GPSDateTime: What This Metadata Tag Means

What it means

ExifTool combines the stored GPSDateStamp and GPSTimeStamp into this Composite tag. The Z at the end of the value means UTC.

Example

Tag

GPSDateTime

Group in ExifMeta

Composite

Example value

2026:10:06 12:32:04Z

This is how the tag appears in ExifMeta’s results. The value in your file will differ.

Typical values

Values end in Z, for example 2026:10:06 12:32:04Z, because GPS time is always UTC. To compare it with the local capture time, apply the offset from OffsetTimeOriginal.

Where it comes from

The device takes the time from the satellite signal at its GPS fix, independently of the camera clock.

What it is useful for

It is an independent clock. When the camera’s own clock was never set, or kept home time during a trip, GPSDateTime can still show when the photo was really taken.

Watch out for

It can lag the capture by a few seconds or more if the fix was old. Comparing it with DateTimeOriginal and OffsetTimeOriginal is a good way to spot a wrong camera clock: a gap of whole hours usually points to a time-zone problem.

Related tags

Tags that often appear next to GPSDateTime, and what each one records.

• DateTimeOriginal

  DateTimeOriginal is the EXIF tag that records when a photo was taken, by the camera’s own clock. It is the most reliable capture date in a photo.

• OffsetTimeOriginal

  OffsetTimeOriginal stores the time zone of DateTimeOriginal, such as +02:00, so the capture time can be converted to UTC.

Find it in your file

Upload a file to ExifMeta, then type GPSDateTime into the “Search tags and values” box under All metadata. If nothing matches, the file does not contain this tag.

Learn more in the guide: How to Check When a Photo Was Taken (Date Taken)