What Does an Expiration Date Look Like?

November 26, 2025 •

4 min read

According to the USDA, an estimated 30-40% of the U.S. food supply goes to waste, much of it due to consumer confusion over dating labels. Understanding what does an expiration date look like is the key to reducing this waste and ensuring the safety and quality of the products you use every day.

Quick Summary

Expiration dates appear in various formats, including 'Best By,' 'Sell By,' and 'Use By,' and can be numerical codes or plain text. Interpreting these dates correctly is crucial for assessing product quality, safety, and shelf life.

Key Points

Dating Formats Vary: Expiration dates appear in many formats, including MM/YY, numerical codes, and abbreviations like 'Best By,' 'Sell By,' and 'Use By'.
Open vs. Closed Dates: 'Open' dates are for consumers, while 'closed' codes are for manufacturer inventory tracking and recalls.
'Best By' is for Quality: A 'Best By' date indicates when a product's quality, like flavor or texture, is at its peak, not when it becomes unsafe.
'Use By' is More Critical: The 'Use By' date is a better indicator of when perishable items should be discarded for safety reasons.
Sensory Inspection is Key: Always use your senses to check for signs of spoilage (smell, texture, appearance) regardless of the date on the package.
Regulation is Limited: Outside of infant formula, dating labels on most foods are not federally regulated in the U.S. and are set by the manufacturer.

Deciphering Common Product Dating Labels

Decoding product labels can be confusing due to the variety of terms and formats used by manufacturers. This section explains the most common types of dates you will encounter and what they mean for the product's quality and safety.

Open Dating vs. Closed Dating

Product dates fall into two main categories: open dating and closed dating. Open dates are easy for consumers to read and understand. Closed dates, on the other hand, use coded numbers and letters primarily for manufacturers to track inventory and production batches.

Interpreting Open Dating Labels

Open dating labels are the most common and appear in several forms on food, cosmetics, and over-the-counter medication packaging.

'Use By': This is often the most definitive date for consumers, especially for perishable items. It indicates the last day the manufacturer guarantees the product will be at its peak quality. While not a safety expiration for most non-perishables, for items like deli meat or fresh seafood, it's a good indicator of when spoilage may begin.
'Best By' or 'Best Before': This label primarily refers to a product's quality, such as its flavor or texture, rather than its safety. A product consumed after its 'Best By' date may not taste as fresh but is generally still safe to eat, provided it shows no signs of spoilage.
'Sell By': This date is a guideline for retailers, indicating how long a product should be displayed for sale. You can typically eat the product for several days or weeks after this date, depending on the item and storage conditions.

Understanding Coded 'Closed' Dating

These manufacturer codes are often harder to decipher but are crucial for recalling products. They can appear as a mix of letters and numbers or simply as a string of digits.

Standard Numerical Codes: A code like 121526 is often interpreted as MMDDYY (Month, Day, Year), meaning December 15, 2026. However, formats vary by brand and location, sometimes using DDMMYY, so context is key.
Julian Date Codes: Commonly found on eggs and canned goods, a three-digit Julian code represents the day of the year the product was packed. For instance, '001' is January 1st, and '365' is December 31st. The three digits are often preceded by a single digit representing the last number of the year, e.g., '6156' for the 156th day of 2026.
Letter-based Codes: Some manufacturers use letters A through L to denote the month, followed by day and year. For example, D1525 would represent April 15, 2025.

How to Spot and Read Dates on Different Products

Knowing where to look is half the battle. Expiration dates are not always in plain sight.

Food and Beverages: Look on the bottom of cans, the neck of bottles, the lid of jars, and printed near the top seal of cardboard cartons. They might be stamped directly onto the package or printed on a label.
Cosmetics and Toiletries: Many cosmetics and skincare products feature a 'Period After Opening' (PAO) symbol, which looks like an open jar with a number followed by an 'M' (e.g., '12M'), indicating how many months the product is safe to use after opening. Some also have a traditional expiration date.
Medicine: Over-the-counter medications typically have a clear 'EXP' followed by the month and year. This date indicates the point at which the manufacturer no longer guarantees the medicine's full potency.

Comparative Table: Open Dating Labels


Label	Meaning	When to Follow Strictly	Quality vs. Safety	Example
Use By	Manufacturer's last day of peak quality guarantee.	Perishable goods like fresh meat, dairy, and infant formula.	Primarily quality-related for most items, but safety-critical for highly perishable products.	'Use By 10 DEC 25' on a milk carton.
Best By	Suggests when the product's quality will decline.	Rarely, and often for very specific types of products with nutritional requirements.	Solely about product quality, such as taste, freshness, or texture.	'Best By 02/05/27' on a bag of coffee beans.
Sell By	Tells retailers when to remove a product from the shelf.	Never for consumer purposes, as products are safe well after this date.	Not related to consumer safety, only to product turnover for stores.	'Sell By 11/20/25' on a box of crackers.

Beyond the Label: How to Tell if a Product is Bad

While date labels are helpful, they are not foolproof, and your senses are your best tool. Pay attention to visual cues, smells, and textures. For example, if a carton of milk smells sour, it's spoiled regardless of the date. If a canned good is bulging, it should be discarded immediately, as this can indicate dangerous bacterial growth. Proper storage also significantly impacts a product's lifespan; refrigeration and pantry organization are key.

The Role of Regulation and Manufacturer Standards

It's important to know that dating labels on most food products are not federally regulated in the U.S., with the exception of infant formula. The specific dating formats and terms are determined by the manufacturer, which contributes to the widespread consumer confusion. Manufacturers use these dates to inform both retailers and consumers about a product's freshness and potency. While this allows for flexibility in inventory management, it also puts the onus on consumers to understand what they mean.

Conclusion

Mastering how to read expiration dates is a valuable skill for any consumer. By recognizing the different formats and understanding their true meaning—whether they signify quality, potency, or safety—you can make more informed decisions about what to keep and what to toss. Rely on both the label and your senses, and remember that many products are safe to use or consume well past their 'Best By' date. Armed with this knowledge, you can reduce food waste and save money with confidence.

Frequently Asked Questions

A 'Best By' date refers to a product's quality, such as its flavor or texture, while a 'Use By' date is typically associated with the last day of peak freshness and, for highly perishable items, potential safety concerns.

Many products are safe to eat well past their expiration date, especially 'Best By' dates. For non-perishable foods and many shelf-stable goods, it's safe if there are no signs of spoilage. Use your best judgment based on sight and smell.

The location varies by product. For food, check the bottom of cans, the neck of bottles, or printed near the top seal of packaging. Cosmetics may have a 'Period After Opening' symbol, and medicine has a dedicated 'EXP' date.

The Julian date code is a three-digit number representing the day of the year a product was manufactured, where '001' is January 1st. It is primarily used by manufacturers for inventory and is often found on eggs and canned goods.

The PAO symbol, found on cosmetics and toiletries, indicates the number of months the product is guaranteed to be safe and effective after it has been opened. It looks like an open jar with a number and 'M' inside (e.g., '12M').

No, dating labels on most food products are not federally regulated in the U.S., with infant formula being a notable exception. The dates are typically determined voluntarily by manufacturers to indicate freshness.

Credit card expiration dates, formatted as MM/YY, indicate the card's validity period and are for financial purposes, not product quality or safety. It is a strict deadline for its use, unlike many food product dates.