Scheduled GitHub Actions workflows never trigger, although workflow_dispatch works correctly

[BuddyYang]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Question

💬 Feature/Topic Area

Schedule & Cron Jobs

Discussion Details

Hello,
I am experiencing a problem where scheduled GitHub Actions workflows never trigger.
Manual execution using "Run workflow" (workflow_dispatch) works perfectly every time.
To eliminate any project-specific issues, I created a second private repository containing only a minimal workflow. The same problem occurs there as well.

Repositories

Repository #1
Private repository

Repository #2
Private repository

Minimal workflow

Path : .github/workflows/test.yml
Content:
name: Schedule Test
on:
schedule:
- cron: '*/10 * * * *'
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
test:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- name: Show Time
run: |
echo "Schedule OK"
date

Environment

GitHub account : Free Plan
Default branch : main

What I have already verified

The workflow is located in .github/workflows/
The default branch is main
The workflow appears correctly in the Actions tab
Manual execution using "Run workflow" succeeds every time
The workflow is enabled (the menu shows "Disable workflow")
My email address is verified
No Rulesets are configured
Repository Actions permissions are correct
I modified the cron expression and committed the changes
I waited multiple times (including more than one hour after updating the workflow)
I created a brand-new private repository containing only the minimal workflow
The same problem occurs in both repositories

Observed behavior

No workflow run has ever been triggered by the schedule event.
The Actions page never shows an Event of "schedule".
Only workflow_dispatch executions exist.

Question

Is there anything else I should check?
Has anyone experienced the same issue where scheduled workflows never trigger, even though manual execution always works?
If GitHub staff need additional information (repository name, workflow file, run IDs, etc.), I would be happy to provide it privately.
Thank you very much for your help.

[Hannan-10]

Based on what you've already verified, your workflow configuration looks correct. Since workflow_dispatch runs successfully in both repositories, the issue is probably not related to your YAML.

A few additional things I'd check:

1. Repository activity – GitHub disables scheduled workflows after long periods of inactivity in some cases. Make sure the repository has had a recent commit.

2. Default branch – Double-check that the workflow file exists on the current default branch and that the default branch wasn't changed after the workflow was created.

3. Force GitHub to re-register the workflow – Make a trivial change to the workflow file (for example, add a comment), commit it to the default branch, then manually run the workflow once using workflow_dispatch. This has resolved scheduler registration issues for some users.

4. Avoid testing every 10 minutes indefinitely – For testing, try changing the cron to something like:

   schedule:
     - cron: '13 * * * *'

   Running exactly on :00, :05, :10, etc., can coincide with higher scheduler load.

5. Since the exact same behavior occurs in two separate repositories with a minimal workflow, this points more toward a GitHub scheduler issue than a repository configuration problem.

Could you also confirm:

• Is this a personal account or an organization?
• Are both repositories private?
• Has the repository had any commits within the last 60 days?

Those details would help determine whether this is an account/repository limitation or a platform-side scheduling problem.

[khashayarghafouri]

Scheduled workflows often look broken when manual dispatch works. The usual causes:

1. Cron uses UTC
*/10 * * * * is evaluated in UTC. Check time.is/UTC and wait for the next boundary.

2. Workflow must be on the default branch
schedule reads .github/workflows/*.yml from main (or your default branch), not from feature branches.

3. Delays are normal
GitHub may delay scheduled jobs during peak load — 15–60 minutes is common. No schedule event in the UI yet does not always mean misconfiguration.

4. Inactive repository
If the repo had no commits for ~60 days, scheduled workflows can be disabled automatically. Re-enable via Actions → workflow → Enable workflow, or push a commit.

Debug checklist

• Push a trivial commit to main after editing the workflow
• Set cron to 0 * * * * and wait two full UTC hours
• Filter Actions by Event: schedule

If it still never fires after 24h on an active repo, contact GitHub Support with the repository name — they can inspect schedule queueing.

[khashayarghafouri]

@BuddyYang If manual workflow_dispatch works but schedule never appears, two extra checks beyond cron syntax:

1. Free-plan private repos
Scheduled workflows on private repos can be restricted on Free accounts. Your note about testing in a new private repo fits this pattern. Try the same workflow on a public repo (or upgrade billing) and wait one UTC hour boundary.

2. Force re-registration
Edit the workflow on main (even a comment change), push, run it once manually, then set cron to 0 * * * * and wait two full UTC hours while filtering Actions by Event: schedule.

If schedule still never fires on an active public repo after 24h, contact GitHub Support with the repo name — they can inspect scheduler queueing.

If this helped, marking an answer helps others with the same symptom.

[Ripendra6218]

I've run into this before, and it's usually not an issue with the workflow itself since workflow_dispatch works correctly.

A few things I'd check:

• Make sure the workflow file is on your repository's default branch. Scheduled workflows only run from the default branch.
• Verify that the cron syntax is correct and uses UTC time, not your local timezone.
• Check that GitHub Actions are enabled for the repository and that scheduled workflows haven't been disabled due to repository inactivity.
• If the repository hasn't had any recent activity, try pushing a small commit to the default branch to reactivate scheduled workflows.
• Keep in mind that GitHub doesn't guarantee exact execution times—scheduled jobs can sometimes be delayed, especially during busy periods.

If everything looks correct and it still isn't triggering after waiting a while, I'd check the Actions tab for any skipped runs or errors, and if necessary, reach out to GitHub Support since it could be an issue with the scheduler rather than your workflow.

Hope you get it working soon!

[KhyFee]

+1 to what @Hannan-10, @khashayarghafouri, and @Ripendra6218 already covered (UTC cron, default branch, inactivity disable, delays).

Since you reproduced this on a second private repo on the Free plan, I’d treat that as the main lead:

• On Free accounts, private repo Actions minutes are limited, and scheduled runs are easy to miss if minutes are exhausted or Actions is restricted at the account/org level. workflow_dispatch succeeding once doesn’t guarantee schedules keep firing.
• Fastest isolation: copy the same minimal workflow to a public repo, push to main, run it once manually, then wait across two full UTC hour boundaries while filtering the Actions list by Event → schedule.
• Also open the workflow’s page and confirm it isn’t sitting in a disabled state (Enable workflow). Inactivity disables are quiet — the YAML still looks fine.

If schedule events never appear even on an active public repo after 24h, that’s past community troubleshooting and into Support territory (include both repo names + the workflow file path).

[onovo1]

Same issue here: scheduled workflows never trigger, while workflow_dispatch works. Reproduced in private, public and organization repositories, including when a different user commits the cron change.

Full details: #209378