Online Stopwatch and Countdown Timer With Alarm

A free online stopwatch with lap times, plus a countdown timer that sounds an alarm when time is up. Click Start to time anything to a hundredth of a second, or switch to Timer, pick 1, 5, 10 or 25 minutes and get on with your task.

Quick answer: Click Start to begin timing and Stop to pause. Press Lap to record split times. For a countdown, open the Timer tab, choose a preset or type a time, and click Start. An alarm beeps when it reaches zero.

How to use the online stopwatch

1. Click Start. The time runs in minutes, seconds and hundredths of a second, and shows hours after the first hour.
2. Click Lap each time a lap or step finishes. Each lap shows its own time and the running total.
3. Click Stop to pause and Resume to carry on. Reset clears everything.
4. Click Copy laps to paste the lap times into a spreadsheet; they are tab-separated, so each value lands in its own column.

How to use the countdown timer

1. Open the Timer tab.
2. Click a preset such as 5 min or 25 min to start at once, or type hours, minutes and seconds and click Start.
3. The time left also shows in the browser tab title, so you can work in another tab and still see it.
4. When the countdown ends, the display turns red, the title says “Time is up!” and an alarm beeps six times. Untick Alarm sound for a silent timer.

Is the timing accurate?

Yes. The stopwatch and timer measure real elapsed time from your device’s clock instead of counting ticks, so they stay accurate even if the page is in the background. Browsers do slow down background tabs, so the display may update less often while hidden, but the time is correct when you come back. For the alarm to play, keep the tab open and your device’s volume on. Phones may pause pages when the screen locks.

Popular ways to use a timer

• Pomodoro technique: work for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break. Use the 25 min and 5 min presets.
• Cooking: boil eggs for 6 to 10 minutes, steep tea for 3 to 5.
• Classroom: time quizzes, group work and presentations on a projector.
• Exercise: plank holds, rest periods and interval rounds.
• Meetings and speeches: keep each speaker to their slot.
• Sport: lap times for running, swimming or cycling with the stopwatch.

Keyboard and screen tips

Press Tab to move to a button and Enter to press it. To show the timer large on a projector or TV, zoom the page with Ctrl and + (Cmd and + on a Mac). To open the timer tab directly, bookmark this page with #timer at the end of the address.

FAQ

Does the timer keep running if I switch tabs?

Yes. It keeps counting in the background, and the alarm plays on time as long as the tab stays open.

Why didn’t I hear the alarm?

Check the volume and that Alarm sound is ticked. On iPhone, the silent switch can mute web pages.

Can I time more than an hour?

Yes. The stopwatch runs for as long as the page is open, and the timer accepts up to 99 hours.

Can I pick a random time or number while timing?

For games, pair the timer with our random letter generator for a quick round of Stop or Scattergories.

More free tools

See all of them on the QuickOnlineTips free online tools page and play our free online games.