How to Format an Access Date as Month and Year
Question details
The user needs an Access report to display dates as only the month and year (e.g., October, 2022) without converting the actual Date/Time data into text, ensuring chronological sorting still works.
- Product
- Microsoft Access
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Customizing the display format of a date field in an Access report or query.
- Observed behavior
- The report displays the full standard date (e.g., October 17, 2022), and attempting to use a Format expression manually results in a type error.
Verify that your table field is stored using the Date/Time data type rather than Short Text. This ensures formatting functions and chronological sorting operate correctly.
Adjust the Format Property in the Report Control
Changing the Format property of the specific text box is the simplest way to alter how the date looks without modifying the underlying data or risking expression errors.
Applying a custom format string directly to the control tells Access to visually format the date while keeping the actual Date/Time value intact behind the scenes. This guarantees that your reports will continue to sort chronologically rather than alphabetically.
Right-click your report in the Navigation Pane and select Design View or Layout View.
Click on the text box control that contains your date field.
Press the F4 key on your keyboard or click 'Property Sheet' on the Design tab to open the properties pane.
Navigate to the 'Format' tab within the Property Sheet. In the 'Format' row, type exactly: mmmm, yyyy
Save your changes and switch to Report View or Print Preview to verify the dates now display as 'October, 2022'.
Use the Format Function in the Control Source or Query
If you are calculating fields or require the formatting to occur at the query level, you can use the Format() expression.
Need to Format Dates in Spreadsheets?
While WPS Office does not include a database application like Microsoft Access, it provides a powerful, free alternative to Microsoft Office. If you frequently manipulate, sort, and format dates, WPS Spreadsheet offers intuitive custom formatting options that seamlessly handle Excel files without modifying your original data values.
- 1. Open your data in WPS Spreadsheet: Launch WPS Office and open your .xlsx or .csv data file.
- 2. Format the cells: Select the cells containing your dates, right-click, and choose 'Format Cells'.
- 3. Apply custom month/year formatting: Under the 'Number' tab, click 'Custom' and type 'mmmm, yyyy' in the Type box, then click OK.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my Format expression return a #Type! error?
A #Type! error usually occurs if the field you are referencing is stored as plain text instead of a Date/Time data type, if there are null or invalid text values in the date column, or if the field name inside the brackets is misspelled.
Will formatting the date as Month and Year ruin my chronological sorting?
No, as long as you change the 'Format' property of the report control rather than replacing the table data. The visual format changes to Month and Year, but Access retains the full underlying date to accurately sort records chronologically.
Can I format the date to show a slash between the month and year?
Yes. You can customize the format string to achieve this. By setting the Format property to 'mmmm / yyyy' or using the expression Format([DateField], "mmmm / yyyy"), your date will display as 'October / 2022'.
