What is a crontab expression?

A crontab expression is a string of five fields that defines a recurring schedule: minute (0-59), hour (0-23), day of month (1-31), month (1-12), and day of week (0-6, where 0 is Sunday). It is used in Unix cron, CI/CD systems, and task schedulers.

How does this differ from the Cron Parser?

The Cron Parser takes an existing cron expression and explains it. This Crontab Generator works in the opposite direction: you visually configure a schedule using dropdowns and it generates the cron expression for you. Use this when you know the schedule you want but not the syntax.

What do the mode options mean?

'Every' means every possible value for that field (the * wildcard). 'Specific value' selects one exact value (e.g., minute 30). 'Every N' creates an interval (e.g., */5 for every 5 minutes).

Are the next run times accurate?

The next run times are calculated from your current local time and are accurate for the generated cron expression. They reflect your browser's timezone. For production use, verify against your server's timezone configuration.

Can I use this for Kubernetes CronJobs?

Yes. Kubernetes CronJobs use standard 5-field cron syntax. Copy the generated expression directly into your CronJob spec's schedule field.

Is my data sent to a server?

No. The cron expression is generated entirely in your browser. No data is sent to any server.

CalcHive

Crontab Generator

New

Build cron expressions visually with dropdown selectors. See human-readable descriptions and next 5 run times. Generate crontab schedules without memorizing syntax.

Minute

Hour

Day of Month

Month

Day of Week

Generated Cron Expression

0 9 * * *

Plain English

at 9:00 AM

Next 5 Scheduled Runs

1.Tue, Mar 17, 202609:00 AM

2.Wed, Mar 18, 202609:00 AM

3.Thu, Mar 19, 202609:00 AM

4.Fri, Mar 20, 202609:00 AM

5.Sat, Mar 21, 202609:00 AM

Cron Field Reference

Field	Values	Special
Minute	0-59	* , - /
Hour	0-23	* , - /
Day of Month	1-31	* , - /
Month	1-12	* , - /
Day of Week	0-6 (Sun=0)	* , - /

How to Use Crontab Generator

Select a mode for each cron field: every, specific value, or interval.
Choose specific values or intervals from the dropdown menus.
The cron expression updates in real time as you make changes.
Review the plain English description and next run times.
Copy the generated cron expression to your clipboard.

Building Cron Expressions Visually

Cron syntax can be tricky to get right, especially for complex schedules. This generator lets you build cron expressions by selecting options from dropdowns instead of remembering the syntax. Each field supports three modes: every value (*), a specific value, or a step interval (*/N).

The generated expression follows the standard 5-field POSIX cron format used by crontab, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Kubernetes CronJobs, AWS EventBridge, and most task scheduling systems. The next run times preview helps you verify the schedule before deploying.

Frequently Asked Questions

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