Countdown Timer

Set minutes and seconds and count down to zero, with a sound when time's up.

05:00

Set a countdown in hours, minutes, and seconds — for cooking, workouts, study sessions, or presentations — with a sound alert when it reaches zero.

How to use the countdown timer

  1. Set the time in hours, minutes and seconds. It starts at 5 minutes.
  2. Press Start. The display counts down second by second.
  3. Pause or reset whenever you need to.
  4. Listen for the alert — a tone plays when the timer reaches zero.

Keep your device's volume on so you hear the alert. On a phone, keep the browser open: some phones pause background tabs to save battery.

Popular timer lengths

UseTime
Soft-boiled egg6 minutes
Hard-boiled egg10–12 minutes
Steeping black tea3–5 minutes
Plank or wall sit30–60 seconds
Rest between strength sets1–3 minutes
Short presentation or speech5–10 minutes
Focused study session25–50 minutes
Classroom quiz or activity10–20 minutes

Ways people use it

  • Cooking: time pasta, eggs, or resting meat while you work on something else.
  • Teaching: put it on a projector so a class can see how long is left for an activity.
  • Meetings and talks: keep each speaker or agenda item on schedule.
  • Kids: a visible countdown helps with screen-time limits, tidying up and taking turns.

For repeated work-and-break cycles, the Pomodoro timer switches between them automatically. To measure how long something takes instead, use the stopwatch.

Frequently asked questions

Does it still work if I switch tabs?

Yes — the countdown is based on the actual clock time it should finish at, not on the tab staying active, so switching away and back still shows the correct remaining time.

Will it make a sound when it finishes?

Yes, a short alert tone plays automatically when the timer reaches zero, generated in your browser — no audio file to load.

Can I run more than one timer at once?

Yes — open the countdown timer in a second browser tab. Each tab runs its own timer independently.

Does it work offline?

Once the page has loaded, the timer runs entirely in your browser and doesn't need an internet connection to keep counting down.