Cron Expression Parser
Decode 5-field cron expressions into plain English and preview the next runs.
What is a Cron Expression?
A cron expression is a string of 5 (or 6) fields that defines a recurring schedule for automated tasks. Originally from the Unix cron daemon, cron expressions are used in job schedulers, CI/CD pipelines, AWS Lambda, Kubernetes CronJobs, and GitHub Actions.
A standard 5-field cron expression follows the format: minute hour day-of-month month day-of-week. For example, 0 9 * * 1-5 means at 9:00 AM every weekday.
How to parse a cron expression online
- Paste your cron expression into the input field.
- The tool explains each field in plain English and shows the next scheduled run times.
- Edit the expression and the explanation updates in real time.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does * mean in a cron expression?
An asterisk (*) means every — every minute, every hour, every day, etc. It matches all valid values for that field.
What is the difference between 5-field and 6-field cron?
Standard Unix cron uses 5 fields (minute, hour, day, month, weekday). Some schedulers (AWS EventBridge, Quartz, Spring) add a seconds field at the beginning, giving 6 fields.
How do I schedule a job every 5 minutes?
Use */5 * * * * — the */ syntax means every N. So */5 in the minute field means every 5 minutes: at 0, 5, 10, 15... minutes past the hour.
What does 0 0 * * 0 mean?
This runs at midnight (00:00) every Sunday. Breaking it down: 0 (minute 0), 0 (hour 0), * (every day of month), * (every month), 0 (Sunday).
What is the difference between day-of-month and day-of-week?
Day-of-month (field 3) is a number from 1-31. Day-of-week (field 5) is a number from 0-7 (0 and 7 both mean Sunday) or an abbreviation (MON, TUE...). When both are set to non-*, the job runs when either condition is met.