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Countdown Timer

An online timer with alarm, a countdown to any date you can share, and a stopwatch with laps. Keeps exact time in background tabs.

Three clocks in one page. The Timer counts down from any length you choose, with one-tap presets from 1 minute to 1 hour, pause and resume, and an alarm that beeps (and vibrates on phones) when time is up. The Countdown to a date shows the days, hours, minutes and seconds until an event such as a launch, a wedding, an exam or New Year, in any time zone, and gives you a link to share it. The Stopwatch measures elapsed time to the hundredth of a second and records laps.

Times are calculated from your device's clock rather than by counting ticks, so they stay exact even when you switch to another tab, and the remaining time is shown in the tab title. Nothing is installed and nothing is sent anywhere.

How to use Countdown Timer

  1. Choose Timer, Countdown to a date or Stopwatch.
  2. Timer: tap a preset or type a time such as 90, 1:30 or 1h 30m, then press Start.
  3. Countdown: enter the event name, date, time and time zone, then copy the link to share it.
  4. Stopwatch: press Start, Lap to record splits, and Stop when done.

Features

  • Timer presets: 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, 25 and 30 minutes, and 1 hour.
  • Type any time up to 100 hours: 90, 1:30, 1:30:00, 1h 30m or 45s.
  • Pause, resume and reset; progress bar and time left in the tab title.
  • Alarm sound for up to a minute, with vibration on supported phones.
  • Countdown to any date and time in any time zone, with an event name.
  • Shareable countdown link that shows the right time for every visitor.
  • Stopwatch with hundredths of a second and laps, fastest and slowest highlighted.
  • Exact in background tabs; works offline once loaded.

Timer, countdown or stopwatch?

Each mode suits a different job.

ModeCountsGood for
TimerDown from a length of timeCooking, workouts, exams, the Pomodoro technique, presentations
Countdown to a dateDown to a moment in the calendarLaunches, birthdays, holidays, deadlines, New Year
StopwatchUp from zero, with lapsRunning laps, speeches, experiments, timing tasks

Typing a time

Besides the presets, you can type the length you need. A plain number means minutes, so 90 is an hour and a half. Clock style works too: 1:30 is one minute thirty seconds, and 1:30:00 is one and a half hours. You can also write units: 1h 30m, 2m30s or 45s. Press Enter to set the timer, then Start.

Why it stays accurate in the background

Browsers slow down pages in background tabs to save battery, so a timer that counts ticks of a second can drift by minutes. This timer remembers the exact moment it should end and compares it with the clock every time the display updates, so the time left is always right when you come back. The alarm has its own timeout for the exact end moment. Keep the tab open (it can be in the background) and the sound on; on phones, the browser may pause pages while the screen is locked.

Sharing a countdown

A countdown link stores the date, the time, the time zone and the event name in the part of the address after the # sign, which is never sent to a server. Anyone who opens the link sees the same moment counted down, converted to their own clock: a New Year countdown set for midnight in New York shows 10:30 in the morning on 1 January for a friend in India. Under the counter, the target is shown in the event's time zone and in yours.

The Pomodoro technique

A popular way to focus is to work for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break, and after four rounds take a longer break of 15 to 30 minutes. Use the 25 min preset for each work session and the 5 min preset for breaks. The time left shows in the tab title, so you can keep working in another tab and still see it.

Frequently asked questions

Is this online timer free?

Yes. It is free, needs no sign-up or download, and works offline after the page has loaded.

Will the alarm sound if the tab is in the background?

Yes, as long as the tab stays open and you started the timer with a click, which browsers require before playing sound. The alarm rings for up to a minute or until you press Stop alarm.

How do I set a 5 minute timer?

Tap the 5 min preset and press Start. You can also type 5 into the time box and press Enter.

Can I share a countdown to an event?

Yes. Choose Countdown to a date, enter the event, date, time and time zone, and click Copy link.

Does the countdown work across time zones?

Yes. The target is stored with its time zone, and each visitor's counter shows the time left to that exact moment.

How precise is the stopwatch?

It shows hundredths of a second and uses your device's clock. For laps, the fastest lap is shown in green and the slowest in red once you have three or more.

Why doesn't it ring when my phone is locked?

Phone browsers usually pause web pages while the screen is locked. Keep the screen on, or use your phone's built-in alarm for important reminders.

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