OnTimer Help & Troubleshooting
Let's get OnTimer working for you
Thanks for trusting OnTimer to help you never be late.
I'm Ethan, and I built OnTimer for people like you and me who could use a little extra help staying on time. My goal is to make OnTimer something you can rely on every day.
If something isn't working the way you expect, the steps below will solve most issues. And if they don't, use the Contact Support link at the bottom of this page. I'll help you figure it out.
⏸️ First, check that OnTimer isn't Paused
This is the single most common reason alarms go quiet — and the easiest to miss.
Open OnTimer and look at the top of the Home screen. If you see a Resume Alarms option, OnTimer is currently paused, and it won't alert you for anything until you turn it back on.
Pausing is meant for things like vacations or days off — if you turned it on and forgot, tap Resume Alarms and you're back in business.
🔔 My alarms aren't going off
If you've confirmed OnTimer isn't paused, this is the next thing to fix. OnTimer needs permission from your iPhone to deliver alarms and notifications.
1. Make sure notifications are enabled
On your iPhone:
Settings → Notifications → OnTimer
Make sure Allow Notifications is turned on.
We recommend also allowing:
- Lock Screen
- Notification Center
- Banners
- Sounds
OnTimer can only alert you if iOS allows it to send notifications.
2. Make sure Background App Refresh is enabled
OnTimer needs to stay up to date even when you aren't actively using the app.
Go to:
Settings → General → Background App Refresh
Make sure Background App Refresh is on and that OnTimer is enabled.
You do not need to leave OnTimer open on your screen. Use your iPhone normally. OnTimer is designed to work in the background.
3. Open OnTimer and check your event
Open OnTimer and find the upcoming event.
Tap the event to see its details and confirm that OnTimer shows Alerting as on for that event.
If something doesn't look right, opening OnTimer also gives the app a chance to refresh your latest calendar events.
🆕 I just created or moved an event and it doesn't have an alarm yet
OnTimer learns about a new or rescheduled event the next time it syncs your calendar in the background — this isn't always instant, especially if your iPhone hasn't opened OnTimer in a while.
If you create an event, or move an existing one to a new time, and that event starts in the next 15–20 minutes, open OnTimer once so it can pick up the change right away. This gives it the best chance of scheduling the alarm in time.
Once OnTimer has synced a new or changed event at least once (by opening the app, or through a normal background refresh), you're all set — you don't need to keep the app open, and you don't need to do this for events further out on your calendar.
📅 My calendar event isn't showing up
First, make sure the calendar containing the event is connected to OnTimer.
OnTimer supports:
- Google Calendar
- Microsoft/Outlook calendars
- Apple Calendar
If you use multiple calendars, make sure the calendar containing the missing event is one that OnTimer is currently watching.
If you recently created or changed an event, open OnTimer and give it a moment to refresh.
Using Apple Calendar (iCloud)? iCloud can take a little extra time to sync a new or changed event to your iPhone in the first place, before OnTimer ever sees it. If an iCloud event is missing, give it a few minutes and check again.
✏️ I changed an event, but OnTimer still shows the old time
Calendar changes sometimes take a little time to sync between your calendar provider, your iPhone, and OnTimer.
Open OnTimer and check the event again.
For an important event you just changed, it's always a good idea to confirm the new time appears correctly in OnTimer.
🔕 I received a regular calendar notification, but not my OnTimer alarm
Your calendar's notifications and OnTimer alarms are separate.
Getting an Apple, Google, or Outlook notification does not necessarily mean OnTimer has permission to alert you.
Check:
Settings → Notifications → OnTimer
and make sure notifications and sounds are allowed.
Also confirm that Background App Refresh is enabled for OnTimer, and that OnTimer isn't paused (see above).
🚗 Time to Leave isn't working
Time to Leave is an OnTimer Pro feature.
For Time to Leave to work properly, OnTimer needs the information and permissions required to calculate your trip.
Check that:
- The event has a usable destination
- OnTimer has the necessary location access (Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services → OnTimer)
- Time to Leave is enabled
- The event shows Time to Leave as active when you tap it
Remember that traffic and travel conditions can change, so leave yourself some extra time when being late really matters.
🔔 What is Early Warning?
Early Warning is an OnTimer Pro feature that gives you a lighter heads-up before your main OnTimer alarm.
Think of it as:
"Start wrapping up."
followed later by:
"Okay, now you really need to go."
You can set your default Early Warning timing in Settings and override it for individual events.
🆓 I'm using OnTimer Free. Is something wrong?
Probably not.
OnTimer Free gives you the core OnTimer experience with one calendar provider. Some additional features, including Time to Leave, Early Warning, and multiple calendar providers, require OnTimer Pro.
You can explore Pro settings inside the app to see what they do before deciding whether they're useful to you.
🔄 Still having trouble?
A few simple things are worth trying:
- Open OnTimer and confirm your upcoming events appear correctly.
- Make sure OnTimer isn't paused.
- Double-check Notifications and Background App Refresh.
- Restart OnTimer.
- If necessary, restart your iPhone.
Still stuck?
Tell me what happened, which calendar you use, and which event didn't work as expected. Screenshots are especially helpful.
I want OnTimer to be something you can count on, so if it isn't working correctly, I want to know.
— Ethan Creator of OnTimer