Cron Expression Calculator
Paste a cron expression and get a plain-English description of when it runs, plus a field-by-field breakdown. This free online developer calculator runs entirely in your browser — no signup, no data sent anywhere.
Inputs
Results
How It Works (Formula & Method)
A standard cron expression has five space-separated fields, in order: minute (0–59), hour (0–23), day of month (1–31), month (1–12), and day of week (0–7, where both 0 and 7 mean Sunday). An asterisk (*) means "every" value, */n means "every n", a-b is a range, and a,b,c is a list.
The example 0 9 * * 1-5 reads as: at minute 0 of hour 9, every day of the month, every month, on Monday through Friday — i.e. 9:00 AM on weekdays.
Worked Example
Below is a worked example using the calculator's default values. The same numbers are pre-filled in the form above so you can press Calculate and see the result without typing anything.
Inputs used:
- Cron Expression (minute hour day-of-month month day-of-week): 0 9 * * 1-5
With these inputs, the calculator computes the metrics shown in the Results panel. Change any value and press Calculate again to see how the result responds — the live widget and the chart both update instantly.
Tips & Considerations
This tool describes the classic 5-field crontab format used by Unix cron. Some systems (like Quartz or some CI runners) add a seconds field or a year field, making six or seven fields — those will report a field-count mismatch here. Times are interpreted in whatever timezone the cron daemon runs in.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do the five cron fields mean?
In order: minute (0–59), hour (0–23), day of month (1–31), month (1–12), and day of week (0–7, with 0 and 7 both meaning Sunday). Each can be a specific value, a range, a list, a step, or an asterisk for "every".
What does */5 mean in cron?
A step value. In the minute field, */5 means "every 5 minutes" (0, 5, 10, 15, …). More generally */n runs every n units of that field starting from its lowest value.
What does the Cron Expression Calculator compute?
The Cron Expression Calculator takes 1 input value and returns 3 results. Translate a standard 5-field cron expression into a plain-English schedule, with a field-by-field breakdown and a syntax check — all in your browser.
Is my data sent to a server?
No. The Cron Expression Calculator runs entirely in your browser using static JavaScript. Your inputs are never transmitted to CalculatorHive or any third party, and nothing is stored after you close the page.