Online timer
A countdown timer for the kitchen, the classroom or your desk. Set a time and start; an alarm sounds when time is up.
Ready
05:00
Quick start
Tip: press Space to start or pause.
How it works
A timer that just works
Pick a quick-start time or enter your own, then press Start. The countdown keeps accurate time from your device’s clock, even when the tab is in the background, and beeps when it reaches zero. Pause, add a minute or reset at any time. While it runs, the clock time it will end is shown under the countdown.
Good uses for a timer
- Cooking: eggs (6–10 minutes), pasta (8–12 minutes), letting dough rest.
- Focused work: 25 minutes on one task, then a break. See the focus timer.
- Classrooms and meetings: keep exercises, presentations and breaks on schedule.
- Workouts: planks, stretches and rest between sets.
Need to measure how long something takes instead? Use the stopwatch. Counting down to a date days or weeks away? Try the countdown, or the Christmas countdown for the sleeps until 25 December.
More tools
More ways to tick and pick
- Focus timerFocus for 25 minutes, then take a break. Adjustable, with long breaks.
- StopwatchTime anything to a hundredth of a second, with lap times.
- Countdown to a dateDays, hours and minutes until any date, with a link to share.
- Christmas countdownDays, weeks and sleeps until Christmas, with the weekends and working days left.
- Random number generatorRandom numbers in any range, with or without repeats.
- Dice rollerRoll up to 20 dice, or type dice notation such as 12d6 or 2d20+5.
- Wheel spinnerSpin a wheel to pick from your own list of names or options.
- Random name pickerDraw names from a list or split people into random teams.
Guides
Learn more about time and chance
- How random is a random number generator?Pseudo-random vs cryptographic randomness, modulo bias, and what TickPickr uses.
- How to run a fair giveaway or prize drawRules to publish, the legal basics in the US and UK, and a draw people can trust.
- Dice probability: the odds for 2d6, 3d6 and d20Exact odds for every total, why 7 comes up most, and what advantage is worth.
- How accurate are online timers and stopwatches?Browser clocks, background tabs, sleeping laptops and locked phones explained.
- Timeboxing vs time blocking: which works for you?Two ways to plan with a clock, how they differ, and how to size your boxes.
Frequently asked questions
Does the alarm sound if I switch to another tab?
Yes. The countdown keeps running in a background tab, with the time left in the tab’s title, and the alarm sounds when time is up, as long as the tab stays open and your device isn’t muted.
Why is there no sound?
Check that "Alarm sound" is on, that your device isn’t muted, and on iPhone that the silent switch is off. Browsers only allow sound after you have clicked something on the page, so start the timer with a click or a key press.
Can I pause the timer or add time?
Yes. Press Pause, or Space on a keyboard, to stop the countdown, and Resume to carry on where you left off. "+1 min" adds a minute without stopping it, and also works after the alarm: add a minute, then press Resume. Restart runs the same time again.
Is the timer accurate?
Yes, to the second. It works out the time left from your device’s clock instead of counting ticks, so it keeps time in a background tab, and if your computer sleeps, it catches up when it wakes (ringing at once if the time ran out meanwhile). The display rounds up, so it only shows 00:00 when the time is really up.
Can I share a timer or save it as a bookmark?
Yes. When you start a timer, the address changes to something like tickpickr.com/#10m. Open that link, and the timer is set to 10 minutes, ready to start. Use h, m and s for hours, minutes and seconds, such as #1h30m or #15m30s.
Does the screen stay on?
In browsers that support it, TickPickr asks your device to keep the screen on while the timer runs. Battery saver modes can still switch the screen off, and a locked phone may pause the page, which makes the alarm late. For long timers on a phone, keep it plugged in with the tab open.
How long can the timer run?
Up to 99 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds. Enter the hours in the custom time fields, or open a link such as tickpickr.com/#2h for a two-hour timer.