How to Show Weekday on Ubuntu Top Menu Bar
Showing the weekday on the Ubuntu top menu bar puts the day name next to the clock, so you can see the full date at a glance. The change works on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS and newer, and it takes effect straight away. You do not need to log out or restart.
The free app GNOME Tweaks (a tool that lets you change how the GNOME desktop looks and acts) can turn this feature on. The methods below also work without it: the Settings app, a single Terminal command, or Dconf Editor. Pick whichever suits you. All of them change the same setting, so you can switch between them later.
To show the weekday on the Ubuntu top bar, open Settings, go to Date & Time, and switch Weekday to On. The day name appears next to the clock immediately, with no log-out or restart needed. If the switch is missing on your release, run gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface clock-show-weekday true in Terminal instead.
Show the day of the week using GNOME Settings
GNOME Settings is the app that controls system preferences. Its Date & Time page has a weekday option for the clock, so you need no extra tools. Turning it on makes the panel show the day name along with the time.
- Open the Settings app from the app menu.
- Click the Date & Time tab in the sidebar. The date and time options for your system appear on the right.
- Look for the Clock section.
- Switch Weekday to the On position. The day name should now appear next to the clock at the top of the screen.
To undo the change, return to the same page and switch Weekday to Off.
You can also display the current weather forecast of their city alongside the clock. This is a separate setting, so you can show the weekday, the date, or both.
Show the day of the week using Terminal
Terminal (the command-line interface) is the fastest way to show the weekday. One command changes the desktop setting at once, with no clicking through menus. It also helps if the weekday switch is missing from Settings on your Ubuntu version. The command sets the clock-show-weekday option, the same option the other methods change.
- Press Ctrl+Alt+T to open Terminal. A window with a command prompt appears.
- Type or paste the following command, then press Enter:
gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface clock-show-weekday true - Look at the top bar. The weekday should show next to the clock. The command prints nothing when it works, so a blank line is normal.
If you paste the command and get an error, check that you copied the whole line. Run the command as your normal user. Do not add sudo, because the setting belongs to your own account.
To turn the weekday off again, run this command: gsettings reset org.gnome.desktop.interface clock-show-weekday
The clock goes back to its original look straight away.
Show weekday on the top menu bar using the Dconf Editor
Dconf Editor lets you change hidden system settings that the normal Settings app does not show. You can use it to display the weekday on the Ubuntu top menu bar. Open the path /org/gnome/desktop/interface/ and find the clock-show-weekday setting.
How to add or remove software on Ubuntu Linux
On Ubuntu Linux (the operating system), you can add or remove software in two ways. One is the graphical App Center, which is called Ubuntu Software on 22.04. The other is the Terminal command line. Either way, installing a program takes a few clicks or one short command. Dconf Editor is not installed by default, so you need to add it first.
To install it from Terminal, run this command: sudo apt install dconf-editor
The command asks for your password and may ask you to confirm. When the prompt returns, the installation is finished. You can also search for Dconf Editor in App Center and click install.
Once it is installed, open Dconf Editor from the app menu. Accept the warning if it appears, then follow these steps:
- Navigate to:
org>gnome>desktop>interface - Find
clock-show-weekdayin the list. - Toggle the switch to On. The weekday should appear on the top bar at once.
If you prefer to undo the change later, return to this setting and switch it to Off.
When the setting is enabled, the day of the week appears on the top bar next to the clock. If you do not see it, check that the switch is really on. Also check that you changed the setting in your own user account.
Showing the day of the week makes the top bar more useful. The Settings app is the simplest way. Terminal and Dconf Editor give you the same result and more control when you want to adjust the Ubuntu desktop further.
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About the Author
Richard
Tech Writer, IT Professional
Richard is a writer at Geek Rewind who turns complex IT tasks into clear, step-by-step guides. He draws on years of hands-on experience in system administration and enterprise IT operations, focusing on Windows, Linux and WordPress: the problems people actually run into, and the fixes that work. His server and WordPress guides come from systems he runs himself. Richard builds and maintains the platform behind Geek Rewind, from its Ubuntu servers and Nginx configuration to its custom WordPress plugins. Many new tutorials start with readers' questions, and he's always glad to answer them in the comments.
[…] only can you display the clock, but you can also choose the day of the week on the top menu […]
[…] Ubuntu, the popular open-source operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution, will not display weekday on the top bar by default. In our last post, we wrote a detailed guide to add “Week Day” to the top bar. […]