Cron Expression for Every 3 Hours
0 */3 * * *→Runs every 3 hours at minute 00
Minute
0–59
*/3
Hour
0–23
*
Day
1–31
*
Month
1–12
*
Weekday
0–7
Quick Examples
How It Works
With
0 */3 * * *, the job fires at 00:00, 03:00, 06:00, 09:00, 12:00, 15:00, 18:00, and 21:00 — eight times a day. The */3 step on the hour field divides the day into 3-hour blocks. This suits reporting workflows and data pipelines that need several daily runs without being too frequent.Common Use Cases
- 1Generating business intelligence reports
- 2Running data pipeline stages
- 3Refreshing search engine indexes
Linux Crontab Example
0 */3 * * * python3 /app/pipeline/run.py --stage=transformAdd this line to your crontab with crontab -e
Need a custom schedule?
Build your own cron expression visually with our generator.
More Every X Hours
Runs once every hour at minute 0
0 * * * *
Runs every 2 hours at minute 0
0 */2 * * *
Runs 4 times a day: 00:00, 06:00, 12:00, 18:00
0 */6 * * *
Runs twice a day: midnight and noon
0 */12 * * *
Runs every 4 hours at minute 0
0 */4 * * *
Runs every 8 hours at minute 0
0 */8 * * *
Runs at 15 minutes past every hour
15 * * * *
Runs at 30 minutes past every hour
30 * * * *
Runs at 45 minutes past every hour
45 * * * *
Runs every 5 hours at minute 0
0 */5 * * *
Runs every 7 hours at minute 0
0 */7 * * *