When using the TO_CHAR(datetime) function in Oracle Database, you can use the Q format element to return the quarter that a given date belongs to.

Examples

Here’s an example to demonstrate:

SELECT TO_CHAR(date '2035-07-20', 'Q') 
FROM DUAL;

Result:

3

Here’s an example with various dates throughout the year:

SELECT 
    TO_CHAR(date '2035-03-20', 'Q') AS "r1",
    TO_CHAR(date '2035-05-20', 'Q') AS "r2",
    TO_CHAR(date '2035-08-20', 'Q') AS "r3",
    TO_CHAR(date '2035-10-20', 'Q') AS "r4"
FROM DUAL;

Result:

   r1    r2    r3    r4 
_____ _____ _____ _____ 
1     2     3     4    

Here, I pass SYSDATE to get the current quarter:

SELECT 
    SYSDATE AS "Today's Date",
    TO_CHAR(SYSDATE, 'Q') AS "Today's Quarter"
FROM DUAL;

Result:

   Today's Date    Today's Quarter 
_______________ __________________ 
28/AUG/21       3