Cron Expression Parser — Human-Readable
Parse and explain cron expressions in plain English. See next run times and validate your schedule. Free online cron debugger.
Format: minute (0-59) hour (0-23) day-of-month (1-31) month (1-12) day-of-week (0-7, 0 and 7 are Sunday)
This cron runs:
Daily at midnight
0Minute0Hour*Day of Month*Month*Day of WeekCron Expression Parser — Understand Cron Schedules
Parse any cron expression and see a clear, human-readable explanation of when it will run. Enter expressions like '0 9 * * 1-5' and instantly see 'At 09:00, Monday through Friday' along with the next scheduled execution times. Eliminates guesswork from cron scheduling.
The parser interprets the five standard cron fields (minute, hour, day of month, month, day of week) and translates special characters including asterisk (every), slash (step), hyphen (range), and comma (list). It computes the next execution times based on the current date and displays them chronologically.
System administrators verify cron jobs run at the intended times. DevOps engineers validate CI/CD pipeline schedules in GitHub Actions or GitLab CI. Developers confirm scheduled task timing in frameworks like Laravel, Django, or Node.js cron libraries. On-call engineers decode cron expressions in incident reports.
The most common cron mistake is confusing day-of-month (field 3) with day-of-week (field 5). Another frequent error is using '*/7' thinking it means 'every 7th day' when it actually means 'every 7th unit from 0' in that field. Always verify your expression by checking the next 5-10 execution times.
For building new cron expressions visually rather than parsing existing ones, the Cron Expression Builder (available in related tools below) complements this parser perfectly — use the builder to create and the parser to verify.
How the Cron Parser Works
- Enter a cron expression (e.g., 0 9 * * 1-5)
- The parser translates it into plain English (e.g., 'At 09:00, Monday through Friday')
- View the next scheduled run times to verify your expression is correct
- Use the interactive builder to construct expressions by selecting minute, hour, day, month, and weekday
Cron Expression Reference
Cron expressions use five fields: minute (0-59), hour (0-23), day of month (1-31), month (1-12), and day of week (0-7, where both 0 and 7 mean Sunday). Use * for 'every', */5 for 'every 5th', 1-5 for ranges, and 1,15 for specific values. Common examples: '0 * * * *' runs hourly, '0 0 * * *' runs daily at midnight, '0 9 * * 1' runs every Monday at 9 AM.
When to Use the Cron Parser
Use this parser when you encounter a cron expression and need to understand its schedule. This happens frequently when reviewing CI/CD pipeline configurations, debugging scheduled tasks that run at wrong times, auditing server cron jobs, or reading infrastructure-as-code files. The parser translates cryptic cron syntax into clear, human-readable descriptions.
Common Use Cases
- •Understanding cron schedules in CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins) Cron Expression Builder — Visual & Free
- •Debugging scheduled tasks that run at unexpected times on Linux servers
- •Auditing production cron jobs to verify backup and maintenance schedules
- •Reading cron expressions in infrastructure-as-code files (Terraform, Ansible)
Expert Tips
- ✱Always verify your interpretation by checking the next 5-10 execution times — the most common mistake is confusing day-of-month with day-of-week
- ✱Remember that '*/7' in the day-of-month field does NOT mean 'every 7 days' — it means 'on the 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th' of each month
- ✱For building new expressions, use our Cron Expression Builder which provides a visual interface with instant validation
Frequently Asked Questions
- The five fields are: minute (0-59), hour (0-23), day of month (1-31), month (1-12 or JAN-DEC), and day of week (0-7 or SUN-SAT, where both 0 and 7 are Sunday). Fields are separated by spaces. Example: '30 9 * * 1-5' means 'at 9:30 AM, Monday through Friday'.
- * means 'every' (every minute, every hour, etc.). / means 'step' (*/5 = every 5th). - means 'range' (1-5 = 1 through 5). , means 'list' (1,15 = on the 1st and 15th). These can be combined: '0-30/10' means 'every 10 minutes during the first half hour'.
- Standard Unix cron has 5 fields. Some systems (like Quartz scheduler) add a 6th field for seconds. GitHub Actions uses standard 5-field cron but runs in UTC timezone. AWS CloudWatch uses 6 fields with a year field. Always check your platform's documentation for specifics.
What does each field in a cron expression mean?▾
What do special characters like * / - , mean?▾
Is there a difference between cron on Linux and in GitHub Actions?▾
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