* CronTools
Builder

crontools.dev

0 9 * * 1-5

Every weekday at 9 AM

M
T
W
T
F
S
S
0:0012:0023:00

Cron Expression Builder

Build, validate, and translate cron expressions across nine platforms — Linux, AWS EventBridge, Kubernetes, Quartz, GitHub Actions, Azure Functions, Spring, Google Cloud Scheduler, and Jenkins.

Valid
MINMinute
0
HRHour
9
DOMDay of Month
*
MONMonth
*
DOWDay of Week
1-5

In plain English

At 09:00 AM, Monday through Friday

English → Cron

Try: "every 5 minutes", "every weekday at 9am", "every Monday at 3pm", "every month on the 1st"

Next 10 Executions

UTC
  1. 1Tue, Jul 7, 09:00 AM UTCin 15h
  2. 2Wed, Jul 8, 09:00 AM UTCin 2d
  3. 3Thu, Jul 9, 09:00 AM UTCin 3d
  4. 4Fri, Jul 10, 09:00 AM UTCin 4d
  5. 5Mon, Jul 13, 09:00 AM UTCin 7d
  6. 6Tue, Jul 14, 09:00 AM UTCin 8d
  7. 7Wed, Jul 15, 09:00 AM UTCin 9d
  8. 8Thu, Jul 16, 09:00 AM UTCin 10d
  9. 9Fri, Jul 17, 09:00 AM UTCin 11d
  10. 10Mon, Jul 20, 09:00 AM UTCin 14d
crontab entrybash
# Add to crontab with: crontab -e
0 9 * * 1-5    /path/to/your/script.sh

Supported Platforms

Switch platforms in the builder above, or visit a dedicated guide for each platform's syntax rules and examples.

Linux Crontab

*/5 * * * *

GitHub Actions

0 9 * * 1-5

AWS EventBridge

0 9 ? * MON-FRI *

Kubernetes

@daily

Quartz Scheduler

0 0 9 ? * MON-FRI

Spring @Scheduled

0 0 9 * * MON-FRI

Azure Functions

0 0 9 * * 1-5

Cloud Scheduler

0 9 * * 1-5

What is a Cron Expression?

A cron expression is a string of five (or more) fields that defines a recurring schedule for automated tasks. Originally a Unix/Linux feature, cron syntax is now the standard scheduling format across cloud platforms, CI/CD systems, and job schedulers.

The five standard fields — minute, hour, day-of-month, month, and day-of-week — let you express schedules from "every minute" to "the first Monday of each quarter." Platforms like AWS EventBridge, Quartz Scheduler, and Azure Functions extend the format with additional fields for seconds and year.

This tool supports all major platforms in one place: build an expression visually with the field pickers, type in plain English and get the expression automatically, or paste an existing expression to see it decoded and validated.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the 5 fields in a standard cron expression? ▾
Left to right: minute (0–59), hour (0–23), day-of-month (1–31), month (1–12), day-of-week (0–6, where 0 is Sunday). The wildcard "*" means "every value for this field."
How is this different from crontab.guru? ▾
crontab.guru is a single text input that decodes standard cron expressions. crontools.dev adds a visual field builder, natural language input, platform support for AWS EventBridge/Quartz/Kubernetes/GitHub Actions/Azure, platform manifest generation, and 200+ indexed reference pages for common schedules.
Does AWS EventBridge use standard cron syntax? ▾
No — AWS EventBridge uses a 6-field format with a year field at the end, and requires "?" instead of "*" for whichever of day-of-month or day-of-week you are not specifying. Both fields cannot be set simultaneously.
How do I convert a cron expression to plain English? ▾
Enter or build your expression using the visual builder above. The "In plain English" panel below the builder will show a human-readable description of the schedule automatically.
Can I type a schedule in plain English and get a cron expression? ▾
Yes — use the "English → Cron" input in the natural language panel. Type phrases like "every weekday at 9am", "every 5 minutes", or "every Monday at 3pm" and click Convert to get the expression.

Going deeper

Long-form guides on cron in production

Beyond the builder — articles on the failure modes, timezone gotchas, and scheduling patterns that don't survive contact with real systems.

Read the guides →