Cron Expression Parser

Parse Cron expressions into readable schedule fields and validate their structure.

Cron expression (5 or 6 fields)

optional seconds · minute · hour · day of month · month · day of week

VerboseUse 24 hour time formatDays start at 0

Symbol	Meaning	Example	Equivalent
`*`	Any value	`* * * *`	Every minute
`-`	Range of values	`1-10 * * *`	Minutes 1 through 10
`,`	List of values	`1,10 * * *`	At minutes 1 and 10
`/`	Step values	`/10 * *`	Every 10 minutes
`@yearly`	Once every year at midnight of 1 January	`@yearly`	0 0 1 1 *
`@annually`	Same as @yearly	`@annually`	0 0 1 1 *
`@monthly`	Once a month at midnight on the first day	`@monthly`	0 0 1 * *
`@weekly`	Once a week at midnight on Sunday morning	`@weekly`	0 0 * * 0
`@daily`	Once a day at midnight	`@daily`	0 0 * * *
`@midnight`	Same as @daily	`@midnight`	0 0 * * *
`@hourly`	Once an hour at the beginning of the hour	`@hourly`	0 * * * *
`@reboot`	Run at startup	`@reboot`

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What does this tool solve?

Paste a 5- or 6-field cron expression, or an alias such as @daily, to get a plain-English description and the cron helper reference table.

Continue with Timestamp Converter, Regex Tester · Cron expressions, explained field by field

What examples should you start with?

Every minute

* * * * *

Every minute.

Weekday business hours

*/15 9-17 * * MON-FRI

Every 15 minutes between 09:00 and 17:59, Monday to Friday.

Leap day

0 0 29 2 *

At 00:00 on February 29 — runs only in leap years.

How does it work?

Each field supports * (any), lists (1,15), ranges (9-17), and steps (*/15). Month and day-of-week accept three-letter names like JAN and MON. Day-of-week 0 and 7 both mean Sunday.

The description follows the selected Verbose, 24-hour, and day-of-week-index options. Five-field expressions and the optional leading seconds field are accepted.

What are the edge cases and limits?

When both day-of-month and day-of-week are restricted, most cron implementations run when EITHER matches (OR semantics) — a classic surprise.
Cron has no timezone field; servers interpret it in their local time. This parser focuses on expression meaning and helper references.
Some systems add a sixth field for seconds; year fields are not part of this parser.
February 29 combined with a day-of-week restriction may never run — verify the target scheduler's semantics.

Technical reference

POSIX crontab specification

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Related guides

Cron expressions, explained field by field