Free debate timer for every format
Choose a format and the timer already knows the speech order, the protected minutes and each side's prep time. It needs no account, runs entirely in this tab, and keeps your round if the page reloads.
Is there a free debate timer that knows each format's speech times?
Yes, this one. Pick Public Forum, Lincoln-Douglas, Policy, British Parliamentary, World Schools, Asian Parliamentary or the school 4-6-6-3 format, and it loads the speech order and lengths, shows the protected time when points of information are not allowed, and gives each side a prep bank in Public Forum, Lincoln-Douglas and Policy. It is free, needs no account, and keeps a running round through a page reload.
Team A constructive (first speaker)
Click the timer, then use Space to start or pause, R to reset a paused speech, and the arrow keys to change speech.
How to run a round with it
- Pick the format. The speech buttons along the top follow the official order, coloured by side.
- Press Start, or the space bar, when the speaker begins. Press it again to pause for a technical problem; the clock keeps the exact remainder.
- Move to the next speech with the arrow button or the right arrow key. Each speech starts from a fresh clock; prep banks carry over.
- Between speeches, tap a side's prep bank when that side starts preparing, and tap again when they stand up.
- Put the timer on a projector with Fullscreen, so speakers can read the clock from the front of the room.
Keyboard: click the timer first, then space starts and stops, R resets a paused speech, and the left and right arrows change speech. The screen stays awake while a clock runs, where the browser allows it.
What you hear
- A knock when points of information open after the first minute and when they close before the last. In BP that matches the 1:00 and 6:00 signals in the WUDC manual.
- One beep with a minute left in speeches that take no points of information.
- A double beep at time, and when a prep bank runs out.
Mute the sound when you would rather signal by hand; the colours still change. The clock turns amber in the last 30 seconds and red once the speaker is over.
Speech times by format
These are the times the presets use, taken from each league's own rules. Tournaments are free to change them, so check the invitation before a competition and adjust with a custom format if yours differs.
Public Forum
| Speech | Side | Time |
|---|---|---|
| A Const Team A constructive (first speaker) | Team A | 4:00 |
| B Const Team B constructive (first speaker) | Team B | 4:00 |
| CF 1 Crossfire (first speakers) | Both | 3:00 |
| A Rebuttal Team A rebuttal (second speaker) | Team A | 4:00 |
| B Rebuttal Team B rebuttal (second speaker) | Team B | 4:00 |
| CF 2 Crossfire (second speakers) | Both | 3:00 |
| A Summary Team A summary (first speaker) | Team A | 3:00 |
| B Summary Team B summary (first speaker) | Team B | 3:00 |
| Grand CF Grand crossfire (all four debaters) | Both | 3:00 |
| A Final Focus Team A final focus (second speaker) | Team A | 2:00 |
| B Final Focus Team B final focus (second speaker) | Team B | 2:00 |
Prep time: 3:00 per side, used between speeches. A coin toss decides which team speaks first, so Team A can be Pro or Con. NSDA moved summaries and prep from 2 to 3 minutes in 2020; some local leagues still use 2 and 2.
Source: NSDA High School Unified Manual
Lincoln-Douglas
| Speech | Side | Time |
|---|---|---|
| AC Affirmative constructive | Affirmative | 6:00 |
| CX Negative cross-examines the Affirmative | Negative | 3:00 |
| NC Negative constructive | Negative | 7:00 |
| CX Affirmative cross-examines the Negative | Affirmative | 3:00 |
| 1AR First affirmative rebuttal | Affirmative | 4:00 |
| NR Negative rebuttal | Negative | 6:00 |
| 2AR Second affirmative rebuttal | Affirmative | 3:00 |
Prep time: 4:00 per side, used between speeches. Four minutes of prep per debater is the NSDA standard; some tournaments allow up to five, so check the invitation.
Source: NSDA High School Unified Manual
Policy (CX)
| Speech | Side | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1AC First affirmative constructive | Affirmative | 8:00 |
| CX Negative cross-examines the 1AC | Negative | 3:00 |
| 1NC First negative constructive | Negative | 8:00 |
| CX Affirmative cross-examines the 1NC | Affirmative | 3:00 |
| 2AC Second affirmative constructive | Affirmative | 8:00 |
| CX Negative cross-examines the 2AC | Negative | 3:00 |
| 2NC Second negative constructive | Negative | 8:00 |
| CX Affirmative cross-examines the 2NC | Affirmative | 3:00 |
| 1NR First negative rebuttal | Negative | 5:00 |
| 1AR First affirmative rebuttal | Affirmative | 5:00 |
| 2NR Second negative rebuttal | Negative | 5:00 |
| 2AR Second affirmative rebuttal | Affirmative | 5:00 |
Prep time: 8:00 per side, used between speeches. This is the NSDA 8-3-5 structure with 8 minutes of prep per team. Older material lists 5 minutes of prep, and some state circuits still run 4-minute rebuttals.
Source: NSDA High School Unified Manual
British Parliamentary
| Speech | Side | Time | Points of information |
|---|---|---|---|
| PM Prime Minister (Opening Government) | Government | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| LO Leader of the Opposition (Opening Opposition) | Opposition | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| DPM Deputy Prime Minister (Opening Government) | Government | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| DLO Deputy Leader of the Opposition (Opening Opposition) | Opposition | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| MG Member of Government (Closing Government) | Government | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| MO Member of Opposition (Closing Opposition) | Opposition | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| GW Government Whip (Closing Government) | Government | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| OW Opposition Whip (Closing Opposition) | Opposition | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
No in-round prep time. Teams get 15 minutes of preparation after the motion is released, before the round. Signals sound at 1:00, 6:00 and 7:00; judges disregard material after 7:15.
World Schools
| Speech | Side | Time | Points of information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prop 1 First Proposition | Proposition | 8:00 | 1:00 to 7:00 |
| Opp 1 First Opposition | Opposition | 8:00 | 1:00 to 7:00 |
| Prop 2 Second Proposition | Proposition | 8:00 | 1:00 to 7:00 |
| Opp 2 Second Opposition | Opposition | 8:00 | 1:00 to 7:00 |
| Prop 3 Third Proposition | Proposition | 8:00 | 1:00 to 7:00 |
| Opp 3 Third Opposition | Opposition | 8:00 | 1:00 to 7:00 |
| Opp Reply Opposition reply (first or second speaker) | Opposition | 4:00 | None |
| Prop Reply Proposition reply (first or second speaker) | Proposition | 4:00 | None |
No in-round prep time. Reply speeches run in reverse order, Opposition first, and take no points of information. Impromptu motions come with one hour of preparation; prepared motions are released weeks ahead.
Sources: WSDC Tournament Committee & Debate Rules (August 2026); NSDA USA World Schools Debate Invitational manual
Asian Parliamentary
| Speech | Side | Time | Points of information |
|---|---|---|---|
| PM Prime Minister | Government | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| LO Leader of the Opposition | Opposition | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| DPM Deputy Prime Minister | Government | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| DLO Deputy Leader of the Opposition | Opposition | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| GW Government Whip | Government | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| OW Opposition Whip | Opposition | 7:00 | 1:00 to 6:00 |
| Opp Reply Opposition reply (first or second speaker) | Opposition | 4:00 | None |
| Gov Reply Government reply (first or second speaker) | Government | 4:00 | None |
No in-round prep time. There is no single official rulebook; this follows the UADC handbook, with 30 minutes of preparation before the round. Some school leagues shorten speeches, so check your tournament.
School 4-6-6-3
| Speech | Side | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Pro Intro Pro introductor | Pro | 4:00 |
| Con Intro Con introductor | Con | 4:00 |
| Pro R1 Pro first rebuttal | Pro | 6:00 |
| Con R1 Con first rebuttal | Con | 6:00 |
| Pro R2 Pro second rebuttal | Pro | 6:00 |
| Con R2 Con second rebuttal | Con | 6:00 |
| Pro Concl Pro conclusor | Pro | 3:00 |
| Con Concl Con conclusor | Con | 3:00 |
No in-round prep time. The school format DebateLab uses for its own sparring rounds: introductor, two rebuttals and a conclusor per side. It is not a national league format.
Timer drills for practice
Thirty seconds short
Set a custom format with each speech 30 seconds shorter than the real one and give the same speech. Whatever you had to cut is what you should have weighed less. Do it twice before a tournament and your real speeches end with room for a summary instead of a rush.
The protected-minute opener
In BP or World Schools, practise saying your roadmap and first argument before the knock at 1:00, when no one can interrupt. Run the PM or first Proposition speech and stop the clock at the knock: if you are still introducing yourself, rewrite the opening.
Prep bank budget
Public Forum teams get three minutes for the whole round. Before a practice round, agree how you will spend it, for example one minute before summary and two before final focus, and run the bank against that plan. Teams that budget prep stop burning it on the first rebuttal.
POI ladder
Run a seven-minute BP speech while a partner offers a point of information every time the clock passes a full minute in the open window. Take two and decline the rest politely. The WUDC manual asks each speaker to take at least one, so learn to take it where it suits you.
Embed this timer on your club site
Pick a format and paste the snippet into any page that accepts HTML. The embedded timer is the same clock without the page around it, has a small link back here, and loads nothing but its own files: no ads, no tracking, no account.
<iframe src="https://debate.pi-stack.org/embed/debate-timer?format=bp" title="British Parliamentary debate timer" width="100%" height="600" style="border:0;max-width:760px" allow="screen-wake-lock; fullscreen" allowfullscreen loading="lazy"></iframe>
<p><a href="https://debate.pi-stack.org/tools/debate-timer">Free debate timer by DebateLab</a></p>For a custom format, set it up above, copy its link, and replace /tools/debate-timer with /embed/debate-timer in the iframe address. Use a height of 700 if it has prep time.
Frequently asked questions
Which debate formats does the timer know?
Public Forum, Lincoln-Douglas and Policy as the NSDA runs them, British Parliamentary under the WUDC manual, World Schools under the WSDC rules, Asian Parliamentary under the UADC handbook, and the school 4-6-6-3 format. For anything else, build a custom format and share its link.
How does the timer show protected time?
In British Parliamentary, World Schools and Asian Parliamentary speeches, a strip under the clock shows the protected first and last minute and the open stretch between them, with a marker for where the speaker is. A badge reads "POIs open" or "Protected", and you hear a knock when the window opens and closes.
What happens when a speaker goes over time?
The clock keeps counting, now upwards with a plus sign and in red, so the judge can see exactly how far over the speaker went. In BP and Asian Parliamentary it first shows the 15-second grace period those rules allow.
How do the prep time banks work?
Public Forum, Lincoln-Douglas and Policy rounds get one bank per side, with the NSDA allowance of 3, 4 and 8 minutes. Tap a side's bank to run it and tap again to stop. Starting a bank pauses the speech, and a bank that runs out stops at zero.
Will I lose the round if I reload the page?
No. The timer saves the format, the current speech and both prep banks in this browser, against the wall clock, so a running speech is still running at the right time after a reload. The saved round stays in your browser; it is not uploaded.
Can I put this timer on my club or tournament website?
Yes. Copy the iframe snippet for your format from the embed section on this page. The embedded timer has no ads, needs no account and makes no network requests beyond its own files.
Related guides
- Print a flow sheet laid out for the same format, so the timer and the flow match speech for speech.
- How to flow in debate covers what to write in each column while the clock runs.
- Managing prep time goes deeper on spending a prep bank well.