SharePoint Document Issues

Fix SharePoint Date Grouping Displaying Wrong Year and Month Format

Huda Qurayshi Oct 14, 2026 869 views

Question details

Users need to correct a SharePoint list where dates grouped by year and month display in the wrong format, such as showing only the year or formatting it as y,yyy.

Fix SharePoint Date Grouping Displaying Wrong Year and Month Format

Product: SharePoint
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Viewing a SharePoint list with a view configured to group items by a date column.
Observed behavior: The date grouping displays the format incorrectly (e.g., y,yyy) for certain users, likely conflicting with personal or site-wide regional settings.

Before you start

Confirm whether the issue affects all users or just specific individuals, and verify that the column in question is designated as a true Date and Time field rather than a standard Number field.

Solution 1Recommended

Verify and Align Regional Settings

Check the SharePoint site's regional settings against the affected user's personal settings to ensure date and number formats match.

In SharePoint, individual user regional settings can override site-wide defaults. If a user's locale separates thousands with a comma, a year might accidentally render as 'y,yyy' if SharePoint misinterprets the grouping.

Access Site Settings

As a site owner, click the Gear icon (Settings) in the top right corner, select 'Site information', and then click 'View all site settings'.

Check Regional Settings

Under the 'Site Administration' section, click on 'Regional settings' to view the default locale, date, and time formats for the site.

Compare with User Settings

Ask the affected user to check their personal account regional settings (via their Microsoft 365 profile) to ensure they are not using a conflicting locale that forces incorrect date grouping.

Apply changes: It may take a short amount of time for personal regional setting changes to reflect across all SharePoint list views.

Solution 2

Convert Grouping to a Calculated Text Column

Use a calculated column to strictly format the date as text, bypassing SharePoint's default date-grouping behavior.

Free Microsoft Office alternative

Manage Exported SharePoint Lists Easily with WPS Office

While SharePoint configuration requires Microsoft 365 admin settings, analyzing and formatting your exported list data can be done seamlessly in WPS Office. It provides a lightweight, free alternative to Microsoft Office that gives you complete control over date formats, pivots, and list groupings.

1. Export Data: In your SharePoint list, click 'Export to Excel' to download your data as an .iqy or .xlsx file.
2. Open in WPS Spreadsheet: Launch WPS Office and open the exported file to view your raw list data.
3. Format Custom Dates: Select your date column, right-click to choose 'Format Cells', and easily apply your preferred custom Year and Month format.

Fully compatible with Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) formats for exported SharePoint listsRobust date and time formatting tools without regional sync conflictsFree, lightweight, and fast performance for handling large datasetsFamiliar spreadsheet interface ensuring a zero-learning-curve migration

microsoft office alternative - wps office

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does SharePoint add a comma to the year in my grouped list?

This usually occurs when SharePoint incorrectly interprets the year portion of a grouped date as a standard number. If the user's regional settings use commas as thousand separators, the year 2024 might display as 2,024.

Do personal regional settings override SharePoint site defaults?

Yes. If a user modifies their Microsoft 365 profile's language and regional settings, those personal preferences take precedence over the SharePoint site's default regional settings when they view a list.

Can I group dates by month and year without creating extra columns?

Yes, if the column is a standard Date and Time field, SharePoint provides built-in options to group by specific date elements. However, if regional settings cause display bugs, creating a calculated text column is the most reliable workaround.

Document & File Issues