Work Hours Calculator
Calculate total work hours from start and end times with break deduction. Get weekly totals in hours:minutes and decimal hours ready for payroll processing.
Day
Start Time
End Time
Break (min)
$
Enter your values above to see the results.
Tips & Notes
- ✓Record start and end times in 24-hour format to eliminate AM/PM ambiguity. 07:30 and 16:00 are unambiguous; 7:30 and 4:00 without AM/PM context are not.
- ✓Convert to decimal hours before payroll multiplication: 7h 45m = 7.75 hours. Multiplying hours:minutes directly by a dollar rate is a common arithmetic error.
- ✓Annual salary to hourly rate: divide by 2,080 for standard 40-hour weeks. $52,000 / 2,080 = $25/hr exactly. For non-standard schedules use actual annual hours.
- ✓For overnight shifts, add 24 to the end time before subtracting. Start 10:00 PM (22:00), end 6:30 AM = 30:30 - 22:00 = 8h 30m.
- ✓FLSA requires payment for all hours actually worked — not just scheduled hours. Track actual time, especially for remote workers who may work outside normal hours.
Common Mistakes
- ✗Forgetting to deduct unpaid breaks from clock-in to clock-out span — 9 hours on the clock with a 30-minute unpaid lunch = 8.5 paid hours, not 9.
- ✗Reading decimal hours as clock time — 8.5 hours means 8 hours 30 minutes, not 8 hours 50 minutes. Multiply the decimal by 60 to get minutes.
- ✗Not tracking time for salaried non-exempt employees — if not properly classified as exempt under FLSA, their hours must be tracked for overtime purposes.
- ✗Using 2,080 annual hours for non-standard schedule employees — a 35-hour-per-week employee works 35 x 52 = 1,820 annual hours, not 2,080.
- ✗Forgetting compensable travel time — traveling between two work sites during the day is generally work time under FLSA, unlike commuting to and from home.
Work Hours Calculator Overview
A work hours calculator determines the total hours worked in any period from start and end times, handling break deductions, overnight shifts, and varying daily schedules to produce a payroll-ready total without the arithmetic errors that accumulate in manual calculations.
Daily work hours formula:
Work Hours = (End Time − Start Time) − Unpaid Break Duration
EX: Start 7:30 AM, End 4:00 PM, 30-min unpaid lunch → 16:00 − 07:30 = 8h 30m − 0h 30m = 8h 00m workedConverting minutes to decimal for payroll:
Decimal Hours = Hours + (Minutes ÷ 60) | EX: 7h 45m = 7 + (45÷60) = 7.75 decimal hoursStandard US work schedule reference:
| Schedule | Daily Hours | Weekly Hours | Annual Hours | FTE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full-time standard | 8h 00m | 40h | 2,080h | 1.0 |
| 4×10 compressed | 10h 00m | 40h | 2,080h | 1.0 |
| Part-time standard | 6h 00m | 30h | 1,560h | 0.75 |
| Half-time | 4h 00m | 20h | 1,040h | 0.50 |
| Minutes | Decimal | Minutes | Decimal |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 min | 0.25 | 45 min | 0.75 |
| 20 min | 0.333 | 50 min | 0.833 |
| 30 min | 0.50 | 60 min | 1.00 |
Frequently Asked Questions
For each day, subtract the start time from the end time to get raw hours, then deduct any unpaid break time. Example: Start 9:00 AM, End 5:30 PM = 8.5 raw hours. Deduct 30-minute unpaid lunch = 8.0 compensable hours. Sum all weekdays: 8.0 + 7.5 + 8.0 + 8.5 + 7.0 = 39.0 total hours for the week. Convert all times to decimal before arithmetic — 5:30 PM is 17.5 hours in 24-hour decimal. The calculator handles AM/PM conversion automatically.
Enter the start time as shown and the end time as the following day's time in the same format. Example: Monday night shift starts 10:00 PM, ends Tuesday 6:00 AM. Enter Start: 10:00 PM, End: 6:00 AM — the calculator detects that end is before start and adds 24 hours automatically, giving 8 hours worked. For manual calculation: convert to 24-hour time, if end < start add 24 to end. 22:00 to 06:00 → 06:00 + 24:00 − 22:00 = 8.0 hours.
Regular hours are paid at the standard rate. Overtime hours are paid at 1.5x (time and a half) for hours exceeding 40 per workweek under US federal law. Example: 45 hours worked at $20 per hour. Regular: 40 hours × $20 = $800. Overtime: 5 hours × $30 = $150. Total gross: $950. Some states add daily overtime thresholds — California requires 1.5x after 8 hours per day and 2x after 12 hours. Check state labor laws for the rules that apply to your location.
Only deduct unpaid breaks. Paid rest breaks (typically 10 to 15 minutes) count as work time and stay in your total. Unpaid meal breaks (typically 30 to 60 minutes) must be deducted from your compensable hours. Example: 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM = 9.0 hours on site. One 30-minute unpaid lunch: compensable = 8.5 hours. Two paid 15-minute breaks are already included in the 9.0 hours — do not subtract them. Verify which breaks your employer classifies as paid before calculating.
Multiply regular hours by your hourly rate, then add overtime separately. Example: 43 hours at $18 per hour. Regular 40 hours × $18 = $720. Overtime 3 hours × $27 (1.5x) = $81. Total gross = $801. For salaried workers calculating hourly equivalent: Annual salary ÷ 52 weeks ÷ weekly hours = hourly rate. $52,000 ÷ 52 ÷ 40 = $25.00 per hour. This matters if a salaried employee is non-exempt and eligible for overtime beyond their regular schedule.
Common causes: your employer's rounding policy (punches rounded to nearest 15 minutes), a different workweek start day (employers can define any 7-day period as the workweek), or different break deduction rules. Also check: overtime is calculated per workweek, not per pay period — a biweekly paycheck does not combine week 1 and week 2 hours for overtime. Each 7-day workweek is assessed independently. Compare your daily breakdown to the employer's records rather than just the weekly total.