diff --git a/app/client/modules/backups/components/create-schedule-form.tsx b/app/client/modules/backups/components/create-schedule-form.tsx
index 1e6f2edb..1d94ff17 100644
--- a/app/client/modules/backups/components/create-schedule-form.tsx
+++ b/app/client/modules/backups/components/create-schedule-form.tsx
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ const backupScheduleToFormValues = (schedule?: BackupSchedule): InternalFormValu
 		return undefined;
 	}
 
-	const cronValues = cronToFormValues(schedule.cronExpression);
+	const cronValues = cronToFormValues(schedule.cronExpression ?? "0 * * * *");
 
 	const patterns = schedule.includePatterns || [];
 	const isGlobPattern = (p: string) => /[*?[\]]/.test(p);
diff --git a/app/client/modules/backups/lib/cron-utils.ts b/app/client/modules/backups/lib/cron-utils.ts
index a7bcf2f8..71d881ea 100644
--- a/app/client/modules/backups/lib/cron-utils.ts
+++ b/app/client/modules/backups/lib/cron-utils.ts
@@ -77,6 +77,10 @@ const matchers: Matcher[] = [
 ];
 
 export const cronToFormValues = (cronExpression: string): CronFormValues => {
+	if (!cronExpression) {
+		return { frequency: "hourly" };
+	}
+
 	const normalized = cronExpression.trim().replace(/\s+/g, " ");
 	const parts = normalized.split(" ");