What is the Pomodoro Technique?
The Pomodoro Technique is a time-management method developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. You work in short, focused blocks — traditionally 25 minutes — separated by short breaks. Each focus block is called a “pomodoro”, Italian for tomato, after the tomato-shaped kitchen timer Cirillo used as a university student.
How to use this Pomodoro timer
- Pick one task and press Start to begin a 25-minute focus session.
- Work only on that task until the alarm rings. If something else comes to mind, write it down and get back to work.
- Take a 5-minute short break. Stand up, drink some water and look away from the screen.
- After every 4 focus sessions, take a longer 15-minute break. The timer switches to it for you.
Use Skip to jump to the next step, or click Focus / Short break / Long break to switch by hand. In Settings you can change the lengths (for example 50/10) and turn on auto-start so the next session begins by itself. Your settings are saved in this browser.
Tips for better focus sessions
- Decide what you will work on before you press Start.
- Silence notifications and put your phone out of reach.
- Really rest during breaks — don’t start anything you can’t finish in 5 minutes.
- Count your completed pomodoros to learn how long tasks really take, and use that number to plan the next day.
FAQ
Why 25 minutes?
25 minutes is long enough to make real progress and short enough to stay focused without getting tired. It’s only a starting point — many people prefer 50 minutes of work with a 10-minute break. You can change it in Settings.
What happens when a session ends?
An alarm sounds, the display flashes and the tab title changes. The timer shows what comes next; press Start when you’re ready, or turn on auto-start to continue automatically.
Does it keep running in the background?
Yes. The time is calculated from the real clock, so sessions end on time even while you work in another tab or app.