Frappe Core Utils

Frappe Utility Functions

Quick Reference: Python

| Need | Function | Returns |

|------|----------|---------|

| Current date | nowdate() / today() | datetime.date |

| Current datetime | now_datetime() | datetime.datetime |

| Parse date string | getdate(str) | datetime.date |

| Parse datetime string | get_datetime(str) | datetime.datetime |

| Add days | add_days(date, n) | datetime.date |

| Add months | add_months(date, n) | datetime.date |

| Date difference | date_diff(end, start) | int (days) |

| Format for user | format_date(dt) | str (user locale) |

| Relative time | pretty_date(dt) | str ("2 hours ago") |

| Safe float | flt(val, precision) | float |

| Safe int | cint(val) | int |

| Safe string | cstr(val) | str |

| Safe bool | sbool(val) | bool |

| Safe division | safe_div(a, b) | float [v15+] |

| Money format | fmt_money(amt, currency) | str |

| Money in words | money_in_words(amt, cur) | str |

| Strip HTML | strip_html(text) | str |

| List to prose | comma_and(items) | str ("a, b, and c") |

| Validate email | validate_email_address(e) | str or "" |

| Validate URL | validate_url(url) | bool |

| Parse JSON | parse_json(s) | Any |

| Files path | get_files_path(is_private) | str |

| Site path | get_site_path(*parts) | str |

| Unique list | unique(seq) | list |

| Hash | generate_hash(s, length) | str |

> ALL imports: from frappe.utils import nowdate, flt, ... in controllers/whitelisted methods.

> In Server Scripts: Use frappe.utils.nowdate() directly — NO import statements allowed.

Decision Tree: "Which function do I use?"

Need a date/time value?
├─ Current date → nowdate() or today()
├─ Current datetime → now_datetime()
├─ Parse a string → getdate() or get_datetime()
├─ Add/subtract time → add_days(), add_months(), add_to_date()
├─ Difference → date_diff() (days), month_diff(), time_diff_in_seconds()
├─ Period boundary → get_first_day(), get_last_day(), get_quarter_start()
└─ Display to user → format_date(), format_datetime(), pretty_date()

Need a number?
├─ Convert safely → flt(), cint(), cstr(), sbool()
├─ Round → rounded() (banker's rounding)
├─ Safe divide → safe_div(a, b, default=0) [v15+]
├─ Format money → fmt_money(amount, currency)
└─ Money to words → money_in_words(amount, currency)

Need string processing?
├─ HTML → strip_html(), escape_html(), is_html()
├─ Join list → comma_and(), comma_or(), comma_sep()
├─ Markdown ↔ HTML → to_markdown(), md_to_html()
└─ Mask sensitive → mask_string(input, show_first=4) [v16+]

Need validation?
├─ Email → validate_email_address(email, throw=False)
├─ URL → validate_url(url, valid_schemes=["https"])
├─ Phone → validate_phone_number(phone, throw=False)
├─ JSON → validate_json_string(s)
└─ IBAN → validate_iban(iban) [v16+]

Need file/path?
├─ Public files → get_files_path()
├─ Private files → get_files_path(is_private=True)
├─ Site directory → get_site_path("private", "backups")
├─ Bench root → get_bench_path()
└─ File size → get_file_size(path, format=True)

Critical Anti-Patterns

NEVER use Python stdlib when frappe.utils exists

| NEVER (stdlib) | ALWAYS (frappe.utils) | Why |

|----------------|----------------------|-----|

| datetime.datetime.now() | now_datetime() | Ignores system timezone |

| datetime.date.today() | nowdate() | Ignores system timezone |

| float(val) | flt(val, precision) | Crashes on None/empty |

| int(val) | cint(val) | Crashes on None/empty |

| round(val, 2) | rounded(val, 2) | Inconsistent rounding |

| val1 / val2 | safe_div(val1, val2) | ZeroDivisionError [v15+] |

| json.loads(s) | parse_json(s) | Crashes on None/empty |

| json.dumps(obj) | frappe.as_json(obj) | Inconsistent serialization |

| "{:,.2f}".format(a) | fmt_money(a, currency) | Ignores locale/currency |

| os.path.join(...) | get_site_path(...) | Breaks multi-tenancy |

| ", ".join(items) | comma_and(items) | No localized "and" |

| dt.strftime(fmt) | format_date(dt) | Ignores user preference |

| re.sub(r'<.*?>', '', h) | strip_html(h) | Misses edge cases |

Server Script Sandbox

# ❌ NEVER in Server Scripts
from frappe.utils import nowdate, flt
import json

# ✅ ALWAYS in Server Scripts (no imports allowed)
today = frappe.utils.nowdate()
amount = frappe.utils.flt(doc.amount, 2)
data = frappe.parse_json(doc.json_field)

JavaScript Quick Reference

| Need | Function |

|------|----------|

| Escape HTML | frappe.utils.escape_html(txt) |

| HTML to text | frappe.utils.html2text(html) |

| Check if HTML | frappe.utils.is_html(txt) |

| Parse JSON | frappe.utils.parse_json(str) |

| Validate URL | frappe.utils.is_url(txt) |

| Title case | frappe.utils.to_title_case(str) |

| Join with "and" | frappe.utils.comma_and(list) |

| Unique array | frappe.utils.unique(list) |

| Copy clipboard | frappe.utils.copy_to_clipboard(txt) |

| Scroll to element | frappe.utils.scroll_to(el) |

| Is mobile | frappe.utils.is_mobile() |

| Throttle | frappe.utils.throttle(fn, delay) |

| Debounce | frappe.utils.debounce(fn, delay) |

| Format value | frappe.format(value, df, options, doc) |

| Duration display | frappe.utils.get_formatted_duration(secs) |

Version Differences

| Function | v14 | v15 | v16 |

|----------|:---:|:---:|:---:|

| safe_div() | -- | Added | Yes |

| duration_to_seconds() | -- | Added | Yes |

| guess_date_format() | -- | Added | Yes |

| validate_duration_format() | -- | Added | Yes |

| mask_string() | -- | -- | Added |

| validate_iban() | -- | -- | Added |

| validate_name() | -- | -- | Added |

| safe_json_loads() | -- | -- | Added |

| groupby_metric() | -- | -- | Added |

| Core functions | Yes | Yes | Yes |

Reference Files

• Date/Time Functions — Complete date/time API with signatures
• Number & Money Functions — flt, fmt_money, rounding
• String & Validation Functions — HTML, join, validate
• JavaScript Utilities — Client-side frappe.utils.*
• Anti-patterns — stdlib vs frappe.utils comparison