What does the asterisk (*) mean in a cron expression?

An asterisk (*) means 'every'. For example, * in the minute field means 'every minute'. * in the hour field means 'every hour'.

What is the format of a cron expression?

Standard cron uses 5 fields: [minute] [hour] [day] [month] [weekday]. Example: 0 9 * * 1 means 'at 9:00 AM every Monday'. Some systems use 6 fields with seconds: [second] [minute] [hour] [day] [month] [weekday].

What does '/' mean in cron expressions?

The slash (/) means 'every N'. For example, */15 in the minute field means 'every 15 minutes'. 0/30 means 'every 30 units starting at 0'.

Is this tool accurate for all cron implementations?

This tool covers standard POSIX cron and Quartz-style 6-field expressions. Some systems (like AWS CloudWatch or GitHub Actions) may have slight syntax differences. Always verify critical schedules in your target system.

Cron Expression Parser

minute hour day month weekday

Common Schedules

Cron Field Reference

Field	Allowed Values	Special Characters
Minute	0–59	* , - /
Hour	0–23	* , - /
Day of Month	1–31	* , - / ?
Month	1–12 (or JAN–DEC)	* , - /
Day of Week	0–7 (0 & 7 = Sun, or SUN–SAT)	* , - / ?

Special characters: * = every , = list - = range / = step ? = any (day fields)

How to Use the Cron Parser

1Type or paste your cron expression into the input field. It auto-parses as you type.
2Read the plain-English explanation showing what the schedule means.
3Check the Next Runs list to see when the job will next execute (based on your local time).
4Click any preset from Common Schedules to instantly load a well-known cron expression.
5Use the Field Reference table to understand which characters are valid in each position.

Features

Plain-English Explanation

Instantly converts any cron expression into a human-readable sentence.

Next Run Times

Shows the next 10 execution times in your local timezone.

Real-time Validation

Instantly flags invalid expressions with a clear error message.

Common Presets

15 pre-built schedules covering the most common cron patterns.

Field Reference

Built-in reference table showing allowed values and special characters per field.

Browser-only

Runs entirely in your browser. No data is sent to any server.

Use Cases

DevOps engineers verifying cron schedules for CI/CD pipelines and server maintenance jobs.
Developers debugging why a cron job runs at unexpected times.
System administrators scheduling backups, log rotations, and health checks.
Cloud engineers setting up AWS EventBridge, GitHub Actions, or Kubernetes CronJob schedules.
Students and beginners learning the cron syntax for the first time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a cron expression?

A cron expression is a string defining a recurring schedule for automated tasks. It consists of 5 fields: minute, hour, day-of-month, month, and day-of-week. For example, '0 9 * * 1' means 'at 9:00 AM every Monday'.

What does * mean in cron?

An asterisk (*) means 'every'. * in the minute field = every minute, * in the hour field = every hour, and so on. '* * * * *' means 'every minute of every hour of every day'.

What does / mean in cron?

The slash (/) specifies a step value. '*/15' in the minute field means 'every 15 minutes'. '*/2' in the hour field means 'every 2 hours'. '1-5/2' means 'every 2 units between 1 and 5'.

Does this support 6-field cron (with seconds)?

This parser focuses on standard 5-field cron (used in Linux crontab). Some systems like Quartz Scheduler and Spring use a 6-field format with seconds as the first field. Please use 5-field format for best results.

Are the next run times in UTC or local time?

Next run times are shown in your browser's local timezone. The timezone name is displayed alongside each time. Note that actual cron jobs may run in a different timezone depending on your server configuration.