Apple Shortcuts

Time Memos provides a full set of actions for Apple's Shortcuts app. Use them to capture timestamps, query your memos, format exports, and more. Perfect for building custom workflows and automations.

Available Siri Commands

These voice commands work out of the box after installing Time Memos. To add titles or other details, use the Shortcuts app to build a custom shortcut with the "Capture Time Memo" action.

Quick Capture

"Hey Siri, capture with Time Memos" or "Hey Siri, grab a timestamp in Time Memos"

  • Creates a memo with the current timestamp

Capture with Emoji

"Hey Siri, capture hot beverage in Time Memos"

  • Creates a memo with the â˜•ī¸ emoji
  • Replace "hot beverage" with any emoji name

Log Battery

"Hey Siri, log my battery level in Time Memos"

  • Captures your current battery percentage and charging state

Shortcuts Actions

Time Memos provides the following actions for use in the Shortcuts app, organized by category:

📸 Capture

Capture Battery Details Time Memo

Create a time memo with your device's current battery level and charging state. Set your device name in the app's Settings.

Parameters
NoteOptional additional note (appended to the battery status)
Include LocationWhether to attach current location (default: on)
Track as Live ActivityPin the memo to your Lock Screen immediately (default: off)
Returns

The newly created time memo

📸
shortcut-capture-battery-details.png
Capture Battery Details Time Memo action in Shortcuts app

Capture Time Memo

Create a new time memo with the current timestamp.

Parameters
EmojiOptional emoji (or start your title with an emoji)
TitleOptional text label for the memo
NoteOptional extended note for additional details
Include LocationWhether to attach current location (default: on)
Track as Live ActivityPin the memo to your Lock Screen immediately (default: off)
Returns

The newly created time memo

📸
shortcut-capture-time-memo.png
Capture Time Memo action in Shortcuts app

📋 List Memos

List Time Memos

Find time memos matching specific criteria.

Parameters
EmojiFilter to memos with this emoji
Containing TextFilter to memos containing this text
Location FilterFilter by location: All, Has Location, or No Location
Checkpoint FilterFilter by checkpoints: All, Has Checkpoints, or No Checkpoints
Note FilterFilter by note: All, Has Note, or No Note
LimitMaximum number of results (default: 50)
Newest FirstSort order (default: on)
Hidden ViewsHow to handle memos in hidden views: Include All (default), Exclude Hidden, or Only Hidden
Include CheckpointsInclude checkpoint memos in results (default: off)
Returns

A list of time memos matching the specified filters

📸
shortcut-list-time-memos.png
List Time Memos action in Shortcuts app

List Time Memos Using Saved View

List time memos using the filter criteria from a saved view.

Parameters
Saved ViewThe saved view whose filter criteria to use
LimitMaximum number of results (default: 50)
Newest FirstSort order (default: on)
Returns

A list of time memos matching the saved view's filters

Useful when you want to list memos using complex filter criteria you've already defined in a saved view.

📸
shortcut-list-time-memos-saved-view.png
List Time Memos Using Saved View action in Shortcuts app

📝 Manage

Delete Time Memos

Delete specified time memos. Requires confirmation before deleting.

Parameters
Time MemosThe memos to delete (from List Time Memos)
📸
shortcut-delete-time-memos.png
Delete Time Memos action in Shortcuts app

Set Time Memo Note

Add or update the extended note of a time memo.

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to update
NoteThe note text to set (supports Markdown)

Notes allow you to add detailed information beyond the short label. Useful for meeting notes, task details, or context.

📸
shortcut-set-time-memo-note.png
Set Time Memo Note action in Shortcuts app

Toggle Pause Most Recent in Saved View

Pause or resume the most recent memo in a saved view.

Parameters
Saved ViewThe saved view to find the most recent memo in
Returns

The updated time memo

📸
shortcut-toggle-pause-saved-view.png
Toggle Pause Most Recent in Saved View action in Shortcuts app

Toggle Pause Time Memo

Pause a running memo or resume a paused memo. Creates a pause or resume checkpoint.

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to pause or resume
Returns

The updated time memo

📸
shortcut-toggle-pause-time-memo.png
Toggle Pause Time Memo action in Shortcuts app

🏁 Manage Checkpoints

Add Checkpoint

Add a checkpoint to a time memo at the current time.

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to add a checkpoint to
Include LocationOverride the app setting for attaching location (leave empty to use default)
Returns

The newly created checkpoint memo

Checkpoints mark progress points within a memo. Use them to track milestones, breaks, or significant moments during an activity.

📸
shortcut-add-checkpoint.png
Add Checkpoint action in Shortcuts app

Add Checkpoint to Most Recent Memo in Saved View

Create a new checkpoint and add it to the most recent memo matching a saved view's filters.

Parameters
Saved ViewThe saved view to find the most recent memo in
Include LocationOverride the app setting for attaching location (leave empty to use default)
Returns

The parent time memo

Useful for adding checkpoints to an ongoing activity without needing to look up the memo first.

📸
shortcut-add-checkpoint-saved-view.png
Add Checkpoint to Most Recent Memo in Saved View action in Shortcuts app

Attach as Checkpoint

Attach an existing time memo as a checkpoint to another memo. Only memos without their own checkpoints can be attached.

Parameters
CheckpointThe memo to attach as a checkpoint
Parent MemoThe memo to attach the checkpoint to

Useful for reorganizing memos by converting standalone memos into checkpoints of another memo.

📸
shortcut-attach-as-checkpoint.png
Attach as Checkpoint action in Shortcuts app

Attach as Checkpoint to Most Recent Time Memo in Saved View

Attach an existing time memo as a checkpoint to the most recent memo in a saved view.

Parameters
CheckpointThe memo to attach as a checkpoint
Saved ViewThe saved view to find the most recent memo in

Skips memos with future start times. Useful for workflows where you want to attach a newly captured memo to an ongoing activity.

📸
shortcut-attach-checkpoint-saved-view.png
Attach as Checkpoint to Most Recent Time Memo in Saved View action in Shortcuts app

List Checkpoints

Get all checkpoints for a time memo.

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to get checkpoints from
Include Parent MemoWhen enabled, includes the parent memo as the first item (default: on)
Returns

A list of time memos (checkpoints, optionally including the parent)

📸
shortcut-list-checkpoints.png
List Checkpoints action in Shortcuts app

Remove Last Checkpoint

Remove the most recent checkpoint from a time memo.

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to remove a checkpoint from

Fails if the memo has no checkpoints. Use this to undo an accidentally added checkpoint.

📸
shortcut-remove-last-checkpoint.png
Remove Last Checkpoint action in Shortcuts app

Get Duration

Get the formatted duration of a time memo (time from start to last checkpoint).

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to get duration from
Returns

A formatted duration string (e.g., "1h 30m"), or nil if the memo has no checkpoints

📸
shortcut-get-duration.png
Get Duration action in Shortcuts app

â„šī¸ Time Memo Info

Get Emoji from Time Memo

Extract the emoji from a time memo.

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to get the emoji from
Returns

An emoji entity with Symbol, Name, and Deep Link properties

📸
shortcut-get-emoji.png
Get Emoji from Time Memo action in Shortcuts app

Get Location from Time Memo

Extract the location from a time memo.

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to get the location from
Returns

A location entity with Place Name, Full Address, Latitude, Longitude, City, State, Country, Country Code, Postal Code, Street, Street Number, Neighborhood, and Timezone

📸
shortcut-get-location.png
Get Location from Time Memo action in Shortcuts app

📁 Saved Views

Create Saved View

Create a new saved view with the specified filters.

Parameters
NameA memorable name for the view for easy access via Siri
EmojisEmojis to filter by (comma or space-separated)
Filter TextText to search for in memo labels
Location FilterFilter by location: All, Has Location, or No Location
Checkpoint FilterFilter by checkpoints: All, Has Checkpoints, or No Checkpoints
Note FilterFilter by note: All, Has Note, or No Note
Hide from Main ListWhen enabled, memos matching this view will be hidden from the main list
Returns

The created saved view (or an existing view if one already matches)

Named views make it easier to find and select the view in the Shortcuts app.

📸
shortcut-create-saved-view.png
Create Saved View action in Shortcuts app

Delete Saved Views

Delete one or more saved views. Requires confirmation before deleting.

Parameters
Saved ViewsThe saved views to delete
📸
shortcut-delete-saved-views.png
Delete Saved Views action in Shortcuts app

Get Most Recent Memo in Saved View

Get the most recent parent memo (not a checkpoint) matching a saved view's filters.

Parameters
Saved ViewThe saved view to search in
Include FutureInclude memos with start times in the future (default: off)
Returns

The most recent parent time memo matching the filters

Useful for getting the current or most recent memo in a category without listing all memos first.

📸
shortcut-get-most-recent-memo.png
Get Most Recent Memo in Saved View action in Shortcuts app

List Saved Views

Get all saved views with their statistics and filter criteria.

Returns

A list of saved views with ID, Name, Display Name, Emojis, Filter Text, Location Filter, Checkpoint Filter, Note Filter, Included in Main List, Created At, Deep Link, Memo Count, First Memo Date, Last Memo Date, and Time Span

📸
shortcut-list-saved-views.png
List Saved Views action in Shortcuts app

Open Saved View

Open Time Memos with a specific saved view applied.

Parameters
Saved ViewThe saved view to open

Learn more about saved views in the Saved Views guide.

📸
shortcut-open-saved-view.png
Open Saved View action in Shortcuts app

🔧 Utilities

Create Emoji

Extract an emoji from text for use in other Time Memos actions.

Parameters
EmojiText containing the emoji to extract
Returns

An emoji entity with Symbol, Name, and Deep Link properties

📸
shortcut-create-emoji.png
Create Emoji action in Shortcuts app

Format Time Memos

Format a list of time memos as text or JSON for sharing or export.

Parameters
Time MemosThe memos to format (from List Time Memos)
FormatOutput format: Text or JSON
Newest FirstSort order for the output
Include NoteInclude extended note field
Include CheckpointsInclude checkpoint data for memos that have checkpoints
Include DurationInclude calculated duration (time from start to last checkpoint)
Include LocationInclude location data in output
Include Time ElapsedShow duration between consecutive memos
Returns

Formatted text or JSON string based on the specified format

📸
shortcut-format-time-memos.png
Format Time Memos action in Shortcuts app

List Emojis

Get all unique emojis used in your time memos, with usage statistics.

Returns

A list of emojis with Symbol, Name, Deep Link, Memo Count, First Memo Date, Last Memo Date, and Time Span

Useful for building custom emoji pickers or analyzing your most-used categories.

📸
shortcut-list-emojis.png
List Emojis action in Shortcuts app

Manage time memo Live Activity

Track or un-track a time memo as a Live Activity on your Lock Screen.

Parameters
TrackWhether to start or stop tracking
Time MemoThe memo to track (prompts if not specified)
📸
shortcut-manage-live-activity.png
Manage time memo Live Activity action in Shortcuts app

Open Time Memo

Opens a time memo in the Time Memos app.

Parameters
Time MemoThe memo to open
📸
shortcut-open-time-memo.png
Open Time Memo action in Shortcuts app

Tips

😀

Start labels with emoji

You don't need to use the Create Emoji action. Just start your label with an emoji and it will be used automatically.

🤖

Use with Personal Automations

Combine these actions with Personal Automations to capture memos automatically.

📁

Use Saved Views for complex filters

Create Saved Views in the app, then use "List Time Memos Using Saved View" to query with those filters.

🔗

Access IDs for advanced scripting

Time Memo and Saved View entities expose their ID property. Use this for deep links or advanced workflows.

Ready to try it?

Time Memos will be available on the App Store soon.

Download on the App Store Coming Soon