Cron Expression Generator
Free online cron expression generator. Build cron schedule expressions visually — every X minutes, hourly, daily, weekly, monthly. Copy-ready for crontab, GitHub Actions and CI/CD pipelines.
0 0 * * *
At midnight every day
How to Use Cron Expression Generator
Choose Your Schedule
Select the frequency — every X minutes, hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly. Then configure the specifics like the exact minute, hour, day of month, or day of week.
Review the Expression
The tool builds a standard 5-field cron expression as you make selections. Each field updates in real time. The human-readable description confirms your schedule is correct.
Copy and Use
Copy the cron expression and paste it into your crontab (Linux/Mac), cron job scheduler (cPanel, Plesk), or CI/CD pipeline (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI). Test immediately to verify it runs at the expected time.
Common Cron Expressions
| Expression | Schedule |
|---|---|
| * * * * * | Every minute |
| */15 * * * * | Every 15 minutes |
| 0 * * * * | Every hour |
| 0 0 * * * | Midnight every day |
| 0 9 * * 1-5 | 9:00 AM, Monday to Friday |
| 0 0 1 * * | Midnight on the 1st of every month |
| 0 0 * * 0 | Midnight every Sunday |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a cron expression?
A cron expression is a string of 5 fields separated by spaces that defines when a scheduled task should run. The fields are: minute (0-59), hour (0-23), day of month (1-31), month (1-12), and day of week (0-7, where both 0 and 7 represent Sunday). An asterisk (*) means "every" — so "* * * * *" means "every minute of every hour of every day."
What are common cron schedules?
Common patterns include: "0 * * * *" (every hour at minute 0), "0 0 * * *" (midnight daily), "0 9 * * 1-5" (9am weekdays), "*/15 * * * *" (every 15 minutes), "0 0 1 * *" (midnight on the 1st of every month), and "0 0 * * 0" (midnight every Sunday). Use our generator to build these visually without memorizing the field order.
What is the difference between day-of-month and day-of-week?
Day of month (3rd field) specifies which day of the month — 1st, 15th, last day. Day of week (5th field) specifies which day of the week — Monday, Friday, Sunday (0 or 7). When both fields have specific values (not *), the job runs when EITHER condition matches — for example, "0 0 1 * 1" runs at midnight on the 1st of the month AND every Monday.
Where can I use cron expressions?
Cron expressions are used in: Linux/Unix crontab files, GitHub Actions workflow schedules, GitLab CI pipeline schedules, Kubernetes CronJobs, AWS CloudWatch Events, Jenkins job scheduling, and many SaaS platforms. While the basic 5-field format is universal, some systems extend it — for example, some support a 6th field for seconds or special strings like @daily and @hourly.
Cron in Modern Infrastructure
Cron expressions have been around since Unix Version 7 (1979), but they're more relevant than ever. Cloud platforms, CI/CD pipelines, and container orchestration systems all use cron syntax to define scheduled tasks. The same 5-field expression that worked on a mainframe in 1980 works in a Kubernetes CronJob today.
Modern Use Cases
- Database backups: Schedule daily database dumps at low-traffic hours (e.g., 0 2 * * *)
- SSL certificate renewal: Run certbot renewal weekly to check expiring certificates
- Log rotation: Rotate and compress log files daily to manage disk space
- Data sync: Synchronize data between systems on a regular interval
- Cache warming: Pre-build cached pages before peak traffic hours