The cron to English translator converts cryptic cron expressions into plain, readable descriptions. Type any cron expression and instantly see what it means in natural language — no cron reference card needed.
How to Read Cron Expressions
Cron syntax uses 5 fields separated by spaces: minute (0-59), hour (0-23), day of month (1-31), month (1-12), and day of week (0-6, Sunday=0). Special characters: * means "any", */n means "every n", a-b is a range, a,b is a list.
Common Patterns
0 0 * * * — midnight every day. 0 9 * * 1-5 — 9 AM weekdays. */15 * * * * — every 15 minutes. 0 0 1 1 * — midnight on January 1st.
FAQ
Is this cron translator free?
Yes, completely free with no signup required.
What does '0 0 * * *' mean in English?
At midnight (00:00) every day. The first 0 is minute, the second 0 is hour, and the three * fields mean every day-of-month, every month, and every weekday.
What does '*/15 * * * *' mean?
Every 15 minutes. The */15 is a step value that runs at minute 0, 15, 30, and 45 of every hour.
What is 6-field cron syntax?
Standard UNIX cron uses 5 fields (minute hour day month weekday). Some systems like Quartz and AWS support a 6-field variant where the first field is seconds, enabling per-second scheduling.
What does '@weekly' mean?
@weekly is a special cron alias equivalent to '0 0 * * 0' — runs at midnight on Sunday. Other aliases: @hourly (every hour), @daily (midnight daily), @monthly (midnight on 1st of month), @yearly (midnight on Jan 1st).