A Pomodoro timer for Windows and Mac, with nothing to install
The Pomodoro timers built into Windows and macOS, what they leave out, and a desktop timer with ambient sound that runs in a browser tab or as a small app from the Microsoft Store.
· 4 min read
Most Pomodoro apps are made for the phone, which is an odd place for a timer whose job is to keep you working on the computer. If you work on a Windows PC or a Mac, the timer can live on the same screen as the work. Here is what each system gives you already, and what to use if you want more.
What is already on your computer
- Windows 11. The Clock app has Focus sessions: pick a length, and it adds breaks, silences notifications and can link to Microsoft To Do. It is a good start and costs nothing. It has no sound of its own; it can connect to Spotify.
- macOS. There is no Pomodoro timer built in. Focus modes filter notifications, and the Clock app has a plain countdown, but nothing joins the two into work and break blocks.
A timer in a browser tab
The timer above runs in any browser on Windows, macOS or Linux, with nothing to install and no account. Write what the block is for, pick 25, 50 or 90 minutes, and press Space. The countdown sits in the tab title so you can see it from any other tab, a chime and a desktop notification mark the end, and the break is set for you. Rain, brown noise and alpha binaural beats play in the same tab, free.
Every common length has its own page: Pomodoro, 50 minutes, 90 minutes, 52/17 and the rest.
If you want it as an app
On Windows, Kiri is in the Microsoft Store as Kiri Focus Timer, which opens in its own window with a taskbar icon. On any system, the Chrome extension or Firefox add-on turns every new tab into the timer, and the countdown keeps running when you close the tab. The full version adds eight more soundscapes and five beat frequencies for €39 once, with no subscription and a 30-day refund.
When something else fits better
- You live in Microsoft To Do. Windows Focus sessions tie into it; Kiri has no task list.
- You want a menu bar timer on a Mac. Kiri runs in a tab or a window, not the menu bar.
- You want the timer on your phone too. Kiri is desktop only, on purpose. For why, read why your focus timer should not be on your phone.