How Focus Timer works
Focus Timer is a work and break timer built around the Pomodoro technique: you work in short, fixed sessions and take a real break between them. Nothing to install, no account, and your settings stay in your browser.
1. Pick a session length
The default is 25 minutes of focus, a 5 minute short break, and a 15 minute long break after every four focus sessions. Open Settings under the timer to change any of these, from 1 to 180 minutes.
2. Add what you are working on
Type a task and press Enter. The first open task becomes your current task and is shown above the clock so you always know what this session is for. Tick tasks off as you finish them, reorder them, or clear the completed ones at the end of the day.
3. Start, and let the timer run
Press Space or the Start button. The remaining time also appears in the browser tab title, so you can switch to other windows and still see it. When the session ends you hear a short chime (choose bell, chime, beep or silent in Settings) and, if you allowed it, a desktop notification.
When you return from another tab or wake your device, the remaining time is updated from the scheduled end time. Sound and notifications can be delayed while the device sleeps or the browser restricts background activity.
4. Take the break
After a focus session the timer switches to a break. Turn on Auto-start breaks if you want the break to begin immediately, or start it yourself. Stand up, look away from the screen, and come back when it chimes.
Choosing focus and break lengths
Try one 25-minute focus session with a 5-minute break, then consider whether the stopping point worked for your task. If starting feels difficult, try 10–15 minutes with one small goal, such as reading a page or solving three questions. If the timer interrupts a useful stopping point, adjust the next session length or reduce the scope of the task. If you need more time away, extend the break.
Change one duration at a time and try it for a few sessions. Use a pace you can return to comfortably rather than aiming for the highest session count.
Study example: work through practice questions
Instead of adding a task called “Study,” enter “Answer questions 1–5 and mark the ones I get wrong.” Start a 25-minute session and check the task off when both answering and reviewing are finished. If time runs out first, leave a specific next task, such as “Review answers to questions 4–5,” and take a break.
Before the next session, decide whether to continue or retry the marked questions. Finishing the timer and finishing a task are separate: the timer does not automatically check off your task.
Work example: draft a document
Split the document into “Choose three headings,” “Write the key points under each heading,” and “Check figures and spelling.” Use the first session for headings, then return to the body after a break. This gives you a clear place to resume.
If a question comes up, note it separately or make it your next task. On a day with meetings, choose a scope and duration that fit before your next commitment. Use the controls according to what you want to do next:
| Situation | Control and effect on records |
|---|---|
| Step away briefly, then continue the same work | Pause, then Start when you return. The timer resumes from the remaining time. |
| Start this session over | Reset returns to the currently configured duration. The unfinished session is not added to the focus count. |
| End this session early and move to a break | Skip moves to the next timer without recording a completion. Press Start to begin that timer. |
| Change the duration for your next session | Edit Timer settings. A running or paused session keeps its existing duration; Reset applies the new duration to the current session. |
Keyboard shortcuts
- Space start or pause
- R reset the current session
- S skip to the next session
- N jump to the new-task field
- 1 2 3 switch to focus, short break or long break
- ? show this list inside the app
Where is my data stored?
Settings, tasks, timer state and completed-session records are saved in your browser’s local storage. They do not transfer to another browser or device. Clearing the site’s browser data removes these records, and they cannot be restored. Keep a separate copy of work details you need to retain. The privacy policy sets out the details.
Reading the count and understanding notification limits
Today’s focus count measures focus timers that reached the end. It does not measure completed tasks or verify time spent working. A 10-minute session and a 25-minute session each count as one. Dates use your device’s local time; a session crossing midnight is recorded on the day its completion is processed.
The site cannot play a sound or send a notification while its page is closed. When you return in the same browser, it checks the saved end time, but it does not reconstruct multiple work and break cycles for the period you were away. Use a device alarm as well for an important appointment.
Try a one-minute timer first to check sound, browser notification permission and your device’s mute or focus settings. Restore your work duration afterward. A test focus timer also counts as a completed session if it reaches the end.
Sounds, notifications and what carries across devices are covered in the FAQ.