‹ OnTimer Help

Get the Most Out of OnTimer

A few simple things make OnTimer even better

Thanks for using OnTimer.

I built OnTimer because ordinary calendar notifications were too easy for me to miss. I didn't want another app I had to constantly manage. I wanted to connect my calendar once and have something reliably get my attention when I needed it.

That's still the idea behind OnTimer.

Here are a few ways to get the most out of it.

🔔 1. Give OnTimer permission to get your attention

OnTimer is only useful if your iPhone lets it alert you.

Go to:

Settings → Notifications → OnTimer

Make sure notifications and sounds are enabled.

Also check:

Settings → General → Background App Refresh

and make sure OnTimer is enabled.

Once that's done, you shouldn't have to think much about OnTimer. That's the point.

📅 2. Put the things you really need to remember on your calendar

OnTimer works from your calendar, so your calendar becomes much more powerful.

Meetings and appointments are obvious, but think beyond those.

Use calendar events for anything where being reminded at the right moment matters:

  • Doctor and dentist appointments
  • School events
  • Flights and travel
  • Picking someone up
  • Important phone calls
  • Medication times
  • Reservations
  • Events you need to leave home for

If it has a time, OnTimer can help make sure you remember it.

⏰ 3. Choose an alarm lead time that works for you

Not everyone needs the same amount of warning.

Maybe two minutes before a Zoom call is perfect. Maybe you want ten minutes before an important meeting.

Set a default that works for most of your day, then adjust individual events when something needs special treatment.

Tap an event on the OnTimer Home screen to see its details and, when available, customize its timing.

🚗 4. Use Time to Leave for events you need to travel to

OnTimer Pro can go beyond reminding you that an event is coming.

With Time to Leave, OnTimer can help answer the more useful question:

When do I actually need to leave?

Add a destination to your calendar event and OnTimer can use your travel time to help you leave when you need to.

It's especially useful for appointments, airports, dinners, kids' activities, meetings across town, and anything else where traffic can turn "I have plenty of time" into "Oh crap, I'm late."

Time to Leave needs one extra permission to work: Location access. If you haven't granted it yet, OnTimer will prompt you the first time you tap into an event with Time to Leave available.

🔔 5. Give yourself an Early Warning

Sometimes you don't need an alarm yet. You just need a nudge.

Early Warning, available with OnTimer Pro, gives you a lighter notification before your main alarm.

It can be a reminder to finish what you're doing, grab your things, or start wrapping up a conversation before the alarm that really needs your attention.

You can choose a default Early Warning time or customize it for a specific event.

🎯 6. Customize important events

Your normal settings should work for most of your calendar.

But some events matter more.

Tap an upcoming event in OnTimer to see exactly how OnTimer plans to alert you. You can also adjust the alarm timing for that event — and, for Pro users, its Early Warning timing — without changing your defaults for everything else.

Big interview tomorrow?

Give yourself more warning.

Routine meeting?

Leave your normal settings alone.

📍 7. Make your calendar events better

The better the information in your calendar, the more OnTimer can do for you.

Whenever possible, include:

  • The correct start time
  • A location for events you need to travel to
  • A video meeting link for online meetings

OnTimer can then help you get where you need to be or jump directly into a video call from the event.

🆓 Free or Pro, the goal is the same

You don't need OnTimer Pro to benefit from OnTimer.

The free version gives you automatic OnTimer alarms for a calendar provider so you can stop relying on easy-to-miss calendar notifications.

Pro adds features for people who want OnTimer to do more, including multiple calendar providers, Time to Leave, Early Warning, and additional controls.

Use what helps you.

One last tip

Don't babysit OnTimer.

Once your calendar is connected and your iPhone permissions are set correctly, OnTimer is supposed to take something off your mental checklist.

Put your events on your calendar. Go about your day.

We'll work on making sure you're on time.

— Ethan Creator of OnTimer