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Free ADHD Time-Buffer Planner
Make room for the time between tasks.
A task estimate can miss the time needed to pack up, find your things, travel, or settle in. Use the first calculator to compare estimates with actual durations, or the second to work backward from an appointment. You supply the numbers and decide what fits.
Use the free plannerTwo free tools: make the missing time visible
No account. No AI guesses. Entries stay in this page and disappear on reload. Review the assumptions before relying on a result.
The calculators need JavaScript. The guide and formulas work without it: divide actual time by estimated time, use the median ratio for a comparable next task, and add your transition. For appointments, subtract arrival margin, travel, and preparation from the start time.
1. Estimate-versus-actual calculator
Enter one to three comparable tasks. Leave unused pairs empty. All durations are whole minutes; estimates and actuals must be between 1 and 10,080 minutes.
2. Backward appointment planner
Choose the appointment date and time in your device’s local timezone. Include each step once. This creates a schedule, not reminders.
How to use this planner
Choose the question
For a similar upcoming task, use the estimate-versus-actual calculator. For an appointment, use the backward planner. You do not need to fill in both.
Include the missing time
Enter one to three comparable estimated/actual pairs and a transition allowance, or enter preparation, travel and arrival margin. Use whole minutes and include each part once.
Review before relying on it
Check the assumptions and the displayed date and timezone. Copy or print the result if useful, and set any reminders on your own device. The page does not alert you.
A smaller plan, in practice
- BeforeSimilar tasks took 30, 45 and 60 minutes after estimates of 20, 30 and 40.
- A workable versionThe median actual-to-estimate ratio is 1.5. A new 30-minute estimate becomes 45 minutes, or 55 with a 10-minute transition.
- BeforeAn appointment begins at 09:00. Preparation takes 20 minutes, travel 25, and arrival margin 10.
- A workable versionAim to arrive at 08:50, leave at 08:25, and begin preparation at 08:05. Check the calendar date if the plan crosses midnight.
- BeforeOne small task took longer than expected, but the next task is much bigger or unfamiliar.
- A workable versionDo not treat that one observation as a reliable multiplier for a different task. Break down the new task and review its assumptions separately.
A planning clue, not a prediction.
For comparable tasks, divide each actual duration by its estimate and use the middle ratio. With two observations, the calculator averages the two ratios. It multiplies your next estimate by that ratio, rounds up to whole minutes, and adds the transition allowance.
The displayed range uses your smallest and largest observed ratios. It is not a confidence interval or a promise that future tasks will fit inside it. One to three observations are a small sample, and changes in task scope, interruptions or energy can matter.
The backward planner subtracts arrival margin, travel and preparation from the appointment's local date and time. It can show an earlier calendar date and warns if preparation should already have started. Around daylight-saving changes, verify the times against your actual appointment and device timezone.
Your plans, your choice
Entries and results stay on this page and disappear on reload. Nothing you enter is stored, sent to Mind Vortex, or passed to AI. Copy sends the visible result to your clipboard only when you choose it; Print opens your browser's print dialog. There is no save, app handoff, alarm, calendar access, or traffic check.
Practical organization tools, not ADHD tests, diagnosis, or treatment. No outcome is guaranteed.
Questions before you start
Does this predict how long ADHD tasks take?
No. It applies transparent arithmetic to the observations and allowances you enter. It is a practical planning aid, not a validated prediction, ADHD assessment, or treatment.
Do I need three past observations?
No. Enter one, two or three complete pairs, leaving unused pairs empty. Use comparable tasks and treat a small sample cautiously. Each estimate and actual duration must be 1–10,080 whole minutes.
Will the backward planner remind me to leave?
No. It displays preparation, departure, arrival and appointment times. Set reminders on your own device. It does not check traffic, access your calendar, or run a background alarm.
Can I save these results?
There is no saved history for this calculator. Entries disappear when you reload or leave. Use Copy or Print if you want to keep a result, and avoid copying sensitive details on a shared device.
Keep going at your own pace
Read the existing time-blindness guide for worked examples, the calculation methods, and their limits.