Free · No sign-up · Works in the background
50 Minute Timer
50 minutes of work, then a 10-minute break, so every block fits into an hour. Press Start, keep this tab open, and it chimes when it's time to stop.
Space starts and pauses. Esc skips a break. Want breaks without keeping a tab open? Peeka does this on your Mac.
How to use this timer
- Start on the hour. Press Start at :00 and your break lands at :50. Leave this tab open; it keeps time in the background.
- When it chimes, take the 10 minutes away from the screen. You'll be back before the next hour starts.
- The next 50 minutes start on their own. Press Esc to skip a break, or Space to pause.
The 50/10 rhythm at a glance
| Work | 50 minutes |
|---|---|
| Break | 10 minutes |
| Where it comes from | No single inventor. It's an hour cut in two, so each block starts on the hour |
| Evidence | A 2022 review of 22 studies: breaks of up to 10 minutes raise energy and lower fatigue |
| Good for | Days with meetings on the hour, and steady work like admin, email or design |
| Less good for | Draining, demanding work, where a longer break helps more. Try 52/17. |
Where 50/10 comes from
Unlike Pomodoro or 52/17, the 50/10 rhythm has no inventor and no famous dataset behind it. It's simply an hour cut in two: 50 minutes on, 10 off.
That's also its strength. It's the easiest rhythm to line up with a calendar. Finish a block, take your break, and you're on time for whatever starts at the top of the hour.
Does it work?
The best evidence is about the break, not the 50 minutes. A 2022 review by Albulescu and colleagues pooled 22 studies with 2,335 people and looked at "micro-breaks" of 10 minutes or less. The breaks gave people more energy and less fatigue, though both effects were small.
The effect on performance was mixed. Short breaks helped on routine and creative tasks, but not on cognitively demanding ones. The authors also found that longer breaks gave a bigger boost, and that very draining work may need more than 10 minutes.
So 50/10 is a good everyday rhythm. For a day of hard thinking, give yourself a longer break, like the 17 minutes of 52/17 or the 20 of the 90 minute timer.
What to do in a 10-minute break
- Give your eyes 20 seconds of distance first. The farthest thing you can see.
- Get up and go somewhere: a window, the kitchen, down the stairs and back.
- Stretch: arms over your head, shoulders back, neck side to side.
- Drink some water, or make a tea.
- Leave your phone where it is. Ten minutes of scrolling keeps your eyes on a screen.
Compare the rhythms
| Rhythm | Work / break | Good for | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20-20-20 | 20 min / 20 sec | Your eyes. Tiny breaks, often. | Open |
| Pomodoro | 25 min / 5 min, long break after four | Getting started, studying, work you've been avoiding. | Open |
| 50/10 | 50 min / 10 min | Lining work up with the hour and your meetings. | This page |
| 52/17 | 52 min / 17 min | Long focus with a break long enough to leave the desk. | Open |
| 90/20 | 90 min / 20 min | Deep work with a slow warm-up: writing, coding, design. | Open |
| Flowmodoro | As long as focus lasts / a fifth of that | Work where being cut off mid-flow costs you. | Open |
| Animedoro | 40 to 60 min / one 20-minute episode | Studying, with a show as the reward. | Open |
Want your own lengths? The break timer takes any work and break time.
Peeka for Mac
A browser tab can't tell when you're busy. Peeka can.
Peeka is a tiny ghost that lives on your Mac's desktop and does this timer's job without a tab to keep open. It gets sleepier as your break gets closer, so the break never takes you by surprise.
- Waits until you stop typing, so it never cuts you off mid-sentence
- Hides during calls, presentations and screen shares
- Dims your screen for 20 seconds and gives you something to look at
- Naps when you step away, and starts fresh when you're back
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FAQ
Questions, answered.
Does the timer keep running if I switch tabs?
Yes. It keeps time against the clock, so it stays accurate in a background tab, and it remembers where it was if you reload. If your browser puts unused tabs to sleep to save memory, pin this tab.
How will I know it's break time?
You'll hear a soft chime, and you'll get a desktop notification if you allow them. If the tab is in front, a dim blanket slides over the page and counts the break for you.
Why 50/10 and not 25/5?
Both work. 25/5 suits getting started and studying. 50/10 gives you longer stretches and lines up with the hour, which helps on days with meetings.
Is a 10-minute break long enough?
For steady work, usually yes. A 2022 review found breaks of up to 10 minutes lift energy and lower fatigue. After draining work, take longer: 15 to 20 minutes.
What if a meeting interrupts a block?
Press Space to pause, or Reset to start a fresh 50 minutes after the meeting. A meeting isn't a break for your eyes, so take a short look out the window before you start again.
Does it work on my phone?
It runs in any modern browser, but phones lock their screens and pause web pages, so it works best on a laptop or desktop.
Is it really free?
Yes. No sign-up and no ads. It's made by Sameed, who also makes Peeka, a Mac app that does the same job without a browser tab.