Excel DAYS Function

DAYS returns the number of days between two dates. It is the clearest, most readable way to express a date difference in Excel — more self-documenting than subtracting dates directly, though both approaches produce the same result.

Syntax

DAYS(end_date, start_date)

Argument	What it means
end_date required	The later date. Can be a cell reference, date text in quotes, or a DATE formula.
start_date required	The earlier date.

⚠️ Argument order is end first, start second

DAYS(end, start) — the end date comes first. If you put start first, you'll get a negative number. This is the opposite of what feels intuitive to most people.

Examples

=DAYS(B2, A2)
-- Days between date in A2 and date in B2

=DAYS(TODAY(), A2)
-- How many days since the date in A2

=DAYS(DATE(2026,12,31), DATE(2026,1,1))
-- Days in 2026 (returns 364)

DAYS vs simple subtraction

These two formulas return identical results:

=DAYS(B2, A2)
=B2 - A2

The difference is readability. DAYS(B2, A2) makes the intent immediately clear to anyone reading the formula. B2 - A2 works but requires knowing both cells contain dates.

DAYS vs DATEDIF vs NETWORKDAYS

DAYS — total calendar days between two dates, simple and fast
DATEDIF — difference in years, months, or days separately (useful for age calculations)
NETWORKDAYS — working days only, excluding weekends and optionally holidays

What if the result shows a date instead of a number?

Excel may format the result cell as a date automatically. Right-click → Format Cells → Number → General to display it as a plain number of days.

Can DAYS return negative numbers?

Yes, if start_date is later than end_date. This often means you've put the arguments in the wrong order.

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Syntax

Examples

DAYS vs simple subtraction

DAYS vs DATEDIF vs NETWORKDAYS

Practice DAYS for real