Countdown Timer

Create a countdown timer

IntermediateTopic: Date/Time Programs
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JavaScript Countdown Timer Program

This program helps you to learn the fundamental structure and syntax of JavaScript programming.

Try This Code
// Method 1: Simple countdown
function countdown(targetDate, callback) {
    const interval = setInterval(() => {
        const now = new Date().getTime();
        const distance = targetDate.getTime() - now;
        
        if (distance < 0) {
            clearInterval(interval);
            callback({ expired: true });
            return;
        }
        
        const days = Math.floor(distance / (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24));
        const hours = Math.floor((distance % (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24)) / (1000 * 60 * 60));
        const minutes = Math.floor((distance % (1000 * 60 * 60)) / (1000 * 60));
        const seconds = Math.floor((distance % (1000 * 60)) / 1000);
        
        callback({
            days,
            hours,
            minutes,
            seconds,
            total: distance
        });
    }, 1000);
}

const target = new Date(Date.now() + 86400000); // 1 day from now
countdown(target, (time) => {
    if (time.expired) {
        console.log('Countdown expired!');
    } else {
        console.log(`${time.days}d ${time.hours}h ${time.minutes}m ${time.seconds}s`);
    }
});

// Method 2: Countdown class
class CountdownTimer {
    constructor(targetDate, onUpdate, onComplete) {
        this.targetDate = targetDate;
        this.onUpdate = onUpdate;
        this.onComplete = onComplete;
        this.interval = null;
    }
    
    start() {
        this.update();
        this.interval = setInterval(() => this.update(), 1000);
    }
    
    stop() {
        if (this.interval) {
            clearInterval(this.interval);
            this.interval = null;
        }
    }
    
    update() {
        const now = new Date().getTime();
        const distance = this.targetDate.getTime() - now;
        
        if (distance < 0) {
            this.stop();
            if (this.onComplete) this.onComplete();
            return;
        }
        
        const time = {
            days: Math.floor(distance / (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24)),
            hours: Math.floor((distance % (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24)) / (1000 * 60 * 60)),
            minutes: Math.floor((distance % (1000 * 60 * 60)) / (1000 * 60)),
            seconds: Math.floor((distance % (1000 * 60)) / 1000),
            total: distance
        };
        
        if (this.onUpdate) this.onUpdate(time);
    }
    
    getRemaining() {
        const now = new Date().getTime();
        const distance = this.targetDate.getTime() - now;
        return distance > 0 ? distance : 0;
    }
}

const timer = new CountdownTimer(
    new Date(Date.now() + 3600000), // 1 hour
    (time) => console.log(`${time.minutes}m ${time.seconds}s`),
    () => console.log('Timer complete!')
);
timer.start();
Output
23h 59m 59s
59m 59s

Understanding Countdown Timer

Countdown timers show remaining time.

Implementation

Calculate time difference
Update every second
Format days/hours/minutes/seconds
Handle expiration

Countdown Class

Encapsulate logic
Start/stop methods
Update callback
Complete callback

Time Calculation

Total milliseconds
Convert to units
Handle negative (expired)

Use Cases

Event countdowns
Sale timers
Deadline reminders
Game timers

Best Practices

Clear interval on unmount
Handle expiration
Format nicely
Pause/resume support

Let us now understand every line and the components of the above program.

Note: To write and run JavaScript programs, you need to set up the local environment on your computer. Refer to the complete article Setting up JavaScript Development Environment. If you do not want to set up the local environment on your computer, you can also use online IDE to write and run your JavaScript programs.

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