Countdown Timer

What the countdown timer does

This counts down from a length of time you set. You give it hours, minutes, and seconds, press start, and it ticks down to zero right on the page, with a sound at the end if you want one. It is the classic kitchen-timer idea, in the browser, for anything you want to run for a set stretch of time.

How to use it

1. Hours, Minutes, Seconds. The duration to count down from. Fill in whichever you need.
2. Start. Begins the countdown. The same button stops it.
3. Pause and Reset. Pause holds it where it is; Reset clears it back to zero.
4. Play sound on completion. Leave this ticked for a sound at zero, or untick it for a silent finish.

How it works

It adds your hours, minutes, and seconds into one total in seconds, then counts that down one second at a time, updating the display as it goes. When it reaches zero it stops and, if the sound option is on, plays a tone to let you know. You can pause partway and pick up where you left off, or reset to start fresh.

Timer or alarm: which one you want

This is the quickest way to decide between this and an alarm clock. A countdown timer runs for a length of time, "25 minutes from now." An alarm goes off at a clock time, "at 3:00." If you are thinking in terms of how long, like steeping tea for four minutes or a 20-minute workout round, the timer is the one. If you are thinking in terms of when, like a reminder at half past two, set an alarm instead. Same idea of being alerted, just measured from two different starting points.

Keep the tab open while it runs

One honest note. The countdown runs inside this page, so the tab needs to stay open the whole time it is counting. If you close the tab or the browser, the timer stops with it. Leave it open in the background and you are fine. It is built for timing something while you carry on at the same screen, so this rarely gets in the way, but it is worth knowing if you are tempted to close the window.

What people time with it

All sorts of things that run for a fixed stretch. Focus sessions, like the 25-minute Pomodoro blocks people use to get work done. Cooking, where a few minutes matters. Workouts and interval training, timing rounds and rests. Short breaks you do not want to overrun. Even simple reminders, like a few minutes before you need to leave a task. Anything where the question is "how long," this handles.

Questions people ask

How is this different from a stopwatch?

A countdown timer starts at a set time and counts down to zero. A stopwatch starts at zero and counts up. Use this when you know how long you want and want to be told when it is up.

Does the tab need to stay open?

Yes. The timer runs in the page, so closing the tab or browser stops it. Leave it open in the background while it counts down.

Can I pause it partway?

Yes. Pause holds the countdown where it is so you can resume, and Reset clears it back to zero to start over.

Does it make a sound at the end?

It can. Leave the sound option ticked for a tone when it reaches zero, or untick it if you would rather it finish quietly.