DevToolKit

Cron Expression Generator — Build Schedules Visually [2026]

Pick options → get a valid cron expression with a human-readable description. Presets for hourly, daily, weekly, and monthly. Works with GitHub Actions and K8s CronJobs.

Cron Expression
* * * * *
Schedule Description
Runs every minute

Cron Field Reference

FieldRangeSpecial Characters
Minute0-59* , - /
Hour0-23* , - /
Day of Month1-31* , - /
Month1-12* , - /
Day of Week0-6 (Sun=0)* , - /

What is Cron Expression Generator?

Cron Expression Generator is a free visual tool for building Unix cron expressions. Cron is a time-based job scheduler in Unix-like systems. A cron expression consists of five fields (minute, hour, day of month, month, day of week) that define when a scheduled task should run. This tool makes it easy to create correct cron expressions without memorizing the syntax.

How to Use Cron Expression Generator

Use the dropdown menus to select the minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week for your cron schedule. The cron expression updates in real time below the controls, along with a human-readable description of when the job will run. You can also select from common presets like every minute, every hour, daily at midnight, weekly on Monday, or monthly on the 1st. Copy the expression and paste it into your crontab or CI/CD configuration.

How Cron Expression Generator Works

The tool presents five dropdown controls corresponding to the five standard cron fields. As you select values, it constructs the cron expression string and generates a human-readable description. Presets fill in all five fields at once for common schedules. The resulting expression follows the standard Unix cron format compatible with crontab, GitHub Actions, Kubernetes, and most scheduling systems.

Common Use Cases

  • Setting up cron jobs for database backups
  • Configuring CI/CD pipeline schedules in GitHub Actions
  • Scheduling data processing tasks on a server
  • Creating recurring task schedules for Kubernetes CronJobs
  • Setting up log rotation and cleanup scripts

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a cron expression?▼

A cron expression is a string of five space-separated fields that define a schedule: minute (0-59), hour (0-23), day of month (1-31), month (1-12), and day of week (0-6, where 0 is Sunday). For example, "0 9 * * 1-5" means 9:00 AM every weekday.

What does the asterisk (*) mean in cron?▼

The asterisk means "every" or "any value." For example, * in the hour field means every hour, and * in the day of month field means every day.

Can I use this for GitHub Actions?▼

Yes. GitHub Actions uses standard cron syntax in its schedule trigger. The expressions generated by this tool work directly in GitHub Actions workflow files.

What timezone does cron use?▼

The cron expression itself does not specify a timezone. The timezone depends on the system running the cron job. GitHub Actions uses UTC by default.

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