Set the timer to 175 seconds

How to use the online timer

Getting eggs exactly how you like them comes down to timing, and 175 seconds is a starting point plenty of people use for soft yolks with just-set whites. Drop the eggs in once the water's rolling, start the timer straight away, and pull them out the moment it finishes rather than leaving them to keep cooking in the hot water. A few seconds either way changes the whole result.

Getting started takes one click: press Start and the countdown begins straight away, with pause and reset both on hand if you need to adjust on the fly. Because it's running in your browser, the tab has to stay open for the whole time; minimising the window is fine, but closing it or shutting your device down will stop the clock. A sound plays at the end so you know.

A phone timer works fine until a call comes in or a notification steals the screen at the worst moment. Running it in a browser tab keeps it separate from all that, ticking away quietly in the background of your computer or phone without competing for attention until it's done. There's nothing to install and nothing to sign up for, just a page that does one job well. If you would rather say put a timer on for 175 seconds, that works too — press Start and the page does the rest.