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How to Change Date Created on Photos in Windows 11

How to change date created on photos in Windows 11: File Explorer cannot, so use one PowerShell line, exiftool for a whole folder, or a desktop app.

Windows 11 has no button to change the Date created of a photo. File Explorer shows it but does not let you edit it. You can change it with one line of PowerShell, which comes with Windows, or for a whole folder with the free tool exiftool or a desktop app. If you want photo apps to show a different date, change Date taken instead, because that is the date they sort by.

First: is Date created the date you need?

A photo on Windows has three dates:

  • Date created: when this copy of the file appeared on this disk. A file system date.
  • Date modified: when the file's contents were last saved. A file system date.
  • Date taken: when the camera took the picture. Stored inside the photo as EXIF.

Photos, OneDrive, Google Photos, iCloud and Immich sort by Date taken. They look at Date created or Date modified only when Date taken is missing. File Explorer sorts by whatever column you click.

So change Date created when you want File Explorer, backup tools or scripts to see the right date. To move a photo in a photo app's timeline, change Date taken: how to change date taken on photos in Windows 11. Doing both is best, and the bulk methods below can do both in one step.

Why Date created is wrong

Copying makes a new file, so Windows gives the copy a new Date created: the moment of the copy. Moving a file to another drive is a copy too. Downloading from a browser, saving an email attachment, unzipping a Google Takeout export and transferring from a phone over USB all do the same.

That is why a folder of 2015 holiday photos can show Date created of today while Date modified still says 2015.

Change Date created of one photo

  1. Open the folder in File Explorer.
  2. Right-click the photo and choose Copy as path.
  3. Right-click the Start button and open Terminal (PowerShell).
  4. Type the following, paste the path between the quotes, and press Enter:
(Get-Item "C:\Users\You\Pictures\IMG_1234.jpg").CreationTime = "2015-07-14 15:30"

Write the date as year-month-day and the time in 24-hour format, which PowerShell reads the same way on every language version of Windows. Press F5 in File Explorer to see the new date.

The same command with LastWriteTime changes Date modified.

Change Date created of many photos at once

All photos in a folder to one date (for example, a folder of scans from one event):

Get-ChildItem "C:\Users\You\Pictures\Scans 1998" -File | ForEach-Object { $_.CreationTime = "1998-12-24 18:00" }

Date created from Date modified (when Date modified is still right after a copy):

Get-ChildItem "C:\Users\You\Pictures\Holiday" -File -Recurse | ForEach-Object { $_.CreationTime = $_.LastWriteTime }

Date created from Date taken (the best source, if the photos have it). PowerShell cannot read EXIF easily, so use exiftool:

  1. Download the Windows package from exiftool.org and unpack it.
  2. Rename exiftool(-k).exe to exiftool.exe and keep it with its exiftool_files folder.
  3. Open Terminal in that folder and run, with your own photo folder:
.\exiftool.exe "-FileCreateDate<DateTimeOriginal" "-FileModifyDate<DateTimeOriginal" -r "C:\Users\You\Pictures\Holiday"

Photos with no Date taken are skipped and listed in the summary. Check which ones with:

.\exiftool.exe -r -if 'not $DateTimeOriginal' -filename "C:\Users\You\Pictures\Holiday"

Free GUI tools such as NirSoft BulkFileChanger can also set file dates for a selection of files, one fixed date at a time.

Can I change Date created in File Explorer?

No. In Properties, the General tab shows Created, Modified and Accessed, but they are read-only. The Details tab lets you change Date taken for JPEG files, but not Date created. The "Remove Properties and Personal Information" link removes metadata; it does not change file dates.

Google Takeout photos

After a Google Takeout export, every photo has a recent Date created, and many have no Date taken at all. The real date is in the .json file beside each photo, in photoTakenTime. PowerShell and the commands above cannot use it. How to fix Google Takeout dates on Windows shows the options, from exiftool to an app.

The app

Takeout JSON Metadata Fixer sets Date created, Date modified and Date taken to the same real date for a whole folder, with no command line.

It takes the date from the Takeout .json file if there is one, otherwise from the Date taken inside the photo, and lets you set a date by hand for a folder of scans. A dry run shows the plan first. It runs offline on Windows, Mac and Linux. The first 500 photos are free, and Premium is $19.99 once.

Frequently asked questions

Does changing Date created change the photo?

No. It changes only the file system entry. The image and its EXIF stay the same.

Why does Date created change back after I copy the photo?

The copy is a new file, and Windows gives it a new Date created. Copy with a tool that keeps it, such as robocopy with /COPY:DAT /DCOPY:T, or set it again after the copy.

Can I change Date created on HEIC or PNG files?

Yes. Date created is a file system date, so the PowerShell commands work on every file type, including videos.

Will OneDrive keep the new Date created?

Do not rely on it. Uploads, downloads and syncs to other devices often reset Date created. Date taken is inside the photo and always travels with it, so fix Date taken before you upload.

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