Your time capsule is ready
In your 30 years you’ve been around for…
- 9 Prime Ministers
- 2 monarchs
- 8 World Cups
- +2.4 billion people on Earth
More 1996 discoveries are being added
We're filling in 1996 in detail. In the meantime, the comparisons above and below always work — and every link from here leads somewhere interesting.
When these arrived
You were only…
- 2 Google was founded 1998
- 5 Wikipedia launched 2001
- 8 Facebook was founded 2004
- 9 YouTube was founded 2005
- 11 The iPhone 2007
- 12 Spotify launched 2008
A gentle reality check
Things that are younger than you
- 1997 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
- 1998 Google was founded
- 1999 The euro launched
- 1999 The Matrix was released
- 2000 Big Brother came to the UK
- 2001 Wikipedia launched
- 2001 The iPod
- 2003 The human genome was mapped
1996 vs today
A few things have changed since you arrived
A few things 1996 Today
- Everyone on Earth about 5.8 billion about 8.2 billion
Indicative sample data — being verified and expanded.
See the full Then vs Now →Pick the version you want to share
Know someone born in 1996? Send them their year — or see every way to explore 1996.
Keep exploring
-
What was the world like when you turned 18? →
The year 2014, through fresh eyes.
-
Things that are younger than you →
From the NHS to the iPhone — how much arrived after you did?
-
Your life in history →
A timeline of your milestones, matched with history.
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Compare 1996 with 1998 →
Two birth years, side by side. Try it with family.