How To Read Tire Age | Spot The Date Code

A tire’s age is stamped in the last four digits of its DOT code: first two digits for the week, last two for the year.

You can check tire age in under a minute once you know where to look. The date is molded into the DOT code on the sidewall, and that tiny stamp tells you when the tire was made.

That matters more than many drivers think. A date check can tell you whether a spare is older than the car, whether a used tire is a bad bet, or whether a set with solid tread is still getting long in the tooth. Age is not the only thing that counts, but it is one of the first things to check.

How To Read Tire Age On The Sidewall

The age stamp lives inside the DOT string on the tire sidewall. You do not need a code reader, a shop visit, or any special app. You just need a clean view of the sidewall and a bit of patience.

Find The DOT String

Start near the rim and scan the sidewall for the letters “DOT.” After that mark, you will see a longer run of letters and numbers. On many tires, the full string appears on one side only, so you may need to look at the inner sidewall too.

Read The Last Four Digits

The last four digits are the manufacturing date. The first pair is the production week. The second pair is the year. A tire ending in 0825 was made in the eighth week of 2025. A tire ending in 4723 was made in week 47 of 2023.

Use This Simple Reading Order

1. Find the “DOT” mark.
2. Move to the end of that string.
3. Read the final four digits only.
4. Split them into week + year.

If the sidewall is dirty, wipe it first. If the code is hard to read, shine a light across the rubber from the side. The shallow stamp can hide in plain sight on a dark tire.

Why Age Still Matters When Tread Looks Fine

Tread depth tells you how much rubber is left on the road surface. Tire age tells you how long the rubber has been sitting through heat, cold, sun, parking, load cycles, and plain old time. Those things can stiffen the rubber and chip away at grip and ride feel.

That is why an older tire can look decent at a glance and still be on borrowed time. It is also why age checks matter on cars that are driven little, trailers that sit for long stretches, and spare tires that almost never touch the road.

A good rule is to pair the date stamp with a full visual check. Look at the tread, the shoulder, the bead area near the rim, and both sidewalls. One fast glance at the date gives you a starting point. The rest of the inspection tells you whether the tire still looks roadworthy.

DOT Ending	Read It As	Plain-English Meaning
0126	Week 01, 2026	Made in the first week of 2026
0825	Week 08, 2025	Made late in February 2025
1924	Week 19, 2024	Made around mid-May 2024
3523	Week 35, 2023	Made near the end of August 2023
4722	Week 47, 2022	Made late in November 2022
1021	Week 10, 2021	Made in early March 2021
5019	Week 50, 2019	Made in mid-December 2019
2618	Week 26, 2018	Made near the end of June 2018

Signs An Older Tire Is Nearing The End

A tire does not fail on the calendar alone. You want the date and the condition together. Michelin’s tire age and replacement notes point to the same pattern many drivers see in real life: age matters more once wear, cracking, ride changes, or air-loss issues show up.

Watch for these signs:

• Fine sidewall cracks or dry-looking rubber
• Bulges, blisters, or cuts
• A tire that keeps losing air
• Odd vibration that was not there before
• Uneven wear across the tread
• A spare tire that is old enough to be forgotten

NHTSA’s TireWise tire-aging page makes another point many drivers miss: tire age can matter even when tread remains, and a full-size spare should not become the long-term stand-in for worn road tires.

What Tire Age Can And Can’t Tell You

Tire age can tell you when the tire was built. It cannot tell you how it was stored, whether it ran underinflated, whether it hit a pothole hard enough to bruise the inside, or whether the alignment has been scrubbing one shoulder for months.

That is why the date code should never be the only test. A five-year-old tire that was cared for and still looks clean may be in better shape than a two-year-old tire that spent its life overloaded or half-flat. The date stamp gives context. The condition gives the verdict.

This is also where many used-tire deals fall apart. A seller may call a tire “new” because it was never mounted. The DOT code may tell a different story. Shelf time still counts, and the date stamp cuts through the sales pitch in seconds.

One more thing: do not confuse purchase date with build date. Warranties, shop invoices, and your memory of when you bought the tires are useful, yet the sidewall stamp is the direct record of when the tire left the mold.

Check	What To Look For	Why It Helps
Date Code	Last four digits after DOT	Shows the week and year the tire was made
Sidewalls	Cracks, cuts, bulges	Spots age damage or impact damage
Tread Surface	Uneven wear, cupping, low depth	Shows wear pattern and service history
Air Loss	Frequent top-offs	Can point to leaks, bead issues, or hidden damage
Ride Feel	Shake, thump, drift, harshness	Can flag flat spots or internal trouble
Spare Tire	Its own DOT date and condition	Stops an old spare from catching you off guard

Mistakes That Lead To A Wrong Read

The code is simple once you know the pattern, yet a few slip-ups show up all the time.

• Reading the first four characters after DOT instead of the last four
• Checking one sidewall only and missing the full code on the other side
• Mixing up the week and the year
• Judging by tread alone and skipping the sidewalls
• Forgetting the spare tire in the trunk or under the cargo floor
• Buying used tires before checking the stamp

If you are checking a full set, read all four tires one by one. A mismatched date spread can tell you the car has had partial replacements, a single roadside swap, or a spare that was dropped into regular duty.

When An Older Tire Should Come Off The Car

There is no magic birthday that fits every car, every climate, and every tire type. Still, the date stamp gives you a strong first filter. NHTSA notes that some vehicle and tire makers call for replacement in the six-to-ten-year range, and Michelin calls for annual checks after year five plus replacement at ten years from the manufacturing date.

If a tire is cracked, bulging, leaking, shaking, or wearing in a strange pattern, do not let the calendar be the only test. A younger damaged tire can be a bigger problem than an older tire that still looks sound. On the flip side, a tire with plenty of tread is not “good” just because the grooves look deep.

Once you know where the DOT stamp sits, reading tire age stops being guesswork. One look at those last four digits tells you when the tire entered its service life. That makes every next call, from buying used tires to checking an old spare, a lot easier.