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How to Fix Excel Date Format Changing in OneDrive
Question details
The user needs to prevent date formats from automatically changing when an Excel workbook is uploaded to OneDrive or opened in Excel for the web.
- Product
- Excel for the web, OneDrive
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Uploading an Excel file to OneDrive and viewing or editing it online in Excel for the web.
- Observed behavior
- Dates originally formatted as dd/mm/yyyy in the desktop application automatically change to the US format mm/dd/yyyy in the web browser.
Verify whether you are viewing the workbook in the desktop version of Excel or Excel for the web, as the web version uses separate regional settings that may differ from your computer's local system settings.
Adjust Regional Settings in Excel for the Web
Changing the regional settings directly within Excel for the web will align the online display format with your preferred local date format.
Excel for the web relies on cloud-based account settings rather than your computer's local operating system settings. By default, these might be set to a US locale, which forces the mm/dd/yyyy date format. Updating this specific setting will resolve the formatting inconsistency.
Navigate to OneDrive and open the affected Excel workbook in Excel for the web.
Click on 'File' located in the top-left corner of the ribbon.
Select 'Options' from the left-hand navigation pane.
Click on 'Regional Format Settings' and choose your desired locale (for example, English (United Kingdom)) to enforce the dd/mm/yyyy format.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does OneDrive change my date format to mm/dd/yyyy?
Excel for the web uses the regional settings tied to your Microsoft account or browser environment. If these default to a US locale, it automatically formats dates as mm/dd/yyyy regardless of how they were formatted on your desktop.
Does changing regional settings in Excel for the web affect the desktop app?
No, the desktop version of Excel relies on your Windows or Mac system's regional settings, while Excel for the web utilizes its own separate online settings.
How do I permanently make dd/mm/yyyy my default date format?
For desktop Excel, you must change your operating system's regional settings to a locale that uses dd/mm/yyyy. For Excel for the web, you need to adjust your account's regional settings via the File > Options menu online.
