Cron Job Every 2 Hours – Expression & Examples
The */2 step in the hour field triggers at hours 0, 2, 4, 6, ..., 22. Combined with minute 0, it runs at the top of every even hour.
How It Works
The */2 step in the hour field triggers at hours 0, 2, 4, 6, ..., 22. Combined with minute 0, it runs at the top of every even hour.
Common Use Cases
- Sitemap regeneration
- Search index updates
- Compliance scans
- Backup snapshots
Monitor a Job on This Schedule
Writing the 0 */2 * * * schedule is only half the job. Cron fires silently — if the run is skipped, the server is down, or the script fails, nothing tells you. A heartbeat monitor closes that gap: your job pings a URL on success, and you get an alert the moment an expected run goes missing. CronJobPro can run this schedule for you as an HTTP job, or watch a job you run elsewhere (cron, CI, Kubernetes) with a dead-man's-switch check.
Schedule This Cron Job Now
Create a free CronJobPro account and use 0 */2 * * * to schedule HTTP requests automatically — with monitoring, retries, and notifications built in.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 0 */2 * * * mean in cron?
The */2 step in the hour field triggers at hours 0, 2, 4, 6, ..., 22. Combined with minute 0, it runs at the top of every even hour.
How do I use this cron expression?
On Linux/macOS, edit your crontab with crontab -e and add:0 */2 * * * /path/to/your/script.sh
Or use CronJobPro to schedule HTTP requests with this expression — no server required.
What timezone does cron use?
By default, cron uses the system timezone. CronJobPro lets you set a specific timezone per job, so your schedules are predictable regardless of server location.