Five minutes you can see
The dial is set to five minutes. Press Start and the disk empties over the next five minutes, turning red for the last thirty seconds and chiming at zero. Five minutes is the length of a transition, a tidy-up, a warm-up, a quick break or the "five more minutes" a child asks for; it is also the length nobody can feel, which is why a timer that shows it as a shape helps.
What people use a 5 minute timer for
- Transitions. Five minutes until the park, the bath, the end of screen time. The disk lets a child watch the ending approach instead of being ambushed by it.
- Getting started. Five minutes is short enough to begin a task you have been avoiding. When the chime goes you may carry on, but you only committed to five.
- Classroom changeovers and warm-ups. Put it full screen on the board; see the classroom timer for chained steps.
- Breaks. A five-minute break between 25-minute focus blocks is the Pomodoro pattern.
- Brushing teeth, steeping tea, a plank set. Anything short enough that a phone alarm feels like overkill.
Change it
Tap another preset, type a number into the custom box, or drag the knob around the dial. Need five minutes to run again and again? Press Again when it ends. Need it to start the moment the page opens, for a bookmark on a classroom computer? Use #5m.~go. The link format explains every option.
Other preset timers
Teachers: the guide to using a visual timer in the classroom covers placement, step lengths and introducing the timer to a class.
Questions
How do I start the 5 minute timer?
Press Start. The disk shrinks over five minutes, turns red for the last thirty seconds and chimes at zero. Press Start again to pause.
Can I make it full screen?
Yes. Press Full screen or the F key. The disk and the countdown fill the display, which suits a classroom board or a kitchen laptop.
Can I add a minute when it is nearly up?
Yes. The +1 min button adds a minute to the running timer without resetting it.
Does the 5 minute timer make a sound?
Yes, a chime plays at zero and the screen flashes red. Browsers only play sound after you tap the page, so press Start yourself rather than opening an auto-start link if you need the chime.
Is there a 5 minute timer with no ads?
This one. It is a free static page with no ads, no account and no tracking beyond the site's standard analytics.