How to put a timer on your iPhone Lock Screen

By G, founder of Memenmo Studios · 6 October 2026

Start a timer in the Clock app and it appears on your iPhone Lock Screen while it runs, and in the Dynamic Island on iPhones that have one. These countdowns are Live Activities. If one doesn't show, check that app's Live Activities switch in Settings → Apps. StandBy can show them full screen while charging.

Can you put a timer on the iPhone Lock Screen?

Yes. Any timer you start in the Clock app shows on the Lock Screen until it ends or you clear it. There’s nothing to add or switch on first.

Following Apple’s Clock timer guide:

Open the Clock app and tap Timers.
Set a duration. For a classic Pomodoro, that’s 25 minutes.
Optionally, tap Label to name it, and When Timer Ends to pick a sound.
Tap Start, then lock your phone.

The timer keeps running if you open another app or your iPhone goes to sleep. When it ends, you can tap Repeat or Stop from the Lock Screen. To get rid of a running one, swipe left on it on the Lock Screen and tap Clear.

A timer you’ve set before appears under Recent, so tomorrow’s 25 minutes is one tap.

What is a Live Activity?

A Live Activity is an app’s progress, kept up to date on your Lock Screen. Apple’s examples include directions from Maps, live sports scores and food delivery updates. A running timer is the same idea.

They show while something is in progress. Apps choose whether to offer them, and you choose which apps may show them. To check, Apple’s Lock Screen guide says:

Open Settings and tap Apps.
Tap the app you want to change.
Tap Live Activities and make sure it’s on.

Not every app has this switch, only the ones that use Live Activities. On iOS 17, app settings are listed straight under Settings rather than inside Apps.

How do I see the timer in the Dynamic Island?

You don’t need to do anything. On iPhones with a Dynamic Island, a running Live Activity shows there whenever your iPhone is unlocked, on the Home Screen or in another app.

Apple’s Dynamic Island guide covers the gestures:

Touch and hold the activity to expand it and see more.
Swipe up on the expanded view to shrink it again.
Tap to switch between two activities.

On iPhone 18 Pro models, it can show up to three at once, and you swipe across to move between them. So a timer, a focus countdown and your music can all sit up there without arguing.

Can I see my timer from across the desk?

Yes, with StandBy. Charge your iPhone on its side and it becomes a bedside clock or a desk display, and it can show Live Activities full screen.

To set it up, from Apple’s StandBy guide:

Open Settings, tap StandBy, and make sure it’s on.
Connect your iPhone to a charger and lay it on its side, kept still.
Press the side button.
Swipe left or right to switch between widgets, photos and clocks.

Under StandBy → Display, you can choose when the screen turns off: automatically, after 20 seconds, or never. For a long work session, a big clock you can read without picking anything up is the point, and not picking anything up is half the battle.

Which kind of Lock Screen timer should I use?

Use the Clock timer for a plain countdown, StandBy when the phone is charging on the desk, and a focus app when you want breaks and blocking to come with it.

	Clock timer	StandBy	A focus app’s Live Activity
Where it shows	Lock Screen, Dynamic Island	Full screen while charging on its side	Lock Screen, Dynamic Island
Breaks between rounds	Start each one yourself	Shows whatever’s running	Usually built in
Blocks other apps	No	No	If the app offers it
Setup	None	Turn on StandBy	Allow the app’s Live Activities

Which apps show a focus countdown on the Lock Screen?

Focus apps can use Live Activities too. Doggydoro, our Pomodoro timer with a dog in it, shows its focus countdown on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island on iPhones that have one. The countdown appears when a session or break starts. It keeps time by the clock, and it carries your dog’s name.

The countdown isn’t on my Lock Screen. The countdown is a Live Activity. Open Settings, then Doggydoro (inside Apps on recent versions of iOS), and make sure Live Activities is on. It only appears once a session or break has started, so start one and lock the phone to check. The support page has the rest.

Why isn’t my timer showing on the Lock Screen?

Usually the app’s Live Activities switch is off, or nothing is running yet. Check those two first.

Make sure the timer or session has actually started. Live Activities appear when something is in progress, not before.
Open Settings → Apps, tap the app, and turn on Live Activities.
If Lock Screen items are missing in general, check Settings → Face ID & Passcode (or Touch ID & Passcode) and look at the options under Allow Access When Locked, as described in Apple’s Lock Screen features guide.
If the countdown shows but the alert at the end doesn’t arrive, a Focus may be holding it back. Add the app to that Focus’s allowed apps.

For the rest of a focus setup, from Screen Time to notification summaries, see the iPhone focus guide. To start the countdown without touching the phone at all, see how to start a focus timer with Siri.