* About Minute Intervals
Minute-interval cron jobs are the backbone of near-real-time automation in software systems. Whether you are polling an external API, running a heartbeat check, processing a queue of pending tasks, or syncing data between systems, minute-based scheduling gives you the granularity needed to keep systems responsive without the complexity of persistent long-running processes.
Understanding Minute-Interval Cron Syntax
The expression */5 * * * * runs a job every 5 minutes, while */15 * * * * runs every 15 minutes. For a job that should run every single minute, the expression is * * * * *. The expression */2 * * * * runs every 2 minutes, */10 * * * * every 10 minutes, and */30 * * * * every 30 minutes.
Standard cron operates at minute-level precision. If your use case demands sub-minute intervals, you need either a different scheduler (like Quartz with a seconds field) or a purpose-built job queue.
Common Use Cases for Minute-Interval Jobs
- Heartbeat and health checks:
* * * * *(every minute) pings an endpoint and records response time. - Queue processing:
*/1 * * * *drains a database-backed task queue. - API polling:
*/5 * * * *or*/10 * * * *for third-party services without webhooks. - Metric collection:
*/5 * * * *for custom business metrics sampling. - Data synchronization:
*/15 * * * *for analytics warehouse sync.
Best Practices for Minute-Interval Scheduling
- Prevent overlapping executions. Use
flock, RedisSET NX, or database advisory locks. - Design for idempotency. Track state with a persistent cursor, not "last N minutes" calculations.
- Choose the right interval.
* * * * *for heartbeats,*/5 * * * *for polling,*/15 * * * *for data sync. Match the interval to the rate of change in the data.
Related tools and guides
Check collisions across a fleet with the conflict detector and confirm next runs in the translator. Patterns that drive these intervals: API polling and health monitoring. Locking tactics: overlap locking strategies. Verify before deploy with testing cron expressions.