# What is the Schedule Trigger in n8n? > The n8n Schedule Trigger runs a workflow at set times, like every day at 7am. How to set it up, the timezone trap, and a real job email example. Source: https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/schedule-trigger · Updated 2026-10-01 · Free from Stepthrough (https://learn.ynteractive.com) [n8n and automation](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary#topic-n8n-and-automation) · [AI glossary](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary) Updated October 1, 2026 · By [Robert Breen](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/about) The Schedule Trigger is the n8n node that starts a workflow at set times, like every day at 7 a.m. or every 15 minutes, instead of waiting for an event. It follows the workflow's timezone and only fires on its own once the workflow is published. ## Why it matters for a small business Plenty of office work isn't caused by an event; it's caused by the clock. Morning job lists, weekly reports, end-of-day reminders, a Monday check for overdue invoices. A schedule makes those happen whether or not anyone remembers, including on the days the person who usually does them is out. Schedules have two traps. The first is timezone: the schedule follows the workflow's timezone setting, so a business outside the default zone gets its 7 a.m. message at the wrong 7 a.m. The second is that a schedule doesn't know what's new. It processes whatever it finds each time, so the data it reads must be kept current, or yesterday's work goes out again. ## In a real lesson: Daily Job Alerts: Email Each Tech Their Jobs from Google Sheets with n8n The [Daily Job Alerts lesson](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/n8n-daily-job-alerts-google-sheets-gmail) deals with the timezone before anything else. For Rapid Flow Plumbing, the made-up plumbing company in the lesson, you click **Create workflow**, then the **···** next to the workflow name, **Settings**, and change **Timezone** from the New York default to **America/Chicago**, because Rapid Flow is on Central time. Then **Save**. Only then do you add the trigger: **Add first step**, **On a schedule**. It's already set to run every **1 day**, but it fires at midnight, and nobody reads job emails at midnight. You open **Trigger at Hour** and choose **7am**, which now means 7 a.m. Central. The rest of the workflow reads the **Today's Jobs** sheet, drops unassigned jobs and emails each tech. When you click **Publish**, the schedule takes over. The lesson's closing warning is the second trap in action: it sends every assigned row, every day, so the office keeps that sheet to today's jobs only. [Try this lesson free](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/job-alerts) or [read the step-by-step guide](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/n8n-daily-job-alerts-google-sheets-gmail). ## Common confusions ### Schedule Trigger vs polling trigger Both run on a timer. A [polling](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/polling) trigger, like Gmail's **Every Minute** check, only continues when it finds something new. A Schedule Trigger always runs the workflow at the set time, new data or not. ### Simple intervals vs cron Most schedules fit the built-in fields: every so many minutes, hours, days or weeks, at a chosen hour. For unusual patterns, like every 15 minutes but only during business hours, the Schedule Trigger also accepts a [cron expression](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/cron-expression). ## Tips - Set the workflow timezone first, then the hour. - Don't wait for the scheduled time to find out if it works. Use the test buttons in the editor. - Make sure the sheet or list the workflow reads only holds what should go out on this run. ## Related terms [Trigger](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/trigger) · [Cron expression](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/cron-expression) · [Automation](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/automation) · [Polling](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/polling) · [Filter node](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/filter-node) ## Where you use it: free lessons - [Daily Job Alerts: Email Each Tech Their Jobs from Google Sheets with n8n](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/n8n-daily-job-alerts-google-sheets-gmail) (n8n, 10 min) ## Prompt templates that use it [Automation time savings estimate prompt](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/prompts/automation-time-savings-estimate-prompt) ## Visual guide Schedule Trigger in a few slides, with the same guide written out as text. - [Mistake to Avoid: Scheduling Before Setting the Timezone](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/visual/mistake-scheduling-before-the-timezone): A visual tip for n8n schedules: set the workflow timezone before the schedule, so 7am means 7am where your business is. [All visual guides](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/visual) ## Frequently asked questions **Why does my n8n schedule fire an hour or more off?** It's following the workflow's timezone, which may still be the default. Open the ··· menu beside the workflow name, choose Settings, pick your own timezone and save. **Does the Schedule Trigger run when my computer is off?** On n8n Cloud, yes: once published, the workflow runs on n8n's servers. On self-hosted n8n, it runs as long as the server running n8n is up. [All AI glossary terms, A to Z](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary) · [Free prompt templates](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/prompts)