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Meeting Timer
Set the meeting length, share the screen and press Start at the scheduled minute, whoever is still missing.
25 minutes
Spacestart / pauseRresetFfull screen+ −add or remove a minute0–9type a time
A quick sync or a single decision. One topic only.
A half-hour slot that ends five minutes early, so people reach their next meeting.
A full half hour. Use it only when nothing follows directly.
An hour slot that ends ten minutes early. Room for two or three agenda items.
A full hour for workshops and reviews. Plan a pause in the middle.
Agenda timer: sample 25 and 50 minute meetings
| Agenda item | 25-minute meeting | 50-minute meeting |
|---|---|---|
| Check-in and goal of the meeting | 2 min | 3 min |
| Main topic | 15 min | 20 min |
| Second topic | None | 15 min |
| Decisions, owners and dates | 5 min | 7 min |
| Buffer | 3 min | 5 min |
Examples to adapt. The clock shows time remaining, so convert the plan to checkpoints: in the 25-minute meeting, decisions start with 8:00 left on the display.
How to use it
- Tap the length. Twenty-five minutes is selected, the short version of a half-hour slot.
- Put the timer where everyone sees it: full screen on the room display, or in a shared window on a video call.
- Press Start at the scheduled time. Begin with the people who are present.
- Call out the checkpoints from your agenda as the clock reaches them. When the alarm sounds, the meeting ends, with the next step for anything unfinished written down.
Why 25 and 50 minutes
Calendars deal in half hours and hours, and meetings booked back to back leave no time to get from one to the next. The second meeting then starts late, and so does every one after it. Ending at 25 or 50 minutes gives people five or ten minutes to walk, refill a glass and read the next agenda. Calendar apps offer this as a setting that shortens new meetings by default.
The shorter slot rarely costs anything. A discussion expands to fill the time it is given, and a group that knows it has 25 minutes gets to the point faster than one that believes it has 30. Ending early is allowed: when the decision is made, stop.
A visible clock and a separate timekeeper
A countdown everyone can see is how to keep meetings on time without anyone playing police. Nobody has to interrupt a senior colleague to say time is short, because the display already says so. Give each agenda item a share of the clock in advance, so that “we have four minutes left on this” is a fact about the plan and not a criticism of the speaker.
The person running the meeting should not also keep the time. Chairing takes all of your attention: following the argument, drawing people in, hearing when a decision has formed. Ask someone else to watch the clock and call the checkpoints. For a daily team round, the stand-up timer gives each person a slot. For a talk with a fixed length, the presentation timer is the better tool.
Common mistakes
- Waiting for latecomers. It penalizes the people who came on time and teaches everyone that the start time is approximate.
- An agenda with no minutes on it. Without a time per item, the first topic takes the whole meeting.
- Leaving decisions for the last minute. Reserve the final five for who does what by when, and protect it.
- Pressing +1:00 again and again. If a topic needs more time, schedule a follow-up with the people it concerns.
- Booking 60 minutes out of habit. Ask what the meeting has to produce and choose the shortest length that fits.
Questions people ask
Why schedule a 25 minute meeting instead of 30?
The five minutes left over let people get to their next meeting on time, and the tighter limit keeps the discussion on its subject. For hour slots, 50 minutes does the same with a ten-minute gap.
How do I keep meetings on time?
Start at the scheduled minute, put minutes against each agenda item, show a countdown everyone can see, and give the timekeeping to someone who is not chairing. End when the alarm sounds and move leftovers to a follow-up.
How do I show the meeting countdown timer on a video call?
Open the timer in its own browser window, press the full-screen button if you like, and share that window or screen in your call. The countdown keeps running correctly while you look at other tabs.
How should I split time across an agenda?
Give the main topic about 60% of the meeting, keep roughly 20% for decisions and owners, and leave the rest for check-in and buffer. In 25 minutes that is 15, 5, 2 and 3.
What sound should a timer for meetings use?
A short, soft one at low volume. Its job is to mark the end, not to startle people on the call. In a room with a big display, Silent with the screen flash is enough.