---
schema_version: "1"
id: 8a680cd75c02480cf5d89f27c15d999002dbe417f0451434d58e009cc91bf072
title: Add a Wait Activity
collection: admin
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/admin/current/en-us/mktg/264-0-0/mc_as_add_a_wait_activity.md
canonical_url: https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_as_add_a_wait_activity.htm&release=264.0.0&type=5
source_site: help.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: 89bf67d7e9677864534e67b2e9b5fd410f31fb55120116a6bc2d04797ed256f5
description: Tell an automation how long to pause before proceeding to the next activity in Automation Studio.
products:
  - Marketing
  - Marketing Cloud Engagement
release: "264"
---
# Add a Wait Activity

Tell an automation how long to pause before proceeding to the next activity in Automation Studio.

Wait activities cause an automation to wait for a specific duration or until a specific time before performing the next step.

1. From the Overview page, select an automation to edit, or create an automation.
2. Click **Wait** and drag the activity into a drop zone on the canvas.
3. To tell Automation Studio to either wait for a duration of time or until a specific time, click **Choose**.
    
    ![Select a duration or select a specific time when the wait ends.](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-mktg-mc_journeys_and_automations-264-0-0-production-enus/e08cdd71-c1c1-4ae5-a5e9-8a6dad583ad4/mc_journeys_and_automations/images/mc_as_wait_activity_modal_1.png)
4. Save the activity's settings.
    
    ![Tip](https://sf-zdocs-cdn-prod.zoominsoftware.com/tdta-mktg-mc_journeys_and_automations-264-0-0-production-enus/e08cdd71-c1c1-4ae5-a5e9-8a6dad583ad4/images/icon_tip.png)
    
    Tip You can set an automation to do both—to wait for a specified duration, but to not start before a specified time. Add a wait activity for the duration and save it. Then, in the next column, add a wait activity for the specified time.