Create a scheduled (cron) function on Netlify via netlify.toml or in-code schedule config

Documented steps

1. Auth: Requires a Netlify account; scheduled functions are enabled by default on all pricing plans (no special auth beyond normal site deploy access).
2. Install the functions helper package: npm install @netlify/functions
3. Write the function file, e.g. netlify/functions/test-scheduled-function.mts, with a default export handler that reads the next_run field: export default async (req: Request) => { const { next_run } = await req.json(); console.log("Next invocation at:", next_run); }
4. Option A - set the schedule inline in code (TypeScript/JavaScript only): export const config: Config = { schedule: "@hourly" };
5. Option B - set the schedule in netlify.toml instead (works for any language): [functions."test-scheduled-function"] then schedule = "@hourly"
6. Use standard 5-field crontab syntax or shorthand extensions (@yearly, @monthly, @weekly, @daily, @hourly) — all evaluated in UTC, e.g. "0 0 * * *" for daily at midnight UTC
7. Deploy the site (netlify deploy --prod or via Git-linked CI) so the schedule becomes active — schedules only run on published deploys, not deploy previews/branch deploys
8. Test locally/on-demand: run netlify functions:invoke test-scheduled-function via the CLI, or click "Run now" on the Functions page in the Netlify UI
9. Verify status: the deployed function shows a "Scheduled" badge with the next execution time (in your local timezone) on the Netlify UI Functions page
10. Official docs: https://docs.netlify.com/build/functions/scheduled-functions/ ; https://docs.netlify.com/snippets/functions/scheduled-functions/cron-expression-format/