Cron Expression Parser

Turn a cron expression into plain English plus the next run times, with a field breakdown and presets.

Stays on your device. This tool runs in your browser — nothing you paste or open ever leaves it. Nothing uploaded, nothing to leak.

Cron expression

How to read a cron expression

Type or paste your expression — the plain-English description and the next run times update instantly. The field table shows how each part (minute, hour, day of month, month, day of week) was parsed. Use the preset buttons for common schedules, then tweak from there.

Cron Parser — TechWhack Score

9.8/10

Privacy 10/10

Expressions are parsed in your browser — nothing is uploaded.
Speed 10/10

Explains the schedule the moment you paste it.
Features 9/10

Plain-English description, the next five run times, and a field-by-field breakdown — with support for the optional seconds field, names, ranges, lists and steps.
Free 10/10

No sign-up, no daily limit, embeddable.

Verdict: Doesn’t just describe a cron line — it shows you the next five times it’ll actually run, so you can catch a mistake before production does.

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A cron parser explains what a cron schedule actually does. Paste an expression like 0 9 * * 1-5 and TechWhack tells you in plain English ("At 09:00, Monday to Friday"), lists the next five times it will run, and breaks down every field so you can see exactly how it was interpreted. It supports standard five-field crons plus an optional seconds field, names like JAN or MON, ranges, lists and steps.

Cron field reference

A standard cron has five fields: minute (0-59), hour (0-23), day of month (1-31), month (1-12 or JAN-DEC) and day of week (0-6 or SUN-SAT). Use * for "every", a-b for a range, a,b,c for a list, and */n for steps. TechWhack also accepts an optional sixth seconds field at the front.

FAQ

What do the five fields in a cron expression mean?In order they are minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week, so 0 9 * * 1 means 9:00 AM every Monday. This parser also shows a plain-English description, a field-by-field breakdown, and the next five run times.

Why does my cron job with both day-of-month and day-of-week run more often than expected?When both the day-of-month and day-of-week fields are restricted, standard cron runs the job when either one matches, not both. So 0 0 13 * 5 fires on the 13th and on every Friday, which surprises many people.

What timezone do cron schedules run in?Cron runs in the server time zone, not necessarily your local time, so the run times shown should be read against the machine that will execute them. Always confirm the server timezone before relying on an exact hour.

Can it handle a seconds field, ranges, lists, and step values?Yes. It supports an optional leading seconds field plus names, ranges like 1-5, lists like 1,3,5, and steps like */15. That covers both classic five-field cron and the six-field variants that include seconds.