Time is a thief. Or a slow-motion car crash, depending on who you ask. If you're sitting there scratching your head wondering how many years ago was 2018 April 20th, the quick, math-heavy answer is that we are currently looking back at a gap of nearly eight years. To be precise, as of January 2026, it has been 7 years, 8 months, and 28 days.
That’s a lot of Tuesdays.
But saying "seven years" doesn't really capture the vibe, does it? 2018 feels like a completely different geological era. Back then, the world was obsessed with Avengers: Infinity War, which was just days away from hitting theaters. People were still doing the "In My Feelings" challenge on Instagram. TikTok was barely a thing in the West—it had only just merged with Musical.ly a few months prior.
Doing the Math: Breaking Down the Timeline Since April 2018
Calculating exactly how many years ago was 2018 April 20th requires a bit of mental gymnastics because of how we perceive time vs. how the calendar actually functions. We've lived through 2,829 days since that specific Friday in April. If you want to get granular, that's roughly 67,896 hours.
Think about what you can do in 67,000 hours. You could have earned two university degrees. You could have walked around the circumference of the Earth nearly twice. Most of us just spent it scrolling or working, which is a bit of a reality check.
We’ve also hopped through a couple of leap years. 2020 and 2024 both added an extra day to the tally. That matters when you're calculating long-term interest or just trying to figure out why your "five-year plan" from 2018 is now a distant, dusty memory.
Why the Date April 20, 2018, Stuck in the Collective Memory
It wasn't just another random spring day. For a huge segment of the population, April 20, 2018, was a day of genuine shock. It was the day the world lost Tim Bergling, better known as Avicii. He was only 28.
I remember where I was when that news broke. Most people do. It marked a massive shift in how the music industry talked about mental health and the grueling pace of touring. When you realize that happened nearly eight years ago, it hits different. We’ve had almost a decade of electronic dance music evolution since then, yet his influence still hangs over every major festival.
The Cultural Chasm Between 2018 and Now
The world in 2018 was... simpler? Maybe not. But it was certainly different.
In April 2018, the top song on the Billboard Hot 100 was "Nice For What" by Drake. Fortnite was in its absolute infancy, dominating middle schools and offices alike. We were still a couple of years away from the word "social distancing" entering the lexicon.
If you look at the tech landscape, the iPhone X was the "new" shiny toy. It was the first time we were really getting used to the "notch" and losing the home button. Now, we’re looking at foldable screens and AI integrated into every single keystroke. The jump from 2018 to 2026 isn't just a jump in years; it's a leap in how we interface with reality.
Economic Shifts Since that Friday in April
Let's talk money, because that's where the passage of time hurts the most.
In April 2018, the average price of a gallon of gas in the United States was around $2.70. Today, you'd be lucky to find that at a wholesale club in the middle of nowhere. Inflation hasn't just been a buzzword; it's been a lifestyle change. The purchasing power of $100 in April 2018 is roughly equivalent to about $130 today.
- Housing: The median home price has skyrocketed in a way that makes 2018 look like a golden era for buyers.
- Crypto: Bitcoin was hovering around $8,000 in April 2018. If you bought then and held through the chaos of the early 2020s, you’re likely feeling pretty good about that decision.
- Streaming: We weren't completely buried in subscriptions yet. Disney+ didn't even exist. HBO Max was still a glint in a corporate eye.
The Psychology of Why 2018 Feels So Far Away
Psychologists often talk about "time expansion." This happens when we experience a high density of new, often stressful, information. The period between 2020 and 2023 acted like a temporal vacuum. It stretched our perception of time.
Because so much changed globally—politically, technologically, and socially—our brains categorize "Pre-2020" as a different epoch. That’s why when you ask how many years ago was 2018 April 20th, your gut might tell you "ten or twelve," even though the math says "almost eight."
Neuroscientist David Eagleman has written extensively on how our brains process time based on the amount of energy spent on new memories. The more "new" things we have to process (like a global pandemic or the total upheaval of the workforce), the longer that period feels in retrospect. 2018 feels like "The Before Times."
Notable Events from April 20, 2018
Beyond the tragic passing of Avicii, a few other things happened that shaped the world we live in now:
- The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting concluded in London, where it was announced that Prince Charles would succeed the Queen as head of the Commonwealth. This was a massive signal of the transition of the British Monarchy that we've since seen completed.
- Arsène Wenger announced he would be leaving Arsenal after 22 years. For sports fans, this was the end of an era that defined the Premier League.
- The March for Our Lives movement was still in its peak after the Parkland shooting earlier that year, signaling a massive shift in youth activism that continues to influence policy today.
How to Calculate Future Dates Based on 2018
If you are trying to figure out an anniversary or a legal deadline from April 20, 2018, you have to be careful with "years." A "year" is 365 days, except when it isn't.
If you are calculating a 10-year milestone, you are looking at April 20, 2028. That’s only two years away from now. It sounds terrifying when you put it that way.
To keep your own timeline straight, I always suggest using a "Date Duration" tool if you're doing something for taxes or legal contracts. Human memory is notoriously bad at accounting for leap years and the specific day of the week a date fell on. For the record, April 20, 2018, was a Friday.
Actionable Steps for Reflecting on Your Personal Timeline
Since we’ve established that 2018 was quite a while ago, it’s a good moment to do a quick life audit.
Check your digital footprints. Go back to your Google Photos or iCloud from April 2018. What were you wearing? Who were you hanging out with? Often, we find that we’ve achieved more than we think, or conversely, that we’ve been stagnating in certain areas for nearly eight years.
Update your long-term goals. If you set a 10-year goal in 2018, you are 80% of the way through that window. It’s time to either pivot or push for the finish line.
Review your old subscriptions. You’d be surprised how many people are still paying for a "legacy" service they signed up for in 2018 that has quietly increased its price every year since.
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Time moves regardless of whether we’re paying attention. April 20, 2018, isn't just a date on a calendar; it's a marker of how much the world can transform in less than a decade. Use the math to ground yourself, but use the memories to figure out where you're going next.