> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.whalesync.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.whalesync.com/features/additional-features/delay-before-syncing.md).

# Delay before syncing

When you're syncing frequently changing data, multiple rapid updates to the same record can create unnecessary sync operations and potential conflicts.

For these cases, you can set a sync delay in Whalesync to wait a specified number of seconds before syncing changes, allowing multiple updates to the same record to be coalesced into a single sync operation.

### How it works

When you enable record sync delay, Whalesync will wait the specified number of seconds after detecting a change before syncing that record. If additional changes are made to the same record during this delay period, the timer resets and all changes are combined into a single sync operation.

### How to set record sync delay in table settings

1. Edit your Whalesync base
2. Select the desired table
3. Click the **Advanced settings** tab
4. Set the **Delay Before Syncing** field to your desired number of seconds (0-300)
5. Save changes

### Best practices

* Use delays of 5-30 seconds for frequently updated records
* Avoid delays longer than 60 seconds unless you have specific requirements
* Consider your use case - real-time dashboards may need shorter delays than batch processing workflows