C# - Calculating time difference in minutes

Question

I have got the following code:

DateTime start = DateTime.Now;
Thread.Sleep(60000);
DateTime end = DateTime.Now;

and I would like to calculate the difference in minutes between start and end. How am I supposed to do it? For the example above, the result should be '1'.

Thanks in advance!

The result is not guaranteed to be 1. It might be 1, it might be greater. `Sleep` only guarantees that no work will be done for `n` milliseconds, not that work will resume in `n` milliseconds. Don't be surprised if your result is incorrect at times. — Kenneth K., Jul 18 '17 at 13:21
You should *not* use `DateTime.Now` to measure the performance of code. Use a `System.Diagnostics.Stopwatch`. Please read [Five Common Daylight Saving Time Antipatterns of .NET Developers](http://codeofmatt.com/2015/03/06/common-daylight-saving-time-mistakes-for-net-developers/) — Matt Johnson-Pint, Jul 18 '17 at 15:34

Mighty Badaboom · Accepted Answer · 2017-07-18T13:26:14.943

40

You could use the Subtract method and using TotalMinutes.

var result = end.Subtract(start).TotalMinutes;

If you need it without fractional minutes just cast it as an int.

var result = (int)end.Subtract(start).TotalMinutes;

Have a look at the MSDN for further information: Substract and TotalMinutes

edited Jul 18 '17 at 13:26

answered Jul 18 '17 at 13:20

Mighty Badaboom

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Thanks, that's easier than I expected! – P Sawicki Jul 18 '17 at 13:22
I wanted to ask, what's the difference between var and int in this example? – P Sawicki Jul 18 '17 at 13:22
1

@PSawicki, I would go and check in MSDN rather asking it – Rahul Jul 18 '17 at 13:23
@PSawicki `TotalMinutes` is a `double`, so that `var` would be `double`, too. – René Vogt Jul 18 '17 at 13:23
1

@PSawicki [var information](https://learn.microsoft.com/de-de/dotnet/csharp/language-reference/keywords/var) – Mighty Badaboom Jul 18 '17 at 13:23
You can also just use the `-` operator: `result = end - start;` which is easier to read IMO. – Chris Dunaway Jul 18 '17 at 14:30

score 7 · Answer 2 · answered Jul 18 '17 at 13:36

7

I think a more elegant way of doing it would be by using the Stopwatch-Class

Stopwatch stopWatch = new Stopwatch();
stopWatch.Start();
Thread.Sleep(10000);
stopWatch.Stop();
// Get the elapsed time as a TimeSpan value.
TimeSpan ts = stopWatch.Elapsed;

answered Jul 18 '17 at 13:36

Xzibitee

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It's not just about elegance. This is the only correct way to measure elapsed time. – Matt Johnson-Pint Jul 18 '17 at 15:33

score 3 · Answer 3 · answered Jul 18 '17 at 13:21

3

Simply take the difference (and maybe round it if you want):

double preciseDifference = (end - start).TotalMinutes;
int differentMinutes = (int)preciseDifference;

answered Jul 18 '17 at 13:21

René Vogt

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score 1 · Answer 4 · edited Jul 18 '17 at 14:27

1

Use TimeSpan.

It represents a time interval and will give you the difference that you're looking for.

Here's an example.

TimeSpan span = end.Subtract ( start );

Console.WriteLine( "Time Difference (minutes): " + span.Minutes );

edited Jul 18 '17 at 14:27

Ortund

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answered Jul 18 '17 at 13:20

meta4

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C# - Calculating time difference in minutes

4 Answers4