Pomodoro Timer

The Pomodoro Timer is a free online focus timer that breaks your work into timed focus sessions separated by short and long breaks, with a large circular countdown that automatically advances from one session to the next. Set your durations, press Start, and it counts down a 25-minute focus block, a 5-minute short break, and a 15-minute long break after every four focus sessions — all running entirely in your browser with nothing saved to a server.

What is the Pomodoro Technique?

The Pomodoro Technique is a time-management method that splits work into fixed intervals — traditionally 25 minutes of focused work called a "pomodoro" — each followed by a short break, with a longer break after four intervals. The idea is that a visible, ticking deadline pushes you to start now and stay on one task, while the regular breaks keep your attention fresh and prevent burnout.

This tool implements that cycle with a countdown drawn as an SVG progress ring. Because it uses the wall clock to measure time, the countdown stays accurate even if the browser tab is backgrounded, and the current time is mirrored into the page title so you can glance at it from any tab.

How to use the Pomodoro timer

1. Set your durations for focus, short break, and long break, and choose how many focus sessions come before a long break (the default is four).
2. Press Start to begin the focus countdown; the ring empties as time passes and the tab title shows the remaining time.
3. Take the break when a chime signals the session ended — the timer auto-advances to the next mode if auto-start is on.
4. Use Pause, Reset, or Skip at any time to hold the clock, restart the current session, or jump straight to the next one.
5. Watch the session counter track completed focus blocks and your position in the current cycle.

Why use a Pomodoro timer?

A structured timer turns vague intentions into a concrete commitment: you are not "working on something" indefinitely, you are focusing for one clearly bounded interval. That single constraint makes it far easier to begin, to ignore distractions, and to give yourself permission to rest without guilt when the break arrives.

• Circular countdown: an SVG ring gives you an at-a-glance sense of how much of the session remains.
• Auto-advancing cycle: focus, short break, and long break rotate automatically so you never have to reset by hand.
• Configurable durations: tune every interval and the long-break frequency to fit how you actually work.
• Gentle chime: a soft Web Audio tone marks the end of each session without a jarring alarm.
• Tab-title countdown: the remaining time appears in the browser tab so you can keep the timer in the background.
• Optional desktop notifications: get a system alert when a session ends — permission is only requested if you enable it.

When to reach for a Pomodoro timer

A Pomodoro timer shines for open-ended, easy-to-procrastinate work — writing, studying, coding, or clearing a backlog — where the hard part is starting and sustaining attention rather than tracking an exact clock time. If you instead need to schedule a recurring job or reason about a specific moment, a different tool fits better: use the Crontab Expression Generator to build a cron schedule for automated tasks, and the Unix Timestamp Converter when you need to translate an epoch time into a human-readable date.

Because the technique pairs naturally with focused output, it also complements the tools you may be working alongside during a session. You might warm up your fingers with the Typing Speed Test before a writing sprint, then keep a focus block honest by checking your draft's length in the Word Counter when the break bell rings. The timer stays out of the way and simply keeps time while you do the real work.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is a Pomodoro session?

A classic Pomodoro is 25 minutes of focused work followed by a 5-minute short break, with a longer 15-minute break after every four focus sessions. This timer uses those defaults, but you can change every duration and the number of sessions before a long break to suit your own rhythm.

Does the timer keep running if I switch browser tabs?

Yes. The countdown is measured against your device's clock rather than a simple tick count, so it stays accurate even when the tab is in the background or throttled. The remaining time is also shown in the tab title so you can monitor it while working elsewhere.

Will it make a sound when a session ends?

If the chime option is enabled, the timer plays a short, gentle two-tone chime generated with the Web Audio API when each session finishes. You can turn the sound off at any time, and you can optionally enable a desktop notification instead or in addition.

Is any of my data saved or sent anywhere?

No. The entire timer runs client-side in your browser. Your durations, session counts, and settings stay on the page for the current visit, and nothing is stored on a server or transmitted anywhere.

Why does it ask for notification permission?

Permission is only requested if you tick the desktop notification option, because browsers require explicit consent to show system notifications. If you leave that option off, the timer never asks, and you can still rely on the on-screen countdown and the chime.