How to read it
Four digits inside a small oval, at the end of a longer code stamped into the sidewall. The first two are the week of manufacture, the last two the year. It appears on one side of the tyre only, so a tyre that appears not to carry one should be looked at from the other side, and on a dirty tyre it is easier to feel than to see.
Why it is a convention rather than a standard here
The marking is applied consistently across the industry and is required by regulation in several markets, but this page treats it as a convention because what it means is uniform while the obligations behind it differ by market. What is not in dispute is how the four digits read.
Age and wear are independent
Tread depth measures how much rubber remains. The date measures how long the compound has been ageing. A tyre can have nearly full tread and be old — which happens to machines ridden a few hundred kilometres a year — and it can be nearly new and nearly worn out. Neither figure predicts the other.
What a four-digit date code cannot tell you
At what age a tyre should be replaced. Tyre manufacturers and machine manufacturers publish their own guidance, storage conditions change it, and it is not a figure a comparison page should supply. The other sidewall markings — size, load index, speed index — are matching figures stated in the machine’s manual.
Questions riders send in about this
Is a new tyre with an old date code a problem?
It is information worth having before buying, since a tyre sold as new may have been stored for years. What to do about it is answered by the tyre maker’s own guidance.
Do both tyres carry the same date?
Rarely. They are made in different batches and fitted at different times, so each is read separately.
Last reviewed 18 September 2026