Free · Client-side · Instant
Cron Expression Parser
Paste a cron expression to see exactly what it means, in plain English.
What Does This Cron Mean?
Runs entirely in your browserPaste any 5-field cron expression, or a shorthand like @daily.
0 9 * * 1-5
*/15 * * * *
0 */4 * * *
0 0 1 * *
@daily
0 0 * * 1,3,5
Reference
Cron Field Reference
Five fields, left to right: minute, hour, day of month, month, day of week.
| Field | Valid Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Minute | 0-59 | — |
| Hour | 0-23 | 24-hour format, 0 = midnight |
| Day of month | 1-31 | OR'd with day-of-week if both are restricted |
| Month | 1-12 | Names like jan–dec also accepted |
| Day of week | 0-6 | 0 = Sunday. Names like sun–sat also accepted |
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
A cron expression has five space-separated fields, in order: minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week. Paste yours into this parser to see exactly what each field means and when the job will next run.
It runs at minute 0 of every 4th hour, every day — in other words, at 00:00, 04:00, 08:00, 12:00, 16:00, and 20:00 daily.
This usually happens when both the day-of-month and day-of-week fields are restricted. Standard cron treats this combination as OR logic — the job runs if either field matches, which is easy to misread as AND logic.
Yes.
@yearly, @annually, @monthly, @weekly, @daily, @midnight, and @hourly are all recognized and expanded to their equivalent five-field expression before parsing. Building a new schedule from scratch instead? Try the Cron Expression Generator.
Explore All Free Developer Tools
UUIDs, QR codes, barcodes, image tools, converters and more — all free, all client-side.