Every 5 Minutes Cron Expression — */5 * * * *
Cron Expression
*/5 * * * *What it means
Runs every 5 minutes
Ideal for metric collection, cache warming, or syncing data from third-party services. Balances freshness with resource usage — 288 runs per day.
Next 8 Scheduled Runs (UTC)
- 1.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 19:00:00 GMT
- 2.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 19:05:00 GMT
- 3.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 19:10:00 GMT
- 4.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 19:15:00 GMT
- 5.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 19:20:00 GMT
- 6.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 19:25:00 GMT
- 7.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 19:30:00 GMT
- 8.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 19:35:00 GMT
Platform Snippets
GitHub Actions
- cron: '*/5 * * * *'
Kubernetes CronJob
schedule: "*/5 * * * *"
AWS EventBridge
cron(*/5 * * * ? *)
AWS uses a 6-field format with year and requires either DOM or DOW to be ?.
systemd Timer
[Timer] OnCalendar=*-*-* *:*/5:00 Persistent=true
Want to decode a different expression or test your own?
Test this expression interactively →FAQ
What does the cron expression */5 * * * * mean?
Runs every 5 minutes. Ideal for metric collection, cache warming, or syncing data from third-party services. Balances freshness with resource usage — 288 runs per day.
How do I use */5 * * * * in GitHub Actions?
Add a schedule trigger under the "on" key in your workflow YAML: on: schedule: - cron: '*/5 * * * *'. This will run your workflow runs every 5 minutes. Note that GitHub Actions uses UTC time.
Is the cron expression */5 * * * * valid for Kubernetes CronJobs?
Yes. Set the schedule field in your CronJob spec to "*/5 * * * *". Kubernetes CronJobs use standard 5-field cron syntax and run in UTC by default unless you configure a timeZone field.