Timer & Stopwatch for VS Code

Run countdowns and track elapsed time without leaving VS Code. The remaining or elapsed time stays visible in the status bar while you work, and VS Code saves the session locally.

Preview

Quick start

The status bar is the horizontal strip along the bottom of the VS Code window.

1. Look for the clock icon followed by Timer near the left side of the status bar.
2. Select Timer, then select Start timer.
3. Enter a duration such as 10m, then press Enter.
4. The status bar changes to 10:00 and begins counting down.

To measure elapsed time, select Start stopwatch. It starts immediately without asking for a duration.

If you do not see Timer, select View > Command Palette from the VS Code menu bar. Type Timer & Stopwatch, then select Timer & Stopwatch: Start Timer or Timer & Stopwatch: Start Stopwatch.

Features

• Enter countdowns as 25m, 1h 30m, or 01:30:00.
• Use the stopwatch to measure elapsed time.
• Keep the remaining or elapsed time in the status bar.
• Hide the idle Timer label without hiding its clock button.
• Pause, resume, reset, or stop a session from a built-in VS Code menu.
• Control the completion beep and notification separately.
• Continue the current session after reopening the same workspace.
• Run independent sessions in different workspaces.
• Store session data locally without telemetry or workspace inspection.

Detailed usage

Start from the VS Code menu

Use the Command Palette if you cannot find Timer in the VS Code window:

1. In the VS Code menu bar, select View > Command Palette. A searchable list of commands opens.
2. Type Timer & Stopwatch.
3. Select Timer & Stopwatch: Start Timer or Timer & Stopwatch: Start Stopwatch.
4. If you chose Start Timer, enter a duration such as 25m, 1h 30m, or 01:30:00, then press Enter. If you chose Start Stopwatch, it starts immediately.

When the session starts, the remaining or elapsed time replaces Timer in the status bar. Your current editor, terminal, or panel keeps focus.

You can also open the Command Palette with Shift+Command+P on macOS or Ctrl+Shift+P on Windows and Linux.

Start from the status bar

The status bar is the horizontal strip along the bottom of the VS Code window. After installing the extension, look near the left side for a clock icon followed by Timer.

1. Select Timer. VS Code opens a list of timer actions near the top of the window.
2. Select Start timer or Start stopwatch.
3. For a countdown, enter a duration and press Enter. A stopwatch starts immediately.

Control a running session

Once a timer or stopwatch starts, the status bar shows its remaining or elapsed time in place of Timer.

A clock-face icon marks a running countdown, a watch icon marks a running stopwatch, and a pause icon marks either type of paused session.

1. Select the displayed time.
2. Select Pause, Resume, Reset, or Stop.

Reset pauses the session and returns a stopwatch to zero or a countdown to its full duration.

Countdown formats

• 25m means 25 minutes.
• 1h 30m means 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• 01:30:00 means 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• A number without a unit is treated as minutes.
• The minimum countdown is 1 second, and durations use whole-second precision.
• The maximum countdown duration is 30 days.

VS Code stores one session for each workspace, meaning the project or folder open in the current window. Reopening that workspace restores its session.

Countdown completion

When a countdown finishes, the extension clears its session. The status bar returns to Timer, or to a clock icon if the idle label is hidden. By default, the extension also plays a short beep and shows a VS Code notification with an option to start another timer.

Configure sound and notifications separately:

• Disable the beep with the Play Completion Sound setting.
• Disable the notification by selecting Don't show again when a countdown finishes.
• Preview the beep with the Timer & Stopwatch: Test Completion Sound command in the Command Palette.

You can also change these options in VS Code Settings. Select View > Command Palette, run Preferences: Open Settings (UI), then search for Timer & Stopwatch.

• Show Idle Label hides the word Timer when nothing is running. The clock button remains visible and active time is never hidden.
• Play Completion Sound controls the completion beep.
• Show Completion Notification controls the visual notification.

The extension creates the completion beep as a local WAV file. On macOS it uses afplay. On Windows it uses PowerShell SoundPlayer. On Linux it uses the first available supported player: paplay, aplay, or ffplay. The notification appears immediately without waiting for the sound to finish.

VS Code must be open for the extension to notify you immediately. If a countdown expires while VS Code is closed, the notification appears after you reopen the same workspace.

Compatibility

• The extension requires Visual Studio Code 1.125 or newer on desktop.
• On macOS, sound uses the system afplay player.
• On Windows, sound uses Windows PowerShell and System.Media.SoundPlayer.
• On Linux, sound requires /usr/bin/paplay, /usr/bin/aplay, or /usr/bin/ffplay and a working audio output.
• With Remote SSH, WSL, Dev Containers, or desktop Codespaces, the extension runs on your local computer, so its controls and sound stay on your desktop.
• Browser-only VS Code environments such as vscode.dev and github.dev are not supported.

After installation, run Timer & Stopwatch: Test Completion Sound from the Command Palette. If you hear nothing, check the system volume and selected audio output. On Linux, also check that paplay, aplay, or ffplay is installed. The notification still works when sound is unavailable.

Privacy

The extension does not use telemetry or analytics, require an account, show advertising, or inspect project files. It makes no network requests. VS Code stores the current session locally for that workspace. The stored data contains only the mode, whether the session is running or paused, the duration when one applies, and the timing values needed to restore it.

License

MIT © Burak Ozdemir