[Thorrez]

mm/dd/yyyy is the most common format in the US. When speaking, I might say December 5, 2023, and this format matches that.

dd/mm/yyyy isn't objectively better IMO. It's what you're used to, making it easier for you to read. It's not what I'm used to, making it harder for me to read.

yyyy-mm-dd is the best format because it's sortable and unambiguous and standard: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_8601

yyyy/mm/dd isn't standard or commonly used AFAIK, so best to avoid it.

mm-dd-yyyy also isn't standard or commonly used AFAIK, so best to avoid it.

https://xkcd.com/1179/

[ghusto]

dd.mm.yyyy is better because it’s in an order, but that’s besides the point. If lots of native English speakers (Americans) use one way, and lots (U.K. and bros) use another, the only logical thing to do is use the unambiguous one (yyyy.mm.dd).

People who use mm.dd.yyyy in English text with no indication that they’re American, writing for Americans, have no place on this planet. Joking not joking.

[Thorrez]

>dd.mm.yyyy is better because it’s in an order,

DD/MM/YYYY vs MM/DD/YYYY each have pros and cons. I don't think we can objectively say 1 is better than the other. I agree YYYY-MM-DD is best. The standard is YYYY-MM-DD, not YYYY.MM.DD, so the dashed version is better than the dot version.

>People who use mm.dd.yyyy in English text with no indication that they’re American, writing for Americans, have no place on this planet. Joking not joking.

The same would apply to dd.mm.yyyy or dd/mm/yyyy with people who don't indicate what country they're from. A few other countries use DD/MM/YYYY:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Date_format_by_country

[ghusto]

> the dashed version is better than the dot version

:) yeah I'm fine with either. Just typed with dots out of habit.

> The same would apply to dd.mm.yyyy or dd/mm/yyyy with people who don't indicate what country they're from. A few other countries use DD/MM/YYYY

I thought maybe that was a typo and you meant "A few other countries use MM/DD/YYYY"? But then I looked on that page and only saw a few places that use a variety. Usually when a country uses multiple standards for anything, it's a sign that one of them is "token". For example English is one of two official languages in India:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India

English would be widely spoken there, but it's widely spoken everywhere without being an official language.

So if we take countries that say "yeah whatever, we'll do MM/DD/YYYY too", that leave America ;)

[Thorrez]

Oops, it was a typo, I did mean "A few other countries use MM/DD/YYYY".

According to the page, the Philippines, Panama, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands use it as the primary format.

And Ghana and Togo use MM/DD/YYYY as the primary format in Ewe.

According to [1], Canada's official format is YYYY-MM-DD; and both MM/DD/YYYY and DD/MM/YYYY will lead to confusion.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Date_and_time_notation_in_Cana...