Focus Timer
A free focus timer with 25-minute sessions, 5-minute breaks, and a long break after every four, all editable and with no sign-up.
Focus timer
Focus
Focus 1 of 4 in this cycle
Reset this session?
Today's focus sessions
No finished focus sessions yet today.
Your browser isn't saving data for this page, so the list resets when you close it.
Clear today's list? This can't be undone.
Session lengths and sounds
focus sessions
A running session keeps its length. Changes apply from the next session.
70%
Your browser asks for permission first. It works alongside the sound while this page is open, including in a background tab. If you close the tab, nothing will appear. Most phone browsers don't allow notifications from a web page.
Keyboard: Space to start or pause, S to skip, R to reset, F for full screen, Esc to silence the sound. Turn shortcuts off under Session lengths and sounds.
How to use the focus timer
- Type what you're working on if you like. It shows on the timer, in the browser tab, and in today's list.
- Press Start. The first session is a 25-minute focus session unless you've changed it.
- When it ends you'll hear the focus sound and the timer turns red. Press Start short break, or Not now if you need a minute first.
- When the break ends, a different sound plays and the next focus session is ready. After the fourth focus session, the break offered is the long one.
- To skip the waiting, open Session lengths and sounds and turn on Start the next session automatically.
How the cycle works
With the default settings, one full cycle runs in this order and takes 2 hours 10 minutes:
- Focus, 25 minutes, then a short break of 5 minutes
- Focus, 25 minutes, then a short break of 5 minutes
- Focus, 25 minutes, then a short break of 5 minutes
- Focus, 25 minutes, then a long break of 15 minutes
After the long break the dots under the timer empty out and the count starts again at focus 1. If you change the lengths, the settings panel shows how long your own cycle takes.
Skip moves straight to the next session without counting the one you skipped. Picking Focus, Short break or Long break at the top of the timer jumps to that session type, and Start a new cycle puts the count back to the first focus session.
Need just one break? The five-minute break timer runs a single short break with a back-at sign.
If 25 minutes feels too long to start, a ten-minute focus block is an easier first step.
About the Pomodoro® Technique
The Pomodoro Technique® is a time-management method developed by Francesco Cirillo that splits work into timed focus sessions separated by short breaks. On the technique's official site, Cirillo says he came up with it in the 1980s using a tomato-shaped kitchen timer. Pomodoro is Italian for tomato, and each timed work session is called a pomodoro.
The version most people know is the one this timer follows by default: work on one task for 25 minutes, take a short break, and take a longer break after four rounds. Descriptions of the break lengths vary from source to source, which is why every length here can be changed. Cirillo's own site also says the 25-minute timer isn't the technique itself but one way of applying it.
Leaving the tab or locking your phone
You can switch to another tab while a session runs. The timer keeps the exact time each session should end rather than counting seconds, and the sound for the end of the session is set up on the browser's audio clock when you press Start, so a slowed-down background tab doesn't make it late. With automatic start on, the next session is timed from the moment the last one ended, not from when the tab noticed.
Phones are different. Many pause web pages and their sound when the screen locks. Keep screen awake asks the browser to leave the display on while a session runs, where that's supported, so for a phone on your desk leave the page open with that setting on.
Focus timer questions
What are the default focus timer settings?
Focus sessions are 25 minutes, short breaks are 5 minutes, and a 15-minute long break comes after every 4 focus sessions. You can change all four numbers under Session lengths and sounds, and the page remembers them in your browser.
Does the break start on its own?
Only if you turn on Start the next session automatically. With it off, the timer stops when a session ends, plays the sound, and waits for you to press Start short break or Not now. With it on, the next session starts as soon as the last one ends.
Why are there two different sounds?
So you can tell what just ended without looking. By default a two-note chime means a focus session is over and a bell means a break is over. You can pick a different sound for each, or Silent, and test them first.
What counts as a finished session in today's list?
A focus session that runs all the way to zero. Skipped sessions, sessions you reset, and breaks aren't added. The list only shows today, starting from midnight on your device.
Where is my session list saved?
Only in your own browser on this device. Nothing is sent to a server. Clear today's list removes it, and a private window or clearing your browser data removes it too.
Can I change the length while a session is running?
Yes, but the running session keeps the length it started with. The new length is used from the next session on. If the timer isn't running, the change shows right away.
Who created the Pomodoro® Technique?
Francesco Cirillo. On the technique's official site he writes that he created it in the 1980s with a tomato-shaped kitchen timer, and pomodoro is Italian for tomato.
Do I have to use 25 minutes?
No. 25 minutes is the length most people know, but Cirillo's site describes the 25-minute timer as one expression of the method rather than the method itself. Set the lengths that suit the work you're doing.
Sources
- Francesco Cirillo, Pomodoro Technique official site (creator, 1980s, tomato-shaped kitchen timer, 25-minute sessions as one expression of the method), pomodorotechnique.com
- Wikipedia, "Pomodoro Technique" (late 1980s, 25-minute interval, long break after four, citing Cirillo), en.wikipedia.org
- Chrome for Developers, "Heavy throttling of chained JS timers beginning in Chrome 88" (why background tabs slow page timers), developer.chrome.com
- web.dev, "The Screen Wake Lock API is now supported in all browsers" (Keep screen awake), web.dev
Cedrick Reese put this focus timer together for TimerCalculator.com. Every session is timed against its end time, and with automatic start each new session is measured from the end of the previous one, so a long run of sessions doesn't drift. It was checked in an automated browser on a simulated clock, using one-minute sessions: a full four-session cycle was run with automatic start on and again with it off, the clock was jumped past a session change the way a sleeping background tab sees it, the page was reloaded partway through a session, and each ending was confirmed to book the focus sound or the break sound you picked. Your settings and today's list are kept only in your own browser.
Related tools
- Online timerA single countdown of any length with an alarm.
- StopwatchCount up with laps when you don't know how long something will take.
- 5 minute timerA one-tap break on its own.
- Online alarm clockRings at a clock time, like the end of your work day.
- Hours from nowSee what time it will be after a few hours of work.
- Time duration calculatorHours and minutes between two clock times.
The Pomodoro Technique® is a registered trademark by Francesco Cirillo. Pomodoro® is also a registered trademark by Francesco Cirillo. This website is not affiliated with, associated with, or endorsed by the Pomodoro Technique® or Francesco Cirillo.