Python Pandas - Format Timedelta as ISO 8601

To format Timedelta as ISO 8601, use the timedelta.isoformat() method. The ISO 8601 duration format represents time periods using a standardized string notation starting with "P" for period.

What is ISO 8601 Duration Format?

ISO 8601 duration format uses the pattern P[n]DT[n]H[n]M[n]S where:

• P − Indicates the start of a period
• D − Days
• T − Separates date and time components
• H − Hours
• M − Minutes
• S − Seconds (including fractional seconds)

Creating and Formatting a Timedelta

First, let's create a Timedelta object and format it as ISO 8601 ?

import pandas as pd

# Create a Timedelta object
timedelta = pd.Timedelta('4 days 11 hours 38 min 20 s 35 ms 55 ns')

# Display the Timedelta
print("Timedelta...")
print(timedelta)

# Format as ISO 8601
iso_format = timedelta.isoformat()

# Display the ISO 8601 formatted result
print("\nFormat Timedelta as ISO 8601...")
print(iso_format)

Timedelta...
4 days 11:38:20.035000055

Format Timedelta as ISO 8601...
P4DT11H38M20.035000055S

Multiple Examples

Let's see how different Timedelta values are formatted ?

import pandas as pd

# Different Timedelta examples
examples = [
    pd.Timedelta('2 days'),
    pd.Timedelta('5 hours 30 minutes'),
    pd.Timedelta('1 day 2 hours 15 minutes 30 seconds'),
    pd.Timedelta('45 minutes 20 seconds 500 milliseconds')
]

for i, td in enumerate(examples, 1):
    print(f"Example {i}:")
    print(f"  Timedelta: {td}")
    print(f"  ISO 8601:  {td.isoformat()}")
    print()

Example 1:
  Timedelta: 2 days 00:00:00
  ISO 8601:  P2DT0H0M0S

Example 2:
  Timedelta: 0 days 05:30:00
  ISO 8601:  P0DT5H30M0S

Example 3:
  Timedelta: 1 days 02:15:30
  ISO 8601:  P1DT2H15M30S

Example 4:
  Timedelta: 0 days 00:45:20.500000
  ISO 8601:  P0DT0H45M20.5S

Use Cases

ISO 8601 format is particularly useful for:

• API responses − Standardized time duration representation
• Data serialization − Storing durations in databases or JSON
• Cross-platform compatibility − Universal time duration format

Conclusion

Use timedelta.isoformat() to convert Pandas Timedelta objects to ISO 8601 duration format. This provides a standardized string representation suitable for APIs and data interchange.