Description

Returns the number of microseconds since the Arduino board began running the current program. This number will overflow (go back to zero) after approximately 70 minutes.

This timing function offers various resolutions compatible with different Arduino families.

Syntax

Use the following function to get the exact time the board has been running the current program in microseconds:

micros()

Parameters

This function does not admit parameters.

Returns

This function returns the number of microseconds since the Arduino board began running the current program. Data type: unsigned long.

Example Code

The code returns the number of microseconds since the Arduino board began running the current program.

unsigned long time;

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(9600);
}
void loop() {
  Serial.print("Time: ");
  time = micros();

  Serial.println(time); //prints time since program started
  delay(1000);          // wait a second so as not to send massive amounts of data
}

Notes and Warnings

There are 1,000 microseconds in a millisecond and 1,000,000 microseconds in a second.

See also