How can I compare dates using Python?

Question

If I have a hard coded date, how can I compare it to a date that is given by the user?

I want to eventually compare a persons birthday to see how old they are. Can someone point me in the right direction?

i dont think i learned that yet. im in a intro python class, and we have to use strings — atm atm
– atm atm, Commented Oct 16, 2012 at 21:44
time.strptime uses strings. Check it out in the documentation. — the Tin Man
– the Tin Man, Commented Oct 16, 2012 at 21:45
somehow I dont think you are expected to evaluate the strings manually ... you need to convert them to a comparable value such as a time object or a datetime object ... — Joran Beasley
– Joran Beasley, Commented Oct 16, 2012 at 21:47

Ben Hoyt · Accepted Answer · 2012-10-16 21:51:19Z

3

You'll want to use Python's standard library datetime module to parse and convert the "date given by the user" to a datetime.date instance and then subtract that from the current date, datetime.date.today(). For example:

>>> birthdate_str = raw_input('Enter your birthday (yyyy-mm-dd): ')
Enter your birthday (yyyy-mm-dd): 1981-08-04
>>> birthdatetime = datetime.datetime.strptime(birthdate_str, '%Y-%m-%d')
>>> birthdate = birthdatetime.date()  # convert from datetime to just date
>>> age = datetime.date.today() - birthdate
>>> age
datetime.timedelta(11397)

age is a datetime.timedelta instance, and the 11397 is their age in days (available directly via age.days).

To get their age in years, you could do something like this:

>>> int(age.days / 365.24)
31

answered Oct 16, 2012 at 21:51

Ben Hoyt

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