How It Works

Subtracting TODAY() from a future date returns the number of days between them. This simple formula is essential for tracking financial deadlines, goal timelines, and payment due dates.

Syntax

=target_date - TODAY()

Or using DAYS function:

=DAYS(target_date, TODAY())

Example

Tax Deadline:

Target: April 15, 2025
Today: January 15, 2025

Formula: =DATE(2025,4,15) - TODAY()

Result: 90 days

Financial Deadline Tracker

Deadline	Date	Days Left	Status
Tax filing	4/15/2025	90	=IF(C2>30,“OK”,“Soon”)
IRA contribution	4/15/2025	90	OK
Property tax	2/1/2025	17	Soon
Insurance renewal	3/1/2025	45	OK

Formula for Days Left: =B2-TODAY()

Status formula:

=IF(C2<0, "OVERDUE", IF(C2<7, "URGENT", IF(C2<30, "Soon", "OK")))

Weeks and Months Until

Weeks

=(target_date - TODAY()) / 7

Months (Approximate)

=(target_date - TODAY()) / 30.44

Months (Precise)

=DATEDIF(TODAY(), target_date, "M")

Goal Timeline Calculator

Track progress toward financial goals:

Goal	Target Date	Days Left	% Time Elapsed
Emergency Fund	6/30/2025	=B2-TODAY()	=(TODAY()-start)/(B2-start)
Vacation Fund	8/15/2025	212	35%
Down Payment	12/31/2026	715	15%

Bill Due Date Alerts

Create automatic alerts for upcoming bills:

Bill	Due Date	Days Until	Alert
Rent	=DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),MONTH(TODAY())+1,1)	=B2-TODAY()	=IF(C2<=5,“Pay Now”,"")
Electric	15	=next15th-TODAY()
Credit Card	22	=next22nd-TODAY()

Formula for next occurrence of day 15:

=IF(DAY(TODAY())>15,
    DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),MONTH(TODAY())+1,15),
    DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),MONTH(TODAY()),15))

Countdown Formatting

Show as “X days”

=C2 & " days"

Show as “X weeks, Y days”

=INT(C2/7) & " weeks, " & MOD(C2,7) & " days"

Show as “X months, Y days”

=DATEDIF(TODAY(),B2,"M") & " months, " & DATEDIF(TODAY(),B2,"MD") & " days"

Recurring Date Calculations

Days Until Next Payday (Biweekly)

=14 - MOD(TODAY() - last_payday, 14)

Days Until End of Month

=EOMONTH(TODAY(), 0) - TODAY()

Days Until End of Year

=DATE(YEAR(TODAY()), 12, 31) - TODAY()

Days Until Specific Day of Week

Days until next Friday:

=MOD(6 - WEEKDAY(TODAY(), 2), 7)

(Where Monday=1, Friday=5, Sunday=7)

Age Calculations

Current Age

=DATEDIF(birthdate, TODAY(), "Y")

Days Until Birthday

=DATE(IF(DATE(YEAR(TODAY()),MONTH(birth),DAY(birth))<TODAY(),
    YEAR(TODAY())+1, YEAR(TODAY())),MONTH(birth),DAY(birth)) - TODAY()

Days Until Retirement (Age 65)

=DATE(YEAR(birthdate)+65, MONTH(birthdate), DAY(birthdate)) - TODAY()

Conditional Formatting

Highlight deadlines by urgency:

Select the Days Until column
Format → Conditional formatting
Add rules:
- Less than 0 → Red (overdue)
- Less than 7 → Orange (urgent)
- Less than 30 → Yellow (soon)

Pro Tips

Use TODAY() not a fixed date - formula updates automatically
WORKDAYS for business days - excludes weekends:
```
=NETWORKDAYS(TODAY(), target_date)
```
Add holidays - NETWORKDAYS can exclude holiday dates:
```
=NETWORKDAYS(TODAY(), target, holidays_range)
```
Handle past dates - use ABS() if you want positive numbers regardless:
```
=ABS(target_date - TODAY())
```
Refresh manually - TODAY() updates when spreadsheet recalculates, not in real-time

Common Errors

Negative numbers: Date has passed - consider using conditional formatting to highlight
Decimal results: You’re subtracting date-times, not just dates - use =INT(target-TODAY())
Wrong date format: Ensure target date is actually a date value, not text

Days Until Date