time() function in C

• Difficulty Level : Easy
• Last Updated : 15 Jul, 2021

The time() function is defined in time.h (ctime in C++) header file. This function returns the time since 00:00:00 UTC, January 1, 1970 (Unix timestamp) in seconds. If second is not a null pointer, the returned value is also stored in the object pointed to by second.

Syntax:  

time_t time( time_t *second )

Parameter: This function accepts single parameter second. This parameter is used to set the time_t object which store the time.
Return Value: This function returns current calendar time as a object of type time_t.

Program 1: 

• C

// C program to demonstrate

// example of time() function.

#include <stdio.h>

#include <time.h>

int main ()

{

    time_t seconds;

    seconds = time(NULL);

    printf("Seconds since January 1, 1970 = %ld\n", seconds);

    return(0);

}

Output: 

Seconds since January 1, 1970 = 1538123990

Example 2: 

• C

// C program to demonstrate

// example of time() function.

#include <stdio.h>

#include <time.h>

int main()

{

    time_t seconds;

     // Stores time seconds

    time(&seconds);

    printf("Seconds since January 1, 1970 = %ld\n", seconds);

    return 0;

}

Output: 

Seconds since January 1, 1970 = 1538123990