How to use the Pomodoro timer
- Leave the Work tab selected and press Start. The ring shrinks, the status line tells you when the session ends, and the browser tab shows the time left so you can watch it from another tab.
- When the 25 minutes are up a chime plays and the timer moves to a Short Break and starts by itself. After the fourth Work session it moves to the Long Break instead. Untick Start the next session automatically under Customize Durations if you prefer to press Start each time.
- Change Work (min) from 1 to 120, and Short break (min) or Long break (min) from 1 to 60.
- Skip jumps to the next session, and the three tabs let you pick a session yourself. Press the Space bar to start or pause when no field or button has focus.
How the cycle works
Francesco Cirillo developed the technique in the late 1980s as a university student and named it after his tomato-shaped kitchen timer, as Wikipedia's summary notes. The cycle here follows common descriptions such as the Duke Academic Resource Center guide: work 25 minutes, take a 5 minute break, and after four rounds take a longer break of 15 to 30 minutes. Twenty-five minutes is Cirillo's convention, not a scientific constant. Researchers did find that brief diversions help people stay on a long task (Ariga and Lleras, 2011), but that study did not test Pomodoro itself, so change the lengths if 25 does not suit you. More background: how the Pomodoro Technique works.
Worked example
With the default 25, 5 and 15 minute settings, one full cycle is 25 + 5 + 25 + 5 + 25 + 5 + 25 + 15 = 130 minutes, which is 2 hours 10 minutes: 100 minutes of focus and 30 of breaks. When the first Work session ends, the status line reads "Focus session finished. Short Break started." and the totals show Focus time today 25m, Break time today 0m and Pomodoros today 1, with one of the four dots filled.
Limits and edge cases
- Settings and today's totals are saved in this browser only and reset at midnight. Clearing site data erases them, and they do not follow you to another device.
- Skipping a Work session does not count as a Pomodoro. Pausing keeps the minutes you have already worked in Focus time.
- The timer follows your device clock and ticks from a background worker, so it stays accurate in another tab. Closing the tab ends the session, and browsers that freeze background tabs can delay the chime.
- The chime only plays after you have used the page, and pressing Start counts. Notifications need your permission.
- This page is the classic fixed cycle. For custom deep-work blocks with a session log try the focus timer, for exam revision the study timer, and for a single countdown the countdown timer.
Frequently asked questions
How long is a Pomodoro and how long are the breaks?
A Pomodoro is 25 minutes of focused work. The short break is about 5 minutes (Cirillo describes 3 to 5), and the long break after four Pomodoros is 15 to 30 minutes. This timer starts at 25, 5 and 15 and lets you change all three.
Does skipping a session count as a completed Pomodoro?
No. Only a Work session that runs to zero adds a Pomodoro and fills a dot. Skipping moves on to the next session, though the minutes you already worked stay in Focus time today.
Will the timer keep running if I switch tabs?
Yes. It tracks the end time against your device clock, so the time shown is right when you return, and the tab title counts down. Phones and power-saving modes may freeze background tabs and delay the chime.
Where are my daily totals stored?
In your browser's local storage on this device, for today only. Nothing is sent to a server, and the totals start again at zero after midnight.