
Cron Explainer
Parses cron expressions into plain English and returns the next N scheduled run times, with full timezone support via IANA names. Exposes a single tool, explain_cron, that handles 5-field POSIX cron syntax and clamps output to 100 future executions. Runs on Cloudflare Workers with a pay-per-call model at €0.01 per request, no subscription or expiration. Useful when you need to validate scheduling logic, debug cron strings in CI/CD pipelines, or surface upcoming job times to end users without bundling a parser into your own stack. Non-2xx responses are refunded automatically, and the service logs zero PII since inputs are just cron strings and timezone identifiers.
- tool
- 1
- transport
- HTTP
- last updated
- Apr 23, 2026
Install
From registry metadata$ npx add-mcp https://cron-explainer.cron-explainer-prod.workers.dev/mcp --name cron-explainerRun in your terminal. add-mcp asks which agents to add it to (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and more). Add -g to install it for every project.
Review the command, arguments and environment values before installing. MCP servers run with your local permissions.
Other ways
Claude Code
$ claude mcp add --transport http cron-explainer https://cron-explainer.cron-explainer-prod.workers.dev/mcpRun in your terminal. Add --scope user to make it available in every project.
Tools
Verified live · 1 toolsVerified live against the running server on Nov 6, 2026.
explain_cronParse a POSIX/Vixie cron expression and return the next N fire times plus an English description. Timezone-aware (IANA). Best-effort accuracy. Billed at 1 EUR cent per successful call; non-2xx responses are refunded.3 params
Parse a POSIX/Vixie cron expression and return the next N fire times plus an English description. Timezone-aware (IANA). Best-effort accuracy. Billed at 1 EUR cent per successful call; non-2xx responses are refunded.
cron*stringnintegertzstringSponsors
Readme
cron-explainer
A tiny pay-per-call API that parses cron expressions, returns the next N fire times, and produces a short English description. Timezone-aware (IANA).
Live: https://cron-explainer.cron-explainer-prod.workers.dev/ Pricing: 0.01 EUR per successful call, prepaid via Stripe Checkout in packs of 500 / 5,000 / 50,000 calls. Non-2xx responses are refunded. No subscription. Keys never expire.
Quick start
- Get a key at https://cron-explainer.cron-explainer-prod.workers.dev/ (Stripe Checkout, €5 minimum).
- Copy the key — it's shown exactly once.
- Call the API:
curl -X POST https://cron-explainer.cron-explainer-prod.workers.dev/v1/explain \
-H "content-type: application/json" \
-H "x-api-key: $YOUR_KEY" \
-d '{"cron":"0 9 * * 1-5","tz":"Europe/Lisbon","n":3}'
Response:
{
"input": {"cron":"0 9 * * 1-5","tz":"Europe/Lisbon","n":3},
"valid": true,
"description": "At 09:00, Monday through Friday",
"next": ["2026-04-24T08:00:00.000Z","2026-04-27T08:00:00.000Z","2026-04-28T08:00:00.000Z"],
"flags": {"dst_transition_ahead": false, "ambiguous": false, "notes": []},
"errors": []
}
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Details
- Repository
- github.com/idoazacalls/cron-explainer
- Website
- cron-explainer.cron-explainer-prod.workers.dev
- Category
- Automation & Workflows
- Transport
- HTTP
- Registry
- MCP registry, active
- Tools verified
- Nov 6, 2026