TIL - cal command

Today I learnt about the unix cal command. A command that simply shows you the current calendar month in a simple formatted text display, right at the console. No fancy plug-ins or GUI applications needed.

username@localhost:~ $ cal
    January 2025
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
          1  2  3  4
 5  6  7  8  9 10 11
12 13 14 15 16 17 18
19 20 21 22 23 24 25
26 27 28 29 30 31

I know, I know, everyone else has known about this for years, but it's new to me so I'm making a quick note here so I have a fighting chance of remembering it in the future. Also, who knows, it might even be useful for someone else searching for calendar quick view options.

You can also use cal -y to get a full year calendar view if you need it.

username@localhost:~ $ cal -y
                            2025
      January               February               March
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa  Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa  Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
          1  2  3  4                     1                     1
 5  6  7  8  9 10 11   2  3  4  5  6  7  8   2  3  4  5  6  7  8
12 13 14 15 16 17 18   9 10 11 12 13 14 15   9 10 11 12 13 14 15
19 20 21 22 23 24 25  16 17 18 19 20 21 22  16 17 18 19 20 21 22
26 27 28 29 30 31     23 24 25 26 27 28     23 24 25 26 27 28 29
                                            30 31

       April                  May                   June
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa  Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa  Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
       1  2  3  4  5               1  2  3   1  2  3  4  5  6  7
 6  7  8  9 10 11 12   4  5  6  7  8  9 10   8  9 10 11 12 13 14
13 14 15 16 17 18 19  11 12 13 14 15 16 17  15 16 17 18 19 20 21
20 21 22 23 24 25 26  18 19 20 21 22 23 24  22 23 24 25 26 27 28
27 28 29 30           25 26 27 28 29 30 31  29 30

...........

Update: if your particular *nix installation does not include the cal command, it's installed using sudo apt-get install ncal