Cron Reference

Cron Expression /3 * * * Every 3 Minutes Kubernetes CronJob (2026)

Cron expression */3 * * * * means Every 3 minutes.

Cron expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes for Kubernetes CronJob in 2026. Learn interval behavior, overlap prevention, and safe high-frequency scheduling.

Cron Expression

*/3 * * * *

*/3Minute

*Hour

*Day

*Month

*Weekday

Common use cases

Near-real-time polling jobs in Kubernetes clusters
Short-interval queue draining and retry workers
Frequent metrics refresh pipelines
Every-3-minute API sync for operational dashboards

How to use this cron schedule

If you need cron expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes Kubernetes CronJob, set `spec.schedule: "*/3 * * * *"` in your manifest. This triggers at minute 0, 3, 6, 9, and so on across each hour. In 2026, teams use this cadence when five-minute delays are too slow but every-minute execution is too expensive. It is a strong fit for lightweight polling and fast retry loops, provided the workload remains small and each run is designed to complete reliably within the three-minute window.

High-frequency CronJobs require explicit overlap controls. Set `concurrencyPolicy: Forbid` or design idempotent workers so duplicate starts do not corrupt state. Add resource requests and limits to avoid noisy-neighbor impact during bursty intervals. Because short schedules amplify dependency issues, enforce API timeouts and backoff logic in the job command. Monitor run duration and failure streaks from day one. In 2026 operations, teams that skip these basics often see cascading retries that saturate cluster resources long before alerts provide clear root cause.

A resilient production pattern is cron-triggered enqueue plus asynchronous worker consumption. Keep the 3-minute trigger lightweight, and let workers scale separately for heavier processing. Emit run IDs, record counts, and queue depth metrics so incident response can quickly separate scheduler health from business logic failures. If cost grows, split low-priority steps to five-minute or hourly schedules while keeping truly time-sensitive checks at three minutes. Use this page as your Kubernetes copy reference for `*/3 * * * *`, then tune adjacent intervals as traffic and reliability requirements evolve through 2026.

Want to customize this schedule?

Open it in the visual builder to tweak the expression interactively.

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Need to monitor this cron job?

Cronhub tracks your scheduled jobs and alerts you if they fail or run late.

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Platform usage examples

Linux / Unix — crontab

# Edit your crontab
crontab -e

# Add this line to run expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes kubernetes cronjob (2026)
*/3 * * * * /usr/bin/php /var/www/html/script.php

# Or run a shell script
*/3 * * * * /home/user/scripts/job.sh >> /var/log/job.log 2>&1

GitHub Actions

# .github/workflows/scheduled.yml
name: Scheduled Job

on:
  schedule:
    - cron: '*/3 * * * *'

jobs:
  run:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - name: Run job
        run: echo "Running expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes kubernetes cronjob (2026)"

Kubernetes CronJob

apiVersion: batch/v1
kind: CronJob
metadata:
  name: my-scheduled-job
spec:
  schedule: "*/3 * * * *"
  jobTemplate:
    spec:
      template:
        spec:
          containers:
          - name: job
            image: my-image:latest
          restartPolicy: OnFailure

Related developer tools

More free tools for engineering workflows that pair with scheduled jobs:

Epoch ConverterConvert Unix timestamps Regex TesterDebug parsing rules

Frequently asked questions

What is the cron expression for expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes kubernetes cronjob (2026)?

The cron expression is */3 * * * *. Cron expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes for Kubernetes CronJob in 2026. Learn interval behavior, overlap prevention, and safe high-frequency scheduling.

How do I schedule a cron job to run expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes kubernetes cronjob (2026) in Linux?

Open your crontab with "crontab -e" and add a new line: */3 * * * * /path/to/your/script.sh — this schedules your script to run expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes kubernetes cronjob (2026). Save and exit; the cron daemon picks up the change immediately.

What does the cron expression "*/3 * * * *" mean?

Cron expression */3 * * * * every 3 minutes for Kubernetes CronJob in 2026. Learn interval behavior, overlap prevention, and safe high-frequency scheduling.

Can I use "*/3 * * * *" in GitHub Actions?

Yes. In your workflow YAML, set the schedule trigger: on: schedule: - cron: '*/3 * * * *'. GitHub Actions uses standard 5-field Unix cron syntax, so this expression works as-is.

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