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Freevisuals
The numbers running along your timeline can be displayed in more than one way, and which format you choose genuinely affects how precisely and intuitively you work, particularly for animation heavy projects where thinking in individual frames rather than seconds and fractions matters considerably. This guide covers exactly how to switch between these display formats and when each one genuinely serves you better.
After Effects can display timeline position either as standard timecode, showing hours, minutes, seconds, and frames, or as a simple frame count counting sequentially from the composition's start. This post covers how to switch between these two display formats, the practical differences in how each affects your editing precision, and which format genuinely suits different kinds of work. It also includes a genuine video walkthrough and frequently asked questions.
By Jack Wright, Founder, Freevisuals. Updated 2026.
The timecode display format is controlled through your composition settings, accessible by selecting your composition and opening its settings dialog, where a dedicated dropdown lets you choose between standard timecode and simple frame numbering. This setting applies specifically to that individual composition, meaning different compositions within the same project can display their timeline in different formats depending on which suits each specific composition's particular needs.
Alternatively, right clicking directly on the timecode display itself within the Timeline panel often provides a quicker way to toggle this setting without needing to open the full composition settings dialog, useful for quickly switching formats during active work without interrupting your editing flow with an additional dialog box.
For a broader look at timeline navigation and display settings within a real project, watch Learn After Effects Expressions For Beginners, which touches on foundational timeline navigation relevant to understanding how different display settings affect your everyday editing experience. This is worth watching because seeing exactly how timecode and frame based displays differ when applied to the same real composition clarifies the practical difference more effectively than a written description alone.
For detailed animation work specifically, particularly frame by frame adjustments to keyframe timing or precise rotoscoping work, thinking in simple sequential frame numbers rather than timecode's hours, minutes, seconds, and frames format often feels more intuitive, since animation timing decisions frequently come down to exact frame counts rather than fractions of a second expressed in a more complex combined format.
For projects requiring precise synchronization with external content, matching a specific timestamp from an audio track, coordinating with a broadcast delivery specification, or working alongside footage already labeled with standard timecode from set, working in standard timecode format keeps your internal project references consistent with these external timing references, avoiding the mental conversion otherwise required between a frame count and the timecode format external references and specifications typically use.
Since timecode and simple frame counting represent the exact same underlying position in time, just displayed differently, your composition's specific frame rate determines the actual relationship between the two formats. A composition running at a higher frame rate will show a larger sequential frame number for the exact same point in time compared to a lower frame rate composition, since more individual frames exist within each second at a higher frame rate. Keeping this relationship in mind avoids confusion when comparing frame numbers across compositions using different frame rates within the same broader project.
A frequent point of confusion involves assuming a specific numeric timeline position means the same thing across two different compositions without checking whether both are actually using the same display format and frame rate, leading to miscommunication when collaborating with others or referencing timing across multiple compositions. Confirming both compositions share the same settings before directly comparing specific numeric timeline positions avoids this kind of avoidable confusion.
For editors working with time based expressions, it is worth understanding that the underlying time variable expressions reference always operates in seconds regardless of your current display format preference. This means your timeline's visual display setting, whether showing timecode or frame numbers, has no bearing on how expressions actually calculate timing internally, they consistently work in seconds behind the scenes even when your visible timeline display shows frame counts instead.
This distinction matters because it means switching your display format purely for personal viewing convenience carries no risk of accidentally affecting how any expressions in your project actually behave, since expressions read from the same underlying time value regardless of how that value happens to be displayed to you in the interface at any given moment.
For projects involving multiple editors working across shared or handed off compositions, establishing a consistent team wide preference for timecode display format, rather than leaving it to each individual editor's personal preference, can reduce confusion when discussing specific timeline positions during collaborative review sessions or written feedback exchanges. A verbal or written reference to a specific frame number means something different depending on which display format and frame rate the person providing that reference was actually using at the time.
Establishing this kind of shared convention early in a collaborative project, rather than discovering the inconsistency partway through when a specific timing reference causes genuine confusion between team members, is a small but genuinely worthwhile piece of project setup for any team working across shared After Effects files on a regular basis.
Precise, well understood timing control pairs naturally with the kind of considered motion graphics work our own After Effects templates library is built around. Our free LUT library is also worth pairing with any project needing a consistent color treatment. For premium templates, Motion Array and Envato are both worth browsing, and for music, Artlist and Epidemic Sound are both genuinely strong options.
No, this setting only changes how timeline position is displayed to you, not the actual underlying timing of your composition or any keyframes within it. Switching formats is purely a display preference with no effect on your actual project content.
Yes, this setting is configured individually per composition, so you can use frame based display for detailed animation work in one composition while using standard timecode in another composition within the same overall project.
This usually indicates a display format or frame rate mismatch between your settings and theirs. Confirming both of you are using the same display format and that your compositions share the same frame rate resolves most numeric discrepancies.
Standard timecode is generally the more universally recognized default, but there is no strictly correct choice, experimenting with both and settling on whichever feels more intuitive for your specific type of work is a reasonable approach for newer editors still developing their own preferences.
No, timecode display format is purely an editing interface preference and has no bearing on your actual rendered or exported output, which is determined by your export settings rather than your timeline's display format during editing.
Switching between standard timecode and simple frame based display is a small but genuinely useful customization, letting you work in whichever format best suits your specific project's needs, precise external synchronization favoring standard timecode, and detailed frame level animation work often favoring simple sequential frame counting instead. Understanding that this is purely a display preference with no effect on your actual project content removes any hesitation about experimenting with both to find what genuinely works best for your own editing style.
Alright, once you have After Effects up and running, and you've already got your project loaded, the next thing you'll likely be working with is the timeline. This is the horizontal panel at the bottom where you'll see layers of videos, images, shapes, and other assets stacked on top of each other. It’s the same place where you've been placing your compositions and assets, arranging them in the order you want them to appear.
Now, at the top of this Timeline panel, there's a thin ruler. This ruler is your project's timeline. And this timeline can show time in two ways: seconds (like 0s, 1s, 2s) or frames (which might look like 0:00, 0:01). It's essential to be familiar with these because, depending on your work, sometimes seconds might be more useful, like when you're syncing to a voiceover, and other times, frames might be preferable, especially when you're dealing with high precision animations.
Switching between these views is simpler than you might think. Let’s walk through this process:
Here’s a bit of additional context for you. The way the frames are displayed is tied to your composition's frame rate. For instance, if you set your composition to be 24 frames per second (a common frame rate for films), each "second" in the frame view is divided into 24 frames. So, when you're viewing in frames, every 24 frames will make up a full second.
Once you've made the switch, and perhaps made some other tweaks to your composition, you might want to save your project. To do this, find the word 'File' in the top left corner of your screen. Clicking on it will reveal a dropdown menu. One of the options there will be 'Save'. Just click on it, and your changes are safely stored.
The ability to switch between these two views gives you a lot of control and flexibility in your editing process. When you’re adding intricate animations or syncing up multiple layers, sometimes you need that exact frame-to-frame control. Other times, when it’s about getting the broader rhythm of your video right, thinking in seconds might be more intuitive. By having both these options at your fingertips, After Effects ensures you have the precision when you need it and the broad overview when that's more appropriate.
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