is '1000-01-01 00:00:00' to '9999-12-31 23:59:59'. The TIMESTAMP data type is used for values that contain both date ...
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Sqliz
sqliz.com › mysql-ref › timestamp-datatype
Introduction to MySQL TIMESTAMP Data Type
The TIMESTAMP data type in MySQL is used to store dates and times.
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softwaretestinghelp.com › home › mysql › mysql date format and timestamp functions with examples
MySQL Date Format And Timestamp Functions With Examples
April 1, 2025 - This comprehensive tutorial provides syntax and examples of MySQL Date Format and Timestamp functions like current date, add date, add time.
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sitepoint.com › blog › ai › what claude code actually chooses: research reveals ai tool preferences
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MySQL
dev.mysql.com › doc › refman › 8.4 › en › fractional-seconds.html
MySQL :: MySQL 8.4 Reference Manual :: 13.2.6 Fractional Seconds in Time Values
CREATE TABLE fractest( c1 TIME(2), c2 DATETIME(2), c3 TIMESTAMP(2) ); INSERT INTO fractest VALUES ('17:51:04.777', '2018-09-08 17:51:04.777', '2018-09-08 17:51:04.777'); The temporal values are inserted into the table with rounding: mysql> SELECT * FROM fractest; +-------------+------------------------+------------------------+ | c1 | c2 | c3 | +-------------+------------------------+------------------------+ | 17:51:04.78 | 2018-09-08 17:51:04.78 | 2018-09-08 17:51:04.78 | +-------------+------------------------+------------------------+
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MySQL Tutorial
mysqltutorial.org › home › mysql basics › mysql timestamp data type
MySQL TIMESTAMP Data Type
December 28, 2023 - In the categories table, the created_at column is a TIMESTAMP column whose default value is set to CURRENT_TIMESTAMP. Second, insert a new row into the categories table without specifying the value for the created_at column: INSERT INTO categories(name) VALUES ('A');Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql) SELECT * FROM categories;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql) The output indicates that MySQL used the timestamp at the time of insertion as a default value for the created_at column.
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MySQL
dev.mysql.com › doc › refman › 9.6 › en › timestamp-initialization.html
MySQL :: MySQL 9.6 Reference Manual :: 13.2.5 Automatic Initialization and Updating for TIMESTAMP and DATETIME
TIMESTAMP or DATETIME column definitions can specify the current timestamp for both the default and auto-update values, for one but not the other, or for neither. Different columns can have different combinations of automatic properties.
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GeeksforGeeks
geeksforgeeks.org › mysql › datetime-vs-timestamp-data-type-in-mysql
DATETIME vs TIMESTAMP Data Type in MySQL? - GeeksforGeeks
July 23, 2025 - The TIMESTAMP data type stores date and time information in the format YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS as well, but it is influenced by the timezone settings of the MySQL server.
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Sqliz
sqliz.com › posts › mysql-timestamp-examples
How to use the MySQL TIMESTAMP() function
For example, TIMESTAMPADD(MINUTE, 1, '2023-01-15 10:02:34') returns ‘2023-01-15 10:03:34’, which is the timestamp value after adding one minute. In this article, we learned how to use the MySQL TIMESTAMP() function, which returns the timestamp value of a date, datetime, or timestamp value, or a string that can be converted to a timestamp value.
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MD5 Hash Generator
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MD5 Hash Generator
This MD5 hash generator is useful for encoding passwords, credit cards numbers and other sensitive date into MySQL, Postgress or other databases.
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MySQL
dev.mysql.com › doc › refman › 8.4 › en › timestamp-initialization.html
MySQL :: MySQL 8.4 Reference Manual :: 13.2.5 Automatic Initialization and Updating for TIMESTAMP and DATETIME
TIMESTAMP or DATETIME column definitions can specify the current timestamp for both the default and auto-update values, for one but not the other, or for neither. Different columns can have different combinations of automatic properties.
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PlanetScale
planetscale.com › blog › datetimes-vs-timestamps-in-mysql
Datetimes versus timestamps in MySQL — PlanetScale
June 22, 2023 - TIMESTAMP on the other hand, tries to "help you out" by always converting to and from UTC. From the documentation: MySQL converts TIMESTAMP values from the current time zone to UTC for storage, and back from UTC to the current time zone for retrieval.
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Oreate AI
oreateai.com › blog › understanding-mysqls-timestamp-a-deep-dive-into-date-and-time-data-types › f85ee623a528799926af73b2cb0e2a7a
Understanding MySQL's TIMESTAMP: A Deep Dive Into Date and Time Data Types - Oreate AI Blog
January 15, 2026 - This happens because the valid range for TIMESTAMP values is strictly between January 1st, 1970 and December 31st, 2037. Thus setting it to zero leads directly into trouble. When creating tables in MySQL involving timestamps, consider how these fields will behave during INSERT or UPDATE operations:
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TutorialsPoint
tutorialspoint.com › for-timestamp-which-datatype-is-used-in-mysql
For timestamp, which datatype is used in MySQL?
August 23, 2019 - The TIMESTAMP data type is used for values containing both date and time parts. Let us first create a table − · mysql> create table DemoTable662( UserId int NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT PRIMARY KEY,UserName varchar(100),UserPostDate datetime ); Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.50 sec)
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MySQL
dev.mysql.com › doc › refman › 8.4 › en › date-and-time-functions.html
MySQL :: MySQL 8.4 Reference Manual :: 14.7 Date and Time Functions
The CURRENT_TIMESTAMP(), ... value of the time_zone system variable. In addition, UNIX_TIMESTAMP() assumes that its argument is a datetime value in the session time zone. See Section 7.1.15, “MySQL Server Time Zone Support”....
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EDUCBA
educba.com › home › data science › data science tutorials › mysql tutorial › mysql timestamp
MySQL Timestamp | How Timestamp Data Type Works in MySQL ?
May 15, 2023 - MySQL Timestamp is a time-based MySQL data type containing date and time together. Timestamp supports Universal Time Coordinated(UTC) for MySQL. The format of the timestamp in MySQL is set to 19 characters: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS.
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