Minutes function

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Converts a date value into the number of minutes since January 1, 1970, as a numeric value.

Syntax

Minutes(date_expression, date_format)

Parameters

  • date_expression: The date to convert. Format must be a supported date format. Note: This parameter accepts an expression, meaning you can provide a literal value, a column reference, or the result of another function. Required
  • date_format: The format of the date string. Required only if the date_expression is not in a standard supported format. OptionalAn expression that evaluates to a date to be converted to a double value. The format is MM/DD/YYYY HH:MM or any other standard date format supported by the application.

Behavior

  • Takes a date input and converts it to a numeric value representing minutes since the epoch (January 1, 1970).
  • If no date_format is provided, the application assumes the input is in a supported standard format.
  • The result is useful for calculating time differences, durations, or performing time-based arithmetic.

Return type

Number

Example

Assume you want to calculate the duration of support calls. You have a data set with two columns: SupportTicket_Start and SupportTicket_End. The data in the columns is in the format MMDDYYYY HH:MM. You define a third column in the table to calculate the length of each call. The formula for the third column is:

=(Minutes({SupportTicket_End}))-(Minutes({SupportTicket_Start}))

The result is shown below:

Note:
  • If the input date is in a non-standard format, use the date_format parameter to specify the correct format.
  • See the DateFormat function for formatting rules.
  • Common date formats include MM/DD/YYYY, YYYY-MM-DD, and MM/DD/YYYY HH:MM.