Simple date arithmetic first
Choose a starting date, add or subtract, then enter one amount and unit. The resulting date appears immediately. Open Mixed interval & calendar rules only when you need several units at once, weekday-only counting, or a specific month-end rule.
Date difference
Switch to Difference between dates to compare two calendar dates. Date-only arithmetic avoids time-of-day and daylight-saving shifts.
Date arithmetic uses calendar rules
Days and weeks can be counted as fixed calendar-day intervals, while adding months or years has to account for real month lengths and leap years. The advanced controls let you choose how end-of-month cases are handled instead of silently treating every month as the same number of days.
Date difference is a different question
Use the difference mode when the goal is elapsed time between two dates rather than moving one date forward or backward.