> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://resend.com/docs/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Delay > Pause your Automations with time delays. A delay step pauses the Automation for a specified duration before continuing to the next step. Common use cases: * **Email sequences**: Space out emails in an onboarding series. * **Cooldowns**: Prevent sending too many emails in a short period. * **Follow-ups**: Give users time to take action before sending a reminder. ## How it works > [tab] Using the dashboard > > You can configure a "Time Delay" duration using natural language. > > ![Automation](https://mintcdn.com/resend/Y9mMKs1rmWrCoGo6/images/automations-time-delay.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=Y9mMKs1rmWrCoGo6\&q=85\&s=fac7798f7151f7dd5862dc814f343f98) > [tab] Using the API > > The delay step accepts a single `duration` field with a human-readable time value. > > ```ts Node.js {13-17} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > import { Resend } from 'resend'; > > const resend = new Resend('re_xxxxxxxxx'); > > const { data, error } = await resend.automations.create({ > name: 'Welcome Series', > steps: [ > { > key: 'start', > type: 'trigger', > config: { eventName: 'user.created' }, > }, > { > key: 'wait_1_day', > type: 'delay', > config: { duration: '1 day' }, > }, > ], > connections: [{ from: 'start', to: 'wait_1_day', type: 'default' }], > }); > ``` > > ```php PHP {11-15} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > $resend = Resend::client('re_xxxxxxxxx'); > > $resend->automations->create([ > 'name' => 'Welcome Series', > 'steps' => [ > [ > 'key' => 'start', > 'type' => 'trigger', > 'config' => ['event_name' => 'user.created'], > ], > [ > 'key' => 'wait_1_day', > 'type' => 'delay', > 'config' => ['duration' => '1 day'], > ], > ], > 'connections' => [['from' => 'start', 'to' => 'wait_1_day', 'type' => 'default']], > ]); > ``` > > ```python Python {13-17} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > import resend > > resend.api_key = "re_xxxxxxxxx" > > params: resend.Automations.CreateParams = { > "name": "Welcome Series", > "steps": [ > { > "key": "start", > "type": "trigger", > "config": {"event_name": "user.created"}, > }, > { > "key": "wait_1_day", > "type": "delay", > "config": {"duration": "1 day"}, > }, > ], > "connections": [{"from": "start", "to": "wait_1_day", "type": "default"}], > } > > resend.Automations.create(params) > ``` > > ```ruby Ruby {13-17} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > require "resend" > > Resend.api_key = "re_xxxxxxxxx" > > params = { > name: "Welcome Series", > steps: [ > { > key: "start", > type: "trigger", > config: { event_name: "user.created" }, > }, > { > key: "wait_1_day", > type: "delay", > config: { duration: "1 day" }, > }, > ], > connections: [{ from: "start", to: "wait_1_day", type: "default" }], > } > > Resend::Automations.create(params) > ``` > > ```go Go {18-24} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > package main > > import "github.com/resend/resend-go/v4" > > func main() { > client := resend.NewClient("re_xxxxxxxxx") > > params := &resend.CreateAutomationRequest{ > Name: "Welcome Series", > Steps: []resend.AutomationStep{ > { > Key: "start", > Type: resend.AutomationStepTypeTrigger, > Config: map[string]any{ > "event_name": "user.created", > }, > }, > { > Key: "wait_1_day", > Type: resend.AutomationStepTypeDelay, > Config: map[string]any{ > "duration": "1 day", > }, > }, > }, > Connections: []resend.AutomationConnection{ > {From: "start", To: "wait_1_day", Type: resend.AutomationConnectionTypeDefault}, > }, > } > > client.Automations.Create(params) > } > ``` > > ```rust Rust {22-27} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > use resend_rs::{ > types::{ > AutomationStatus, Connection, ConnectionType, CreateAutomationOptions, DelayStepConfig, Step, > TriggerStepConfig, > }, > Resend, Result, > }; > > #[tokio::main] > async fn main() -> Result<()> { > let resend = Resend::new("re_xxxxxxxxx"); > > let opts = CreateAutomationOptions { > name: "Welcome Series".to_owned(), > steps: vec![ > Step::Trigger { > key: "start".to_owned(), > config: TriggerStepConfig { > event_name: "user.created".to_owned(), > }, > }, > Step::Delay { > key: "wait_1_day".to_owned(), > config: DelayStepConfig { > duration: "1 day".to_owned(), > }, > }, > ], > connections: vec![Connection::new("start", "wait_1_day").with_type(ConnectionType::Default)], > status: AutomationStatus::Disabled, > }; > let _automation = resend.automations.create(opts).await?; > > Ok(()) > } > ``` > > ```java Java {20-24} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > import com.resend.*; > import com.resend.core.exception.ResendException; > import com.resend.services.automations.model.AutomationConnection; > import com.resend.services.automations.model.AutomationStep; > import com.resend.services.automations.model.ConnectionType; > import com.resend.services.automations.model.CreateAutomationOptions; > import com.resend.services.automations.model.CreateAutomationResponseSuccess; > > public class Main { > public static void main(String[] args) throws ResendException { > Resend resend = new Resend("re_xxxxxxxxx"); > > CreateAutomationOptions options = CreateAutomationOptions.builder() > .name("Welcome Series") > .steps( > AutomationStep.trigger("start") > .eventName("user.created") > .build(), > AutomationStep.delay("wait_1_day") > .duration("1 day") > .build() > ) > .connections( > AutomationConnection.builder() > .from("start") > .to("wait_1_day") > .type(ConnectionType.DEFAULT) > .build() > ) > .build(); > > CreateAutomationResponseSuccess data = resend.automations().create(options); > } > } > ``` > > ```csharp .NET {7,15} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > using Resend; > using System.Text.Json; > > IResend resend = ResendClient.Create( "re_xxxxxxxxx" ); > > var startConfig = JsonSerializer.SerializeToElement( new { event_name = "user.created" } ); > var delayConfig = JsonSerializer.SerializeToElement( new { duration = "1 day" } ); > > var resp = await resend.AutomationCreateAsync( new AutomationCreateData() > { > Name = "Welcome Series", > Steps = new List > { > new AutomationStepData { Ref = "start", Type = "trigger", Config = startConfig }, > new AutomationStepData { Ref = "wait_1_day", Type = "delay", Config = delayConfig }, > }, > Connections = new List > { > new AutomationEdge { From = "start", To = "wait_1_day", EdgeType = "default" }, > }, > } ); > ``` > > ```bash cURL {10-14} theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > curl -X POST 'https://api.resend.com/automations' \ > -H 'Authorization: Bearer re_xxxxxxxxx' \ > -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \ > -d '{ > "name": "Welcome Series", > "steps": [{ > "key": "start", > "type": "trigger", > "config": { "event_name": "user.created" } > }, { > "key": "wait_1_day", > "type": "delay", > "config": { "duration": "1 day" } > }], > "connections": [ > { "from": "start", "to": "wait_1_day", "type": "default" } > ] > }' > ``` > > ```bash CLI theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} > resend automations create --name "Welcome Series" --file ./automation.json > ``` > > Example durations: `"30 minutes"`, `"1 hour"`, `"12 hours"`, `"1 day"`, `"3 days"`, `"1 week"`. > [!NOTE] > > The maximum delay is 30 days. ## Configuration **config.duration** `string` *required* The delay duration in natural language (e.g. `"1 hour"`, `"3 days"`). Maximum: 30 days. ```json Example theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"vesper"}} { "key": "wait_1_hour", "type": "delay", "config": { "duration": "1 hour" } } ```