Minecraft Time & Tick Converter
Convert game ticks to real seconds, Minecraft days to real hours, and read what any /time value means.
Ticks ↔ real time
Edit any field and the others update. 20 game ticks = 10 redstone ticks = 1 second.
Time of day (/time)
Minecraft days ↔ real time
Ticks: the game’s heartbeat
Everything in Minecraft happens on a 20-times-per-second schedule called the game tick. Each tick, the server moves entities, grows crops that were randomly chosen, updates redstone, counts down fuses and advances the clock by one. A tick is 50 milliseconds; when a server cannot finish its work in 50 ms, the tick rate drops below 20 and the whole world slows down — that is the “TPS” server owners watch. Redstone components use a coarser unit, the redstone tick, equal to two game ticks (0.1 s), so a repeater set to 4 delays by 8 game ticks or 0.4 seconds.
Reference: common tick values
| Event | Ticks | Real time |
|---|---|---|
| Repeater delay, one setting | 2 | 0.1 s |
| Repeater at maximum (4) | 8 | 0.4 s |
| Hopper item transfer | 8 | 0.4 s (2.5 items/s) |
| Stone button pulse | 20 | 1 s |
| Wooden button pulse | 30 | 1.5 s |
| Creeper fuse | 30 | 1.5 s |
| Bow full draw | 20 | 1 s |
| TNT fuse | 80 | 4 s |
| Item despawn | 6,000 | 5 min |
| Furnace smelt, one item | 200 | 10 s |
| Blast furnace / smoker, one item | 100 | 5 s |
| Brewing, one step | 400 | 20 s |
| Egg / baby mob grows up | 24,000 | 20 min |
| Full day/night cycle | 24,000 | 20 min |
| Time for phantoms to start spawning | 72,000 without sleep | 1 hour (3 days) |
| Villager restock (each) | ~ twice per 24,000 | twice per day |
Reading the day clock
The world time counts up from 0 at dawn. The game’s clock item shows the same cycle, and /time set accepts either a number or the keywords day (1000), noon (6000), night (13000) and midnight (18000). A few milestones players care about:
| Time value | In-game clock | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 06:00 | Sunrise. Undead start burning around 0–1000 on clear days. |
| 1000 | 07:00 | /time set day. Villagers begin work. |
| 6000 | 12:00 | Noon; sun overhead. |
| 9000 | 15:00 | Villagers gather at the bell/meeting point. |
| 12000 | 18:00 | Sunset begins. Villagers head to bed. |
| 12542 | 18:32 | Beds become usable on a clear night. |
| 13000 | 19:00 | /time set night. Hostile mobs spawn on the surface. |
| 18000 | 00:00 | Midnight. |
| 23000 | 05:00 | Sunrise begins; last chance to sleep is 23460. |
| 24000 | 06:00 | Wraps to 0. A new day. |
Frequently asked questions
How long is a tick in Minecraft?
One game tick is 1/20 of a second — 50 milliseconds. The game runs at 20 ticks per second. A redstone tick is two game ticks (0.1 s), which is the unit repeaters use.
How long is a Minecraft day?
24,000 ticks, which is exactly 20 real minutes. Daytime (when you cannot sleep) is roughly 10 minutes, dusk and dawn about 1.5 minutes each, and night about 7 minutes. A Minecraft year of 365 days is about 5 real days.
What does /time set 18000 mean?
Time values count ticks since dawn: 0 is sunrise (06:00 in-game), 6000 is noon, 12000 is sunset, 18000 is midnight, 23000 is early dawn again. /time set night uses 13000 and /time set day uses 1000.
How many ticks is a TNT fuse?
80 ticks — 4 seconds. Creepers fuse for 30 ticks (1.5 s), end crystals explode instantly, and a bed in the Nether or End is instant too.
How do I convert real time to Minecraft days?
Divide real minutes by 20. An hour of play is 3 Minecraft days; an eight-hour session is 24 days. The converter below does both directions.
More free tools
Nether Portal Calculator
Type your Overworld X/Z and get the exact Nether position to build the matching portal.
Stack Calculator
How many stacks is 1,500 cobblestone? How much does a double chest hold? Instant answers.
XP & Level Calculator
Level 30 is not twice the XP of level 15 — see the real numbers before you plan an XP farm.
Pixel Circle Generator
Pick a width and height and get a printable block template with row counts.
Coordinate Distance Calculator
Enter two positions and get blocks, direction and travel time by every method.
Read next
How Much Does Minecraft Cost in South Africa? Every Edition in Rand
Java & Bedrock for PC, consoles, phones, Realms and the Marketplace — what each costs in South Africa, where to buy legitimately, and how to avoid the fake “free download” sites.
Java vs Bedrock: How Minecraft Crossplay Actually Works
Why there are two Minecrafts, the differences that actually matter, how one server can accept both, and which edition a South African player should buy.
Minecraft Survival Starter Guide: Your First Day, Night and Week
A priority-ordered first day, how to survive the first night without a proper base, and the five mistakes that cost new players everything they own.