SharePoint date column formatting
Make deadlines obvious: highlight overdue dates in red, show how many days are left, or replace a raw date with friendly text like "Today" or "in 3 days".
A raw SharePoint date — 5/30/2026 — tells you very little at a glance. With column formatting JSON, a date column can react to how close (or past) the date is, so your most urgent items stand out without anyone reading every row.
Before and after
Three useful date templates
Days remaining
Shows a colored badge with the number of days left, turning red once the date is in the past. Best for due-date and deadline columns. Use this design →
Relative date
Replaces the date with friendly wording — "Today", "Tomorrow", "in 5 days", "2 days ago". Great for activity and follow-up lists. Use this design →
Date stepper
Adds − and + buttons so you can nudge a date forward or back a day right in the list view, without opening the item. Use this design →
How to apply it
The step-by-step guide spells out every click, with pictures. In short:
- Pick one of the three date designs above and click its Use this design link. It opens the step-by-step guide with that design already picked.
- In step 2, type your date column’s name.
- No Date and time column yet? Step 3 shows exactly how to add one.
- Click Copy my code.
- In your list, click the name at the top of your column, then Column settings, then Format this column. At the bottom of the panel that opens, click Advanced mode.
- Click inside the box, press Ctrl+A and then Delete to empty it, and press Ctrl+V to paste. Click Preview, then Save.