CountLink
The short answer
Stagetimer is production software for live events: rooms, speakers, moderators, audience questions, an API, a desktop app that runs offline. CountLink is a shared countdown you send as a link. If you are running a conference stage with an AV desk, Stagetimer is the right tool and this page will not try to talk you out of it. If you are running a meeting, a class, a workshop or a stream and you have been looking at Stagetimer because it was the first result, you are probably about to pay $210 a year for a fraction of what it does.
Side by side
| CountLink | Stagetimer.io | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, permanently. No paid tier exists. | Free tier; Pro $210/yr; Premium $420/yr; Enterprise from $630; desktop lifetime licence $980 |
| Account required | No | Yes |
| Viewers / live connections | Unlimited | 3 per room free · 5 on Pro · 50 on Premium · up to 500 on Enterprise |
| Timers | Unlimited | 3 per room free · 50 on Pro · unlimited on Premium |
| Rooms / events | Not a concept: every countdown is a link | 3 free |
| Sound alerts | Free | Free (audio chimes) |
| Live control pushed to viewers | Free, unlimited screens (opt in before starting) | Yes, core to the product |
| Speaker / moderator roles | No | Yes |
| Audience questions | No | Yes |
| REST API | No, but there is an MCP server for AI assistants | Yes |
| Desktop app / offline operation | Downloadable single-file offline copy of one countdown | Full offline desktop app ($980 lifetime) |
| Custom branding on outputs | No | Yes, from the free tier (custom logo) |
| Agenda of named segments | Free | Yes |
| Website embed (iframe) | Free, no watermark | Yes |
| Setup time before first use | None: open the page, press start | Create an account, create a room |
Stagetimer.io figures verified against their own pricing page on 12 September 2026. Prices and limits change, so check theirs before deciding.
What Stagetimer.io does better
It is a more capable product, and it should be. Stagetimer does speaker and moderator roles, audience questions, multiple rooms, CSV import and export, a REST API, custom-branded outputs, and a desktop application that runs with no internet at all. If your event has a run of show, a stage manager and a comms channel, those are not luxuries.
Offline operation is a real differentiator. Their desktop app runs a whole event with no network. CountLink can download a single countdown as a self-contained file that keeps running offline, which is a much smaller claim.
Branding. Custom logos on outputs start on their free tier. CountLink has no white-labelling at all.
What CountLink does better
The free tiers are not comparable. Stagetimer's free tier allows three live connections per room; CountLink has no connection limit at any price, because it has no connections. For the very common case of one countdown that a room full of people can see, the free version of CountLink does more than the free version of Stagetimer.
Even their $210/year Pro tier allows five live connections per room. That is the number to check against your actual audience before subscribing, and it surprises people.
No account or room to create first. Open the page, set a duration, press start, send the link. For anything short of a produced event, the setup is the cost.
Which one should you use?
Pick Stagetimer if you are running a produced event: a conference stage, a broadcast, anything with a stage manager, multiple speakers on a schedule, or a need to brand what the audience sees. Also pick it if you need an API or guaranteed offline operation.
Pick CountLink if you want a countdown a group can watch together (meetings, classes, exams, workshops, streams, study groups) without an account, a room, a connection limit or a subscription.
Common questions
Is CountLink trying to replace Stagetimer?
No. They are built for different jobs. Stagetimer is event-production software with roles, rooms and an API; CountLink is a shared countdown in a link. The overlap is the countdown itself, and that is the only part this comparison is about.
What does Stagetimer's free tier actually allow?
Three live connections per room and three timers per room, across three rooms, plus audio chimes, CSV import/export, API access and a custom logo. Verified against their pricing page on 12 September 2026.
Does CountLink have an API?
Not a REST API. It has an MCP server at countlink.app/mcp, which lets an AI assistant create timers, build agendas, generate embeds and badges, and read back what a link means. For scripting from your own code, Stagetimer's REST API is the better fit.
Can CountLink work offline?
A running countdown can be downloaded as a single self-contained HTML file that keeps counting with no network. That covers one timer, not a whole event. Stagetimer's desktop app is the serious offline option.