Jul 15, 2018 6. Stand for Mac. Category: Reminder Timer. Stand for Mac is a wonderful Mac timer app for all users. It reminds you to stand up once in a while. The app does not come with any bells or whistles. Instead, you can decide how often you want to be notified about standing up. The idea of Stand for Mac. Open the Timer app on your Apple Watch. Tap a timer duration to start the timer. Scroll down to choose a recent or custom time. When a timer goes off, you can tap Repeat to start a timer of the same duration. This is the timer your home gym is missing! The GymNext Flex Timer combines a crystal-clear LED display with an easy to use interval timer mobile app creating the best, most powerful gym timer ever made. The compact 2.3' LED digits in blue/red are far more visible than your phone screen and the adjustable 95db buzzer is great for keeping you on pace. With bluetooth range of over 100 feet.
Whether you’re a professional or not, time is everything. It’s great that we now have timer apps that easily manage time. Recently, we had covered the best Apple Watch Timer Apps. Most of those apps offered a built-in tool for the timer. This time, however, we are focusing on timer apps for Mac in general. You will find options from categories like Task timer apps, Pomodoro Timer apps, Countdown timer apps, etc. We have also included Reminder timers and some time-tracker timers for freelancers.
Read: Top 10 Free macOS Apps to Boost Your Productivity
Best Timer Apps for Mac
1. Focus Booster
Category: Pomodoro Timer
focus booster is an incredibly simpler Pomodoro timer app for Mac. However, despite the simple interface, Focus Booster lets you customize things like the length of the session, break duration, etc. You can also sign in to an account and sync time-tracking data between your macOS, iPhone, and Android.
Nevertheless, we wished there was a menu-bar icon for the app. You will have to open the app to know how much time you have left. Also, Focus Booster does not let you add multiple tasks at once. On the bright side, you can have the better workflow, thanks to multi-platform apps.
The app is free, but it does come with some limitation, for instance, advanced analytics are web-only, and the limited number of sessions (20) in the free version
Overall, Focus Booster is the best choice if you need a simple Pomodoro timer with analytics. It’s useful when you have multiple clients and want to track time.
Check Out focus booster (Freemium, $2.99/month)
2. Pomotodo
Category: Pomodoro Timer
Pomotodo, as the name suggests, combines an excellent Pomodoro timer and a task-management list. You can add tasks to the simple interface and also start the Pomodoro timer. However, both these things aren’t integrated i.e. you cannot run the timer for a specific task.
However, when the timer is running, you can mark the tasks complete. Pomotodo has options like Analytics, Stats, Goals, and History. You can go to Preferences and customize the way this timer app works. In addition, Pomotodo also brings multi-device sync and a fully-fledged time management system.
Pomotodo is more than a simple Mac timer app. It offers ample options for time management as well as Pomodoro technique use.
Countdown Timer App For Mac
Check Out Pomotodo (Free, Pro starts at $2.9/month)
3. WaitingList
Category: Countdown Timer
WaitingList does exactly what its name says. It lets you create amazing countdown timers that you can find in the menu bar. Just click on the WaitingList icon and there will be a list of things that you’re waiting for. As opposed to other apps, WaitingList prioritizes visual appeal over anything.
The point is that you can create eye-pleasing countdowns easily. WaitingList lets you choose the style as well as the background. You can also get reminders about an approaching event. Last but not the least, the app offers iCloud Sync feature as well.
WaitingList is an awesome choice when you need interactive timers and reminders. It’s a count-down app that makes your events look more exciting.
Check Out WaitingList ($4.99)
4. Timer for Mac
Category: Countdown Timer
Timer for Mac is a general timer app but works awesome for almost all needs. You can use this app to set a stopwatch timer, normal timer or alarms. It also offers a section named Clock, where you can see the current time.
In the free version, you can set reminders along with actions. It focuses on accuracy and ease of use, but an awesome set of features are also there. Going Pro, Timer for Mac can bring you full-screen mode, a better set of programmed actions, etc.
Timer for Mac does many jobs beautifully when you need to set a timer. That having said, you’d need the Pro version if you need some awesome features listed above.
Check Out Timer for Mac (Free, Pro at $29.95)
5. Time Out
Category: Reminder Timer
It’s very important to take frequent breaks — for your health and productivity. Time Out for Mac allows you to run a timer to remind you. When it’s time for the break, Time Out will show you a full-screen message on the Mac screen.
While setting up Time Out, you can decide the desired amount of breaks. You also get features like Micro Breaks and advanced scheduling. Customization is the key of this timer app. From the time to how take-a-break messages are shown, everything can be changed.
Gym Timer App For Mac Pro
Overall, Time Out is the best companion for those who spend hours in front of the PC. It lets you take a break without compromising productivity. Don’t forget to come back on time, though.
Check Out Time Out (Free)
6. Stand for Mac
Category: Reminder Timer
Stand for Mac is a wonderful Mac timer app for all users. It reminds you to stand up once in a while. The app does not come with any bells or whistles. Instead, you can decide how often you want to be notified about standing up.
The idea of Stand for Mac is amazing indeed. The app does not have a fully-fledged window but Preferences are available from the icon menu. Stand for Mac also plays a sound when it’s time to stand up, but further customization isn’t available.
Pros: Extremely simple and straightforward, no complex set-ups
Cons: None
The Verdict: If you think you have an unhealthy lifestyle of sitting all the time, use Stand for Mac. It comes at no cost, which is great.
Check Out Stand for Mac (Free)
7. Cooking Timer
Category: Kitchen Timer
Cooking Timer is an awesome Mac timer app for chefs out there. It’s pretty simple to use if you’re into some BBQ events or some other cooking. Cooking Timer lets you run three timers at the same time. You can make use of them for different needs.
Coming to the timers, you can use them as Stopwatches or timers itself. In the latter case, choose the desired length from the menu. The single-tap technique makes it easy to manage the timers so that you can focus on what’s being prepared.
Cooking Timer is the simplest solution out there, for all the good reasons. You can use this timer without concerns when you want to focus on the cooking process.
Check Out Cooking Timer (Free)
8. Timing
Category: Time Tracker for Freelancers
Timing is a wonderful time-tracking app for Mac. Compared to the competitors, Timing is automated when it comes to actions. You don’t have to press the Start or Stop buttons. Instead, Timing app will observe and analyze where you are spending most of your time.
At the end of the day, Timing provides a proper report of time consumption. If you are a professional, you can use this data to create invoices and reports. The best part is that you can automate this process too. It’s going to let you set up some rules for report generation.
Timing for Mac is perhaps the best time-tracker for almost every freelancer. You cannot use the app for normal countdown or anything, but the time-tracking part is excellent.
Check Out Timing ($29 for Productivity, $49 for Professional and $79 for Expert)
9. Horo
Category: Time Tracker for Freelancers
Yet another extremely minimal timer app that won’t even make you feel its presence. No extra features than the exact job it needs to execute. The app is available on the macOS App Store and takes a few seconds to get installed. The app is so light on the system that even summoning Siri to know weather updates might take more space on the RAM.
Once installed, you’ll see the ‘hourglass’ shaped app icon on the menu bar. Click on the icon to reveal the tiny app interface wherein you just insert the time and press the play button. That’s it, the timer will start on the count-down display is visible on the menu bar.
The good part about the app is that you can continue with other tasks while the timer would still be visible on the menu bar. And even if you work in full screen it had you covered. It plays a tone upon finishing. You can even change the tone and set a timer creation shortcut in a premium version which doesn’t cost as much.
Exercise Timer App
Download Horo (Free, $2 for full version)
Interval Timer App For Mac
Timer Apps for Mac
The 10 Mac timer apps we have covered are made for unique needs. As it happens, you cannot fulfill all your needs with a single app. For instance, hr, our pick for task management, would be less useful if you need to get reminders on time. In that case, you should go for something like Time Out. By the way, do let us know which tool do you use for timers and time-tracking.
Related: Quickest Ways to Set a Timer on your iPhone?
Alarms and timers are great productivity tools that are with us every step of the way. You wake up with an alarm, start and finish working with it. Alarms help you remember important events and make sure you don’t miss your friend’s birthday.
Some people can’t imagine doing their work without alarms and timers. Pomodoro productivity apps are a living proof of that. If you ever struggled meeting your deadlines, give this technique a try and you’ll see how much more efficient you can be.
Even though there are a few different options to set an alarm on a Mac, not every user knows how to do it. Let’s take a look at a few different options (both built-in and third-party). Then you can choose one that suits your needs best.
How to Set an Alarm on Mac Using Calendar
Your computer comes with a lot of pre-installed MacOS apps that are actually really good. One of the default apps is Calendar.
The app has many useful features, including setting a one-time alarm, and any alarm that you set on your computer using Apple Calendar will automatically sync with your other iOS devices. That way, you will still get the alert even if you’re away from your Mac.
Setting an alarm on Mac in Calendar is a very straightforward process:
- To access Calendar, go to your dock. If you don’t see Calendar on your dock, go to Launchpad and find the app there using search tool.
- Choose the date you want to set the alarm for.
- When selecting the time for your alarm, double-click on the space next to the right hour. For example, if you want the alarm to go just after noon, click on the space between 12 and 1pm. Then drag the created time slot to adjust the minutes.
- You can edit your event by creating a name for it, setting it to Home or Work event, adding location, notes, and even inviting other people.
- To add an alert, tap on the date of your alarm. That will bring down a small menu. Click Alert.
- Choose when you want the alarm to go off. You can choose from the default options or click Custom to set your own alarm length.
- Hit Apply. If you’d like to add multiple alerts, click + next to the one you just created.
Removing an alarm is just as easy. Use the right-click to delete it, or tap on the event and click Delete.
How to Set an Alarm on Mac Using Reminders
If you’re someone who loves being in control and staying on top of your life, you’re probably using at least one of the great task-management apps out there. However, your Mac is already equipped with a simplistic to-do list type of app called Reminders.
This app’s main purpose is to remind you of important tasks you have to do throughout the day. It also works great for setting alarms on your Mac.
- Go to Launchpad to locate the app. Open Reminders.
- Inside the app, click on the + to add a reminder.
- Type the name in. Then click the information (i) icon next to it.
- Choose Remind me on a day.
- Add the day and time you’d like to set the alarm for.
- Click Done.
In order to remove the alarm, right-click the reminder and choose Delete.
Set an Alarm on Mac Using Siri
Digital assistants have their own strengths and weaknesses. On your smartphone, you can use Siri to set alarms. On your Mac, you can do it by using Siri to set a reminder.
But before you do it, make sure you have Siri enabled on your Mac.
- Go to your System Preferences, choose Siri, and then check Enable Ask Siri.
- To open Siri, use the key combination you have set up for it (the default one is Command + Space), or click Siri icon in the upper right corner of your Mac.
- Say Set an alarm.
- Siri will politely decline and offer to set a reminder instead.
- Say Yes or click Confirm to set the reminder.
Ditch The Built-In Options
While Mac’s built-in options for setting alarms are useful, you might still find them rather limited. If you’re craving something more simple and straight-to-the-point, try one of the third-party sites and apps that serve the same purpose.
Use Online Alarm Clock To Set Alarms on Mac
If you have internet access, there’s no shortage of options for online alarm clocks. A simple Google search will bring up a few different options that you can choose from, like Onlineclock or Kukuklok.
Those sites are free to use, and they come with a set of basic options. You can set same-day alarms and timers, as well as choose the sound of the alert.
If you’re looking for a tool focused specifically on setting timers on Mac, E.ggtimer is a good pick. It comes with a countdown that you can set for certain time periods or even different tasks, like brushing your teeth or doing your morning exercise.
For those of you looking for a more interactive tool, give Setalarmclock a try. Aside from setting timers and alarms, it gives you advice on productivity, as well as a few fun options like naming your alarms and leaving a message for your future self.
When using these apps, make sure your computer isn’t muted and your volume is loud enough for you to hear the alarms go off.
Use Wake Up Time To Set Alarms
Wake Up Time is a great option for when you’re feeling old school. It’s basically a virtual embodiment of a physical alarm clock you used to have sitting on your bedside table.
The app will put a picture of a stylish-looking alarm clock on your Mac which you can use to set your alarms. To set an alarm, choose the time and date and then click the blue round button in the bottom-left corner of the clock. You can change what your alarm will sound like by tapping Sound in the menu.
When your alarm goes off, it won’t stop ringing until you hit the Stop button. The app works offline, and unlike other online tools on this list it will still work even if your Mac is muted.
A Mac is a great computer that comes with built-in really useful software. But like with any new gadget, there are always ways to improve your experience with it. So it never hurts to always be on the lookout for new apps and tools to take your Mac to the next level.