Does the Pomodoro Technique Work? What Studies on Breaks Found

The Pomodoro technique is simple: study for a fixed block, usually 25 minutes, take a short break, usually 5 minutes, and repeat. It is one of the most recommended study habits online. The interesting question is not whether a timer can help someone, but whether timed breaks work better than taking breaks whenever you feel like it.

Researchers in the Netherlands have now tested that question in real study sessions twice. The two studies point in somewhat different directions, and the difference is useful.

1. Study 1: fixed breaks vs breaks students chose (2023)

Felicitas Biwer and colleagues at Maastricht University published this study in the British Journal of Educational Psychology. Eighty-seven bachelor's and master's students did their normal self-study for one day while following one of three break plans:

What they found:

• Students who chose their own breaks studied in longer stretches and also took longer breaks.
• Those longer, self-chosen stretches went along with more fatigue and distractedness, and less concentration and motivation, than in the two timed groups.
• There was no difference in how much mental effort students invested or in how much of their planned work they completed.

The authors concluded that pre-set, systematic breaks had mood benefits and appeared to have efficiency benefits, meaning similar task completion in a shorter time.

2. Study 2: Pomodoro vs self-chosen vs "Flowtime" (2025)

A follow-up by E. J. C. Smits, N. Wenzel, and A. de Bruin, also from Maastricht University and published in Behavioral Sciences, looked at 94 university students during a 2-hour real study session.

What they found:

• In the Pomodoro group, fatigue rose faster over the session than in the self-regulated group.
• Motivation fell faster in both the Pomodoro and Flowtime groups than in the self-regulated group.
• However, those faster changes did not add up to overall differences in fatigue or motivation between the groups.
• There were no differences in productivity, task completion, or flow.

3. Putting the two studies together

At first the results look contradictory. One study favors timed breaks for mood; the other finds timed breaks made fatigue and motivation change faster. A careful reading shows they agree on the most practical point:

Neither study found that the Pomodoro technique helped students finish more work. In both, task completion was about the same whatever break plan students used.

Where they differ is how the session felt. The 2023 study suggests fixed breaks can keep people from drifting into long, tiring stretches and equally long breaks. The 2025 study suggests a rigid 25-and-5 schedule may not suit everyone, and its authors called for more research on factors such as personality and mental effort.

Both studies covered a single session of one day or two hours, so neither tells you what happens over a whole semester.

4. How to use this when you study

Try timed blocks if your breaks tend to grow. If a "quick check" of your phone turns into 30 minutes, a timer that ends the break is the part most likely to help. That matches the 2023 finding that self-chosen breaks ran longer.

Do not assume 25 minutes is magic. The 2023 study used 24-minute and 12-minute blocks, and both timed versions beat self-chosen breaks on mood. The exact number matters less than having a plan you set in advance.

Notice if the timer interrupts good focus. If you are deep in a problem set when the timer goes off, in the 2025 study motivation fell faster in the Pomodoro group during the session, though overall levels did not differ. A reasonable compromise is to finish the current problem, then take the break.

Make breaks real breaks. Stand up, get water, look away from screens. A break spent scrolling is still attention spent.

Measure output, not just minutes. Since neither study found a difference in work completed, judge your system by what you finished, such as problems solved or pages summarized, rather than by how many timer cycles you logged.

5. A simple setup to try

1. Before starting, write down the specific tasks for the session.
2. Pick a block length between about 25 and 50 minutes and a break of about 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Set a timer for both the block and the break.
4. After two or three sessions, compare how much you finished and how tired you felt against a session with no timer.
5. Keep whichever setup gets more done without leaving you drained.

6. Key takeaways

• Two controlled studies compared timed breaks with breaks students chose themselves during real study sessions.
• In 2023, timed breaks went along with less fatigue and better concentration and motivation, and similar work appeared to get done in less time.
• In 2025, a strict 25-and-5 schedule made fatigue and motivation change faster, but overall levels and work completed did not differ.
• Neither study found that timed breaks increased task completion.
• Use a timer mainly to keep breaks from growing, and judge any system by what you actually finish.