General Questions
What is Burst Timers?
Burst Timers is an interval timer for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch. It runs a series of work and rest periods and alerts you every time it's time to switch.
Which platforms are supported?
- iPhone/iPad: iOS/iPadOS 26.0 or later
- Mac: macOS 26.0 or later
- Apple Watch: watchOS 10.0 or later
Do I need an account?
No. Burst Timers doesn't use accounts or sign-in.
Are there subscriptions or in-app purchases?
No. Burst Timers has no subscriptions or in-app purchases.
Does the Apple Watch app need my iPhone?
No. You can set up and start runs on Apple Watch on its own, and it keeps running with your wrist down.
Setting Up Runs
What are segments?
A segment is one work period, followed by a rest period. With 10 segments of 40 seconds of work and 20 seconds of rest, you do 10 work periods, with a rest after each one.
What are the limits?
You can set 1 to 100 segments, and work and rest periods from 1 second to 10 minutes each.
Can I skip the rest after the last work period?
Yes. Turn off Rest After Last Segment in Settings, and the run ends as soon as the last work period is over.
Can I save several different runs as presets?
Not at the moment. Burst Timers remembers the last Segments, Work, and Rest values you used on each device.
Can I use different lengths for each segment?
No. Every work period has the same length, and every rest period has the same length.
Can I rename Work and Rest?
Yes. In Settings, you can give each one a label of up to 20 characters, an icon, and a color. See Customizing Work and Rest.
Devices and Settings
Do my settings sync between devices?
No. Each device keeps its own settings. On iPhone, you can use Copy to Apple Watch to send your Work and Rest labels, icons, and colors to your watch once.
Can I control a run on my iPhone from my Apple Watch?
A run on iPhone can appear in the Smart Stack on your paired Apple Watch as a Live Activity. Runs started on Apple Watch and on iPhone are independent of each other.
Does Burst Timers work when my iPhone is locked?
Yes. The run keeps going, and with Play Sounds on, the Live Activity lights up the screen and plays a sound at each change. See Live Activities and the Dynamic Island.
Will the sounds stop my music?
No. On iPhone and iPad, the sounds mix with music and podcasts, and play even when Silent Mode is on. You can turn them off with Play Sounds in Settings.
Does Apple Watch play sounds?
No. Apple Watch uses haptics to alert you at each change.
Health
Why does Burst Timers ask for Health access if I don't want to save workouts?
Burst Timers runs a workout session during each run, which keeps the timer counting and alerting you in the background. Nothing is saved to Health unless you turn on Save Workouts to Health.
Is a workout saved if I end a run early?
Only if at least as much time as one work period has passed. Completed runs are always saved when saving is on.
Can I save workouts from my Mac?
No. Saving to Health is available on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch.
Support
Where can I find help in the app?
Tap the question mark button on the main screen on iPhone and iPad, choose Help > Burst Timers Help on Mac, or tap Help at the bottom of the main screen on Apple Watch.
Something isn't working. What should I do?
See the Troubleshooting article. If that doesn't help, submit a support ticket with your device, OS version, and a description of the problem.