How to add time onto a DateTime object in Python

In Python, adding time (such as hours, minutes, seconds, or days) to a datetime object is commonly done using the timedelta class from the datetime module. This allows precise manipulation of date and time values, including performing arithmetic operations on datetime objects. It's key features include:

• Add or subtract specific time durations to/from datetime objects.
• Supports various time units like days, seconds, microseconds, minutes, hours and weeks.
• Useful for time calculations, scheduling and generating timestamps.

Example:

from datetime import datetime, timedelta

a = datetime.now() # current datetime
b = a + timedelta(days=10) # datetime after 10 days

print("Now:", a)
print("In 10 days:", b)

Now: 2025-05-24 06:00:32.837564
In 10 days: 2025-06-03 06:00:32.837564

Explanation:

• datetime.now() captures the current date and time.
• a + timedelta(days=10) adds 10 days to the current datetime a to get the future datetime b.

Syntax

datetime.timedelta(days=0, seconds=0, microseconds=0, milliseconds=0, minutes=0, hours=0, weeks=0)

Parameters:

Returns: This method returns a datetime.timedelta object which represents a duration (not an absolute date). This object can be added to or subtracted from datetime.datetime or datetime.date objects to perform date/time arithmetic.

Examples

Example 1: Add 1 day to a datetime object

from datetime import datetime, timedelta
a = datetime(2025, 5, 24, 10, 0, 0)

b = a + timedelta(days=1)
print("Original:", a)
print("After Adding 1 Day:", b)

Original: 2025-05-24 10:00:00
After Adding 1 Day: 2025-05-25 10:00:00

Explanation: datetime(2025, 5, 24, 10, 0, 0) creates a specific datetime object for May 24, 2025, 10:00:00 AM and a + timedelta(days=1) adds 1 day to the datetime a, resulting in b.

Example 2: Add hours and minutes

from datetime import datetime, timedelta
a = datetime(2025, 5, 24, 14, 30)

b = a + timedelta(hours=2, minutes=15)
print("Updated Datetime:", b)

Updated Datetime: 2025-05-24 16:45:00

Explanation: datetime(2025, 5, 24, 14, 30) creates a specific datetime object for May 24, 2025, 2:30 PM and a + timedelta(hours=2, minutes=15) adds 2 hours and 15 minutes to the datetime a, resulting in b.

Example 3: Subtract Hours from a Datetime

from datetime import datetime, timedelta

a = datetime(2025, 5, 24, 12, 0)
b = a - timedelta(hours=3)

print("New Datetime:", b)

New Datetime: 2025-05-24 09:00:00

Explanation: datetime(2025, 5, 24, 12, 0) creates a specific datetime object for May 24, 2025, 12:00 PM and a - timedelta(hours=3) subtracts 3 hours from the datetime a, resulting in b.

Example 4: Add weeks, days and hours

from datetime import datetime, timedelta
a = datetime(2025, 5, 24, 9, 0)

b = a + timedelta(weeks=1, days=2, hours=5)
print("Final Datetime:", b)

Final Datetime: 2025-06-02 14:00:00

Explanation: datetime(2025, 5, 24, 9, 0) creates a datetime object for May 24, 2025, 9:00 AM and a + timedelta(weeks=1, days=2, hours=5) adds 1 week, 2 days and 5 hours to a, resulting in b.