Cron Expression ParserTimezone-aware UNIX cron preview
en

AppHelp

Parse a cron expression and preview its next runs

Understand a five-field UNIX schedule before it reaches production. Get a plain-language explanation, timezone-aware run table, field anatomy, presets, and CSV export.

Cron schedule workspace

Explain a five-field UNIX cron expression and inspect its next timezone-aware runs.

Runs locally
Every 15 minutes from 09:00 through 17:59, Monday through Friday.
Runs to preview
StatusValid
Fields5/5

Next runs

UTC

#Scheduled timeRelativeUTC ISO
1Oct 19, 2026, 1:45:00 PM UTCin 64 seconds2026-10-19T13:45:00.000Z
2Oct 19, 2026, 2:00:00 PM UTCin 16 minutes2026-10-19T14:00:00.000Z
3Oct 19, 2026, 2:15:00 PM UTCin 31 minutes2026-10-19T14:15:00.000Z
4Oct 19, 2026, 2:30:00 PM UTCin 46 minutes2026-10-19T14:30:00.000Z
5Oct 19, 2026, 2:45:00 PM UTCin 61 minutes2026-10-19T14:45:00.000Z
6Oct 19, 2026, 3:00:00 PM UTCin 76 minutes2026-10-19T15:00:00.000Z
7Oct 19, 2026, 3:15:00 PM UTCin 2 hours2026-10-19T15:15:00.000Z
8Oct 19, 2026, 3:30:00 PM UTCin 2 hours2026-10-19T15:30:00.000Z
9Oct 19, 2026, 3:45:00 PM UTCin 2 hours2026-10-19T15:45:00.000Z
10Oct 19, 2026, 4:00:00 PM UTCin 2 hours2026-10-19T16:00:00.000Z

1. Minute

*/15

0-59

*, */5, 15, 10-30

2. Hour

9-17

0-23

*, 9, 9-17, 0,12

3. Day of month

*

1-31

*, 1, 1-15, */2

4. Month

*

1-12

*, 1, 1-6, JAN

5. Day of week

1-5

0-7

*, 1-5, MON, 0

Common tasks

  • cron expression parser
  • cron schedule parser
  • crontab guru alternative
  • cron next run calculator
  • cron expression generator
  • cron timezone calculator
  • five field cron parser
  • cron syntax checker
  • cron expression explainer
  • free cron parser online

Quick answer

Enter a five-field UNIX cron expression in minute, hour, day-of-month, month, and day-of-week order. AppHelp explains common schedules, validates the fields, and calculates the next 5, 10, or 20 runs in a selected IANA timezone. Traditional cron treats restricted day-of-month and day-of-week fields as an OR condition, and daylight-saving transitions can skip or repeat local times.

How to use

  1. 1. Enter a five-field expressionUse minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week in that order, such as 0 9 * * 1-5 for weekdays at 09:00.
  2. 2. Choose the execution timezoneSelect the browser timezone, UTC, or the IANA timezone configured on the target scheduler. The same expression can represent different instants in different zones.
  3. 3. Inspect the next runs and field anatomyCheck the plain-language summary, field values, relative timing, local timestamp, and UTC ISO timestamp for each occurrence.
  4. 4. Export and verify before deploymentCopy or download the CSV and compare it with the target system, especially around daylight-saving changes and restricted day fields.

Examples

Weekday mornings

Input
0 9 * * 1-5
Output
At 09:00, Monday through Friday.

Every fifteen minutes during work hours

Input
*/15 9-17 * * 1-5
Output
Every 15 minutes from 09:00 through 17:59 on weekdays.

Monthly report

Input
0 9 1 * *
Output
At 09:00 on the first day of every month.

Common use cases

  • Verify backup, report, cleanup, and synchronization schedules
  • Translate an unfamiliar crontab entry into a readable schedule
  • Compare UTC and application-local execution times
  • Prepare expected occurrences for monitoring and runbook reviews
  • Catch field-count and range errors before editing production crontab

Edge cases

  • This parser targets five-field UNIX cron; Quartz expressions with seconds, years, ?, L, W, or # use a different dialect.
  • When both day-of-month and day-of-week are restricted, many traditional cron implementations run when either field matches rather than requiring both.
  • A spring daylight-saving jump can omit a local time, while an autumn transition can repeat one; actual daemon behavior must be verified.
  • Month and weekday names may be accepted by some implementations, but numeric forms are more portable across systems.
  • The preview calculates future dates from the current moment, so results naturally change over time.

Features

  • Live validation and plain-language explanations for common cron schedules
  • Next 5, 10, or 20 runs in browser, UTC, and common IANA timezones
  • Five-field anatomy with ranges and syntax examples
  • Practical schedule presets for workdays, hourly, daily, weekly, and monthly jobs
  • Copy or download a CSV containing scheduled local times and UTC ISO values
  • Browser-local calculation with no expression upload

Related tools

Timestamp ConverterInspect Unix timestamps and UTC/local date conversions.Regex TesterTest validation patterns used in configuration and automation.Text Diff CheckerCompare crontab or configuration revisions line by line.

Frequently asked questions

What is the order of the five cron fields?
The order is minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week. A command is normally written after those fields in a crontab file.
Does this parser support Quartz cron expressions?
No. It intentionally validates five-field UNIX cron. Quartz seconds, year fields, ?, L, W, and # have different rules.
How do day-of-month and day-of-week interact?
In traditional cron, if both are restricted, the job commonly runs when either field matches. Confirm the behavior of the scheduler you deploy to.
Why does timezone selection change the UTC result?
Cron fields describe local wall-clock values. Selecting another timezone maps those values to different UTC instants.
What happens during daylight-saving time changes?
A missing local time may never run, and a repeated local time may run twice, depending on the cron implementation. Test the target daemon and timezone.
Can I export the next run times?
Yes. Copy or download a CSV containing the run number, selected timezone, formatted scheduled time, and UTC ISO timestamp.
Is my cron expression uploaded?
No. Parsing, timezone calculation, copying, and CSV generation run locally in your browser.