Text Processing Tools

Cron Expression Calculator

Parse and validate cron expressions. See the next scheduled run times and get a human-readable explanation of any cron schedule.

CRON Expression

Minute Hour Day (Month) Month Day (Week)

Visual Builder

Common Presets

Human Readable

Every minute

Validation

Valid CRON expression

Next 10 Execution Times

What is a CRON Expression?

A CRON expression is a string representing a schedule for running automated tasks. Originally from Unix, CRON jobs are now used across all major operating systems and cloud platforms to schedule recurring tasks.

Standard CRON expressions consist of 5 fields: minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week. Each field can contain specific values, ranges, steps, or wildcards to define complex schedules.

CRON Syntax Reference

  • * - Any value (wildcard)
  • 5 - Specific value
  • 1-5 - Range of values
  • */15 - Step values (every 15)
  • 1,15 - List of values

About cron expressions

Cron is a time-based job scheduler used in Unix-like operating systems. A cron expression defines a schedule using five fields: minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week. Each field can contain specific values, ranges, wildcards, and step values to express complex recurring schedules.

This tool parses any standard cron expression, translates it into plain English, and shows the next several scheduled execution times. It helps verify that your schedule does what you expect before deploying it to production.

Frequently Asked Questions

A CRON expression is a string of five (or six) fields that defines a time schedule. It's used by Unix/Linux systems and many application frameworks to run tasks automatically at specified intervals.

The five fields are: minute (0-59), hour (0-23), day of month (1-31), month (1-12), and day of week (0-7). Each field can contain specific values, ranges, wildcards (*), or step values (/).

Yes. Enter your expression and the tool shows the next scheduled run times, explains the schedule in plain English, and highlights any syntax errors.