Four timing tools on one page
This page combines the timers people most often reach for: Countdown runs up to five independent timers with an audible alarm, Stopwatch measures elapsed time to the hundredth of a second with lap splits, Pomodoro alternates 25-minute focus sessions with short breaks, and Anniversary keeps a list of dates and shows how many days remain until each one or have passed since. It works for kitchen timing, exam practice, talks and classroom activities, interval workouts, or keeping an eye on an upcoming trip.
How to use each mode
- Countdown: type hours, minutes and seconds, or click a preset from 1 to 60 minutes, then press Start. The same button pauses and resumes; Reset brings back the inputs. Save turns the current time into a custom preset button (click its × to delete it). Use + Add Timer to run up to five timers at once, and the ⛶ icon to show a timer full screen for a room or a stage.
- Stopwatch: press Start, then Lap to record the total time and the split since the previous lap. Pause, Resume and Reset work as expected; Reset also clears the lap list.
- Pomodoro: press Start for a 25-minute work session. When it ends, a 5-minute break is loaded (15 minutes after every fourth session), and you press Start again to begin it. Skip jumps straight to the next phase and the counter shows completed sessions.
- Anniversary: enter a title and a date, choose Countdown or Days Since, and press Add. Click ★ to pin one entry in large type at the top, or × to delete it.
How the timers keep time
A running timer does not count ticks. Every 50 milliseconds it reads the system clock and works out the remaining time from the moment you pressed Start, so it does not drift when the browser is busy. Countdowns display whole seconds, rounded up, and the stopwatch shows hundredths. Browsers slow down timers in background tabs — Chrome, for example, can limit them to roughly once a minute after a tab has been hidden for several minutes — so the time shown is still correct when you come back, but the alarm can be late while the tab is out of sight. Keep the tab visible when an exact alert matters.
The alarm is a short series of beeps generated with the Web Audio API, so no sound file is downloaded; your device volume must be on. The first time you start a timer or pick a preset, the page asks for permission to show notifications. If you allow it, a system notification appears when a countdown or Pomodoro phase ends. The notification is created by the page itself — there is no push server — so it only works while the page is open. You can revoke the permission in your browser’s site settings.
Custom presets and anniversaries (their titles and dates) are saved in your browser’s local storage under ct_custom_presets, ct_anniversaries and ct_anniv_featured, so they are still there on your next visit in the same browser. Running timers, stopwatch laps and Pomodoro progress are not saved and are lost on reload. Nothing is sent to a server.
Frequently asked questions
Will the timer keep running if I switch tabs or lock my phone?
On a computer the timer keeps counting in a background tab, but the alarm may be delayed as described above. Mobile browsers often pause pages completely when the screen is locked, so the alarm may not sound until you return. For anything critical, such as medication or cooking that must not burn, use your phone’s built-in alarm as well.
Can I change the Pomodoro lengths?
No. Pomodoro mode uses fixed 25-minute work sessions, 5-minute short breaks and a 15-minute long break after every fourth session. For other intervals, set up one or more Countdown timers instead and save them as presets.
Why didn’t I hear the alarm?
Check that the device and the browser tab are not muted. Some browsers only allow a page to play sound after you have interacted with it, which is why the alarm works best when you started the timer by clicking on the page.
Does an anniversary repeat every year?
No. Each entry counts to or from one specific calendar date, using your local time zone. For a yearly event, enter its next occurrence and update it after the day has passed.
How do I delete saved presets and anniversaries?
Use the × next to each preset or anniversary. Clearing this site’s data in your browser settings removes all of them at once.