Cron Every 2 Hours
Cron expression 0 */2 * * * means At minute 0, every 2 hours.
Cron expression to run a job every 2 hours: 0 */2 * * *. Runs at midnight, 2 AM, 4 AM, and so on — 12 times per day.
Cron Expression
Common use cases
- Sending digest emails twice as often as daily
- Periodic cache invalidation
- Batch processing jobs with moderate data volumes
Want to customize this schedule?
Open it in the visual builder to tweak the expression interactively.
Open in BuilderNeed to monitor this cron job?
Cronhub tracks your scheduled jobs and alerts you if they fail or run late.
Platform usage examples
# Edit your crontab
crontab -e
# Add this line to run every 2 hours
0 */2 * * * /usr/bin/php /var/www/html/script.php
# Or run a shell script
0 */2 * * * /home/user/scripts/job.sh >> /var/log/job.log 2>&1# .github/workflows/scheduled.yml
name: Scheduled Job
on:
schedule:
- cron: '0 */2 * * *'
jobs:
run:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout@v4
- name: Run job
run: echo "Running every 2 hours"apiVersion: batch/v1
kind: CronJob
metadata:
name: my-scheduled-job
spec:
schedule: "0 */2 * * *"
jobTemplate:
spec:
template:
spec:
containers:
- name: job
image: my-image:latest
restartPolicy: OnFailureRelated developer tools
More free tools for engineering workflows that pair with scheduled jobs:
Frequently asked questions
What is the cron expression for every 2 hours?
The cron expression is 0 */2 * * *. Cron expression to run a job every 2 hours: 0 */2 * * *. Runs at midnight, 2 AM, 4 AM, and so on — 12 times per day.
How do I schedule a cron job to run every 2 hours in Linux?
Open your crontab with "crontab -e" and add a new line: 0 */2 * * * /path/to/your/script.sh — this schedules your script to run every 2 hours. Save and exit; the cron daemon picks up the change immediately.
What does the cron expression "0 */2 * * *" mean?
Cron expression to run a job every 2 hours: 0 */2 * * *. Runs at midnight, 2 AM, 4 AM, and so on — 12 times per day.
Can I use "0 */2 * * *" in GitHub Actions?
Yes. In your workflow YAML, set the schedule trigger: on: schedule: - cron: '0 */2 * * *'. GitHub Actions uses standard 5-field Unix cron syntax, so this expression works as-is.