> ## 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 **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) **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" } } ```