Running a 15 minute countdown in the background
Start the timer and switch to another tab. The countdown keeps going because it works from your computer's clock, not by counting ticks. The tab title shows the time left, so you can read it from any other tab. If your device sleeps, the timer still ends at the right moment. A reload on the same page will not lose the end time. The alarm is a browser tone, so nothing downloads. You can pick beeps, a chime, or silent with a flashing tab title. Press Space to start or pause.
What people time at 15 minutes
Fifteen minutes is long enough to finish something small and short enough to stay focused. Common uses include:
- A reading sprint. You get through several pages without a break.
- One section of an exam or quiz. Many tests split into 15 minute parts.
- A presentation slot. Lightning talks and class talks often run 15 minutes.
- A rest between sets at the gym. Longer rests fit heavy lifts.
Tea steeps in 3 to 5 minutes, and eggs boil in 6 to 10, so those need a shorter preset. A Pomodoro focus block is 25 minutes. This 15 minute timer sits between them.
To change the length, type a new duration in the box. You can enter 5 for seconds, 5:00 for minutes and seconds, 1:30:00 for hours, minutes and seconds, or 90m, 1h 30m, 2d 3h. For an exact clock time, type 9:00, 9:00 am, 17:30, or 1730. The timer counts down to that moment. You can also open the Pomodoro timer for a 15 minute long break, or the countdown for a custom end time.