Questions about Authentic Timer
Plain answers about quiet time, the breath, the pictures, the music and your data. Authentic Timer is free, forever, and needs no account.
Is Authentic Timer free?
Yes, free forever. There are no paid plans. The timer, the photographs, the breath, the music and the done list cost nothing, with or without an account.
Do I need an account?
No. Open the page and press start. Without an account, your tasks, settings and today’s numbers stay in this browser. An account keeps tasks, sessions, favourites, presets, playlists, projects and reports across devices. Tasks you added as a guest move into it when you sign in.
How does a session work?
Press start for 25 minutes of work. When the block ends, a chime sounds and your 5-minute break begins with the offer of a 4-7-8 breath. When the break ends, the timer returns to the work length and waits for you to press start.
What is quiet time?
While a block runs, the digits fade after a few seconds and a thin arc fills for the length of the block. Hover, tap or press any key to see the time. The digits return on their own for the last minute and whenever you pause. Quiet time is on by default; turn it off with Q or in Settings. If your device is set to reduce motion, the digits stay.
Can I change the 25/5 rhythm?
Yes. Settings (S) has three lengths under Session length: 25/5, 50/10 and 15/3. The keys 1, 2 and 3 choose them while the timer is stopped. With an account you can save up to six lengths of your own, from 1 to 180 minutes of work and 1 to 60 of break.
What is the 4-7-8 breath?
A breathing exercise popularised by Dr Andrew Weil: in through your nose for four, hold for seven, out through your mouth for eight. The timer offers a guided version at the start of every break, and it has a page of its own at /breathe. Stop if you feel dizzy.
Do I have to do the breathing exercise?
No. The timer asks at the start of each break, and Skip starts the break countdown straight away. Once you have started, Esc takes you back to the break, and the time you spent breathing counts as part of it.
Where do the photographs come from?
About a hundred photographs of Asian landscapes, most of them from Unsplash, each credited to its photographer. There are also sixteen landscape paintings from Birmingham Museums Trust, and gradients for days when you want nothing in the frame. Press B for the next background, or choose Photography, Paintings or Gradients in Settings. The collection page lists every picture with its credit.
Can I use my own backgrounds?
Yes, with an account. Under Setup, Custom backgrounds takes a name and a direct link to an image: a JPG, PNG or WebP of at least 500 by 300 pixels. You can keep up to ten.
Is there music?
Yes. There are thirty playlists chosen for concentration, from ambient and meditation to film scores. They play through YouTube, so music needs a connection. Press M to start or stop it and N for the next playlist. With an account you can add your own YouTube playlists.
What is the done list?
A record of what you finished. Add tasks with T, or Shift+T for a quick add, and tick them off as you go. The Done view lists what you completed today, over the past week or month, or for all time. Tasks can belong to a project, and you can export them as CSV or JSON.
Can I see how much I have focused?
Press D for today’s numbers: sessions and minutes today, and your streak. With an account, each finished block is recorded as a session against its task, and totals and reports keep your history across devices.
What are the keyboard shortcuts?
Space starts or pauses, R resets, F turns focus mode on or off, Q quiet time, S settings, D today’s numbers, T tasks, Shift+T adds a task, M music, N the next playlist, B the next background and Shift+B the previous one. Esc closes a panel or leaves focus mode. The number keys choose a preset while the timer is stopped, ? lists every shortcut, and Cmd+K or Ctrl+K opens the command palette.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. It runs in the browser on phones and tablets, with touch controls in place of the keyboard shortcuts. Add it to your home screen and it opens like an app.
How do I install it as an app?
On a computer, Chrome and Edge offer Install in the address bar. On an iPhone or iPad, open it in Safari, tap Share, then Add to Home Screen. On Android, choose Install app or Add to Home screen from the browser menu. It then opens in its own window.
Does it work offline?
Partly. After your first visit, the service worker keeps the pages and files you have opened, so the timer loads without a network. Photographs need a connection the first time, though your browser may keep the ones you have seen, and the generated gradients need none. Music plays from YouTube and always needs a connection.
Which languages does it support?
The timer is in ten languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Thai, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian and Dutch. Choose one in Settings. The website’s pages, including this one, are in English.
What does it store, and is there tracking?
Without an account, your tasks, settings and daily numbers stay in your browser. With an account, your email, tasks and sessions are stored with Supabase so they follow you between devices. Visits are counted with Vercel Analytics, which uses no cookies, and there are no advertising trackers. Your data is not sold or rented. Music plays in YouTube’s embedded player, which follows YouTube’s own privacy terms.
How do I get a copy of my data or delete my account?
Write to hello@authentictimer.com and ask for a copy of your data, or for your account and its data to be deleted. You can also export your tasks as CSV or JSON from the tasks panel at any time.
Who makes Authentic Timer?
Luis Fernando Romero Calero, one person working between Sevilla and Bangkok. He started it in November 2024 and released it in June 2025. You can write to him at hello@authentictimer.com.