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. Open this template →
Relative date
Replaces the date with friendly wording — "Today", "Tomorrow", "in 5 days", "2 days ago". Great for activity and follow-up lists. Open this template →
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. Open this template →
How to apply it
- Open the generator on a date template (links above).
- Enter your column's internal field name.
- Click Copy.
- In SharePoint: Column settings → Format this column → Advanced mode, paste, Preview, Save.