> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.plain.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Wait for

> Pause a workflow for a set time, or until the customer replies.

Wait steps pause your workflow for a set duration before continuing. Use them to give customers time to respond, build escalation timers, or schedule follow-ups.

## How wait steps work

A wait step pauses the workflow for a duration you set, from 1 second up to 1 year.

Each wait step has two branches:

* **Completed**: the full duration passed.

* **Canceled**: a cancel condition was met before the duration ended.

## Waits and run order

While a workflow waits, the next workflow in the [run order](/docs/product/workflows#run-order) starts. A one-hour wait in the first workflow does not delay the rest by an hour.

A **start a Sidekick discussion** step behaves the same way: the workflow parks while Sidekick works, and the next workflow starts. See [Sidekick in workflows](/docs/product/agents/sidekick/in-workflows).

Put the steps that later workflows depend on before the wait, not after it.

## Cancel conditions

You can add a cancel condition to any wait step. This lets you end the wait early when something changes on the thread.

## Limits

* Minimum duration: 1 second

* Maximum duration: 1 year (31,536,000 seconds)

## When to use wait steps

* **Follow-ups**: send a message, wait 24 hours, then check if the customer replied.

* **Escalation timers**: wait 5 minutes after an urgent thread is created.

* **Business hours**: acknowledge a thread outside business hours, wait until morning, then assign to the team.