Cron tester
Preview five-field Unix cron schedules with a time zone, reference time, presets and occurrence count. This previews times; it does not schedule jobs. Read the chosen-zone time beside its UTC instant. Use the UTC column to distinguish repeated local times and check the schedule against your actual scheduler before using it.
Free to use. No email or account required.
Bookmark
Bookmark this tool
Save this short link in your browser’s bookmarks.
Paste this link into the address of a new or existing bookmark.
On desktop, drag Cron tester to your bookmarks bar.
Only the tool’s link is shared. Your inputs and results are not included.
Share
Your inputs
Edit the example inputs to match your task. Results update as you edit.
Calculations run in your browser. Inputs are not saved or sent to analytics.
How it works
- → Next matching time ()
- Searches strictly after the reference minute for at most 366 days. Supports numbers, *, ranges, lists, steps and English three-letter month/day names. Restricted day fields use Unix OR semantics. Each real UTC minute is matched in the selected time zone, including clock changes.
Input and formula key
Your result
Complete the inputs to see your result.
Sources
- Cronie crontab(5) — five-field expressions and daylight-saving caveatsSources reviewed: 2026-11-06
Assumptions and limitations
Five-field preview only: no seconds/year, Quartz L/W/#, commands or scheduling. Missing wall-clock times do not match; repeated wall-clock times can appear twice with different UTC instants. A real cron service may apply different DST policies. Fewer results may fit within 366 days; no match is an error.
How to use this tool
Set up the inputs
Choose a preset or enter five fields: minute, hour, day of month, month, day of week. Select the schedule time zone, optional UTC reference and 1–20 occurrences. UTC ISO instants and localized wall-clock times are shown.
Understand the result
Read the chosen-zone time beside its UTC instant. Use the UTC column to distinguish repeated local times and check the schedule against your actual scheduler before using it.
Worked examples
-
Check a weekday schedule after Friday
For 0 9 * * MON-FRI in UTC after 2026-11-06T09:00:00Z, the next match is 2026-11-09T09:00:00Z.
Frequently asked questions
What are the limits of this tool?
Five-field preview only: no seconds/year, Quartz L/W/#, commands or scheduling. Missing wall-clock times do not match; repeated wall-clock times can appear twice with different UTC instants. A real cron service may apply different DST policies. Fewer results may fit within 366 days; no match is an error.
How does the calculation work?
Searches strictly after the reference minute for at most 366 days. Supports numbers, *, ranges, lists, steps and English three-letter month/day names. Restricted day fields use Unix OR semantics. Each real UTC minute is matched in the selected time zone, including clock changes.
Processing and privacy
The calculation or transformation runs in your browser. The tool does not send its input values or generated output to an application server. Loading a page still makes infrastructure requests; optional analytics and Google consent messages have separate controls.
Privacy Policy. Privacy & preferences in the footer controls optional analytics.
Help and feedback
Consult the linked sources for definitions and reference data. Contact Support if you have a question or notice a problem.
Read about calculation methods · Report a problem to emonster
Related tools
Explore this subject: Technology
Unix timestamp converter
Convert explicit epoch seconds or milliseconds to UTC and a chosen time zone.
Uptime/SLA calculator
Calculate a downtime budget or reverse an entered duration into availability.
Time zone converter
Convert a date and time between cities, with daylight-saving changes and clear day differences.