Start with the two switches
Auto-checking has two controls on purpose. The Settings switch enables the feature for the account. The Workday button starts or stops the active session for the current work period.
That split lets you keep the feature configured without leaving it running while you are writing proposals, changing search URLs, or stepping away from the machine.
Know what max URLs means
Maximum auto-check URLs is the total number of watched Upwork searches that can be active for automation. The app caps this at three so the extension has a bounded surface area.
If this is set to three, you can have up to three active watched searches eligible for automatic checking. The extension still does not open all three at once.
Know what checks per run means
Checks per run is how many due URLs the extension may process each time its alarm fires. If three URLs are active but checks per run is one, the extension checks one due URL and leaves the rest for later alarms.
This is a pressure control. Lower values are more conservative because each run creates fewer Upwork page loads, and every checked URL is opened, read, posted back to the app, and closed before the next one starts.
Use interval and jitter together
Rotation interval is the base delay before the next automatic run. Jitter is required and adds a small random delay on top of that base so the schedule is not perfectly mechanical.
With a five-minute interval and three minutes of jitter, runs happen after roughly six to eight minutes. With a three-minute interval and five minutes of jitter, runs happen after roughly four to eight minutes.
Set business hours and lunch
Business hours define when unattended checks are allowed. The default is Monday through Friday, 9:00 to 17:00, and the app rejects windows longer than eight hours. You can include weekend days when they are real workdays.
Lunch is a pause inside that work window. When lunch is enabled, the extension does not open Upwork search pages during the lunch window. Lunch uses the same jitter setting, applied once per day, so the pause does not start at the exact same minute every day.
Keep checks sequential
The extension checks watched URLs sequentially. It opens one hidden Upwork tab, waits for the page, extracts job cards, posts the result to the app, closes the tab, waits a jittered delay if another URL remains in the same run, and only then moves to the next due URL.
Sequential checking is intentionally slower than parallel tabs. It is easier to reason about, easier to stop, and avoids creating several simultaneous Upwork page loads from the same browser profile.
Stop when the session changes
Use the Workday start or pause button when you are writing proposals, manually reviewing Upwork, troubleshooting, or leaving your desk. The extension will keep polling the app for settings, but it will not open Upwork search tabs while the active session is paused.
If repeated errors happen, the extension pauses automatic checking instead of continuing blindly. Restarting the Workday session clears that local pause after you have had a chance to inspect the problem.