Fix files creation date in macOS

To fix the creation date of files in macOS, use the SetFile -d command in the terminal. It rewrites the creation date that Finder and Photos read, which the usual touch command can’t do.

Here’s why I needed it. I took some videos with a GoPro that didn’t have date/time set correctly, so all videos were dated 2016 or so. Every photo app sorted them at the wrong end of the timeline.

I went into the folder that had those videos and used the command

SetFile -d '01/25/2025' *

to update all files to the correct date.

The * applies the change to every file in the folder, which is exactly what I wanted for a batch of videos. Pass a single filename instead if you only need to fix one file.

This won’t affect the time.

If you also want to set the time, use this format:

SetFile -d '01/25/2025 12:00:00' *

Watch the date format

The date is in US format: month first, then day, then year.

01/25/2025 is January 25. If you’re used to writing the day first, it’s easy to type 25/01/2025 and get an error, or worse, silently set the wrong date when both numbers are 12 or below. Double check before running it on a whole folder.

Checking the result

GetFileInfo shows the creation date of a file, so you can verify the change worked:

GetFileInfo -d GOPR0042.MP4
# 01/25/2025 12:00:00

Where SetFile comes from

SetFile is not installed on a fresh macOS. It ships with the Xcode Command Line Tools.

If the terminal says command not found, install them first:

xcode-select --install

Apple marks SetFile as a legacy tool, but it still works fine, and I haven’t found a built-in replacement for changing creation dates.

One last note: SetFile -d only changes the creation date. If you also want to change the modification date, that’s a separate flag, -m, with the same date format. And if you only need the modification date, the standard touch -t command handles that without Xcode tools, but it can’t touch the creation date, which is the one photo apps care about.

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