---
title: "Hours Calculator | Method Calculator"
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> Index of every page on this site: [llms.txt](https://methodcalculator.com/llms.txt)

# **Hours Calculator**

Enter the start time, end time and unpaid break for each day you worked. The time card totals your hours in hours and minutes and in decimal form, splits out overtime and estimates your gross pay. Leave a day blank if you did not work.

## **Result**

Total hours this week

**37:30**

<dl>

<dt>Decimal hours</dt>
<dd>**37.5**</dd>

<dt>Regular hours</dt>
<dd>37:30</dd>

<dt>Overtime hours</dt>
<dd>0:00</dd>

<dt>Gross pay</dt>
<dd>**$750.00**</dd>

<dt>Days worked</dt>
<dd>5 days</dd>

<dt>Average per day worked</dt>
<dd>7:30</dd>

<dt>Monday</dt>
<dd>7:30</dd>

<dt>Tuesday</dt>
<dd>7:30</dd>

<dt>Wednesday</dt>
<dd>7:30</dd>

<dt>Thursday</dt>
<dd>7:30</dd>

<dt>Friday</dt>
<dd>7:30</dd>

</dl>

**Time card**

| **Day** | **Start** | **End** | **Break** | **Hours (h:mm)** | **Decimal hours** |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monday | 09:00 | 17:00 | 30 min | 7:30 | 7.5 |
| Tuesday | 09:00 | 17:00 | 30 min | 7:30 | 7.5 |
| Wednesday | 09:00 | 17:00 | 30 min | 7:30 | 7.5 |
| Thursday | 09:00 | 17:00 | 30 min | 7:30 | 7.5 |
| Friday | 09:00 | 17:00 | 30 min | 7:30 | 7.5 |
| Saturday | — | — | — | 0:00 | 0 |
| Sunday | — | — | — | 0:00 | 0 |
| Week total |  |  |  | 37:30 | 37.5 |

## What this hours calculator does

An hours calculator, also called a time card or timesheet calculator, adds up the time you worked across a week. You enter when you clocked in, when you clocked out and how long your unpaid break was on each day, and it returns the total in hours and minutes, in decimal hours for payroll, and as gross pay once you add an hourly rate. Hourly employees use it to check a paycheck, freelancers use it to bill clients, and small employers use it to prepare payroll without a time-clock system.

## How hours worked are calculated

For each day the calculator applies one rule:

**Hours worked = end time − start time − unpaid break**

**Example:** Monday starts at 9:00 and ends at 17:00 with a 30-minute lunch. 17:00 − 9:00 = 8:00, and 8:00 − 0:30 = **7:30**, or 7.5 decimal hours. Repeating that for Tuesday to Friday gives 5 × 7:30 = **37:30**, which is 37.5 hours. At $20 an hour the gross pay is 37.5 × 20 = **$750**. Because 37.5 is under the 40-hour overtime threshold, all of it is paid at the regular rate.

When the end time is earlier than the start time, as on a night shift from 22:00 to 06:00, the calculator adds 24 hours before subtracting, so that shift counts as 8 hours on the day it began.

## Converting minutes to decimal hours

Payroll software multiplies hours by a rate, so minutes have to be expressed as a fraction of an hour: divide the minutes by 60. The common values are worth memorising.

| Minutes | Decimal hours | Minutes | Decimal hours |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 0:05 | 0.08 | 0:35 | 0.58 |
| 0:10 | 0.17 | 0:40 | 0.67 |
| 0:15 | 0.25 | 0:45 | 0.75 |
| 0:20 | 0.33 | 0:50 | 0.83 |
| 0:25 | 0.42 | 0:55 | 0.92 |
| 0:30 | 0.50 | 1:00 | 1.00 |

To go the other way, multiply the fractional part by 60: 7.75 hours is 7 hours and 0.75 × 60 = 45 minutes. The [time calculator](https://methodcalculator.com/time-calculator) does this conversion for any single duration.

## How to use this calculator

1. For each day you worked, enter the clock-in and clock-out times. Use the 24-hour clock or the AM/PM picker your browser shows.
2. Enter the length of any unpaid break in minutes. Leave it at 0 if your breaks are paid or you took none.
3. Clear both times on days you did not work; the row then counts as 0:00.
4. Type your hourly rate to see gross pay. Tick "Pay overtime" and adjust the weekly threshold and multiplier to match your contract.
5. Read the weekly total in h:mm and decimal form, and use the time card table to check each day or copy it into a timesheet.

## Overtime basics

In the United States the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires most hourly employees to be paid at least 1.5 times their regular rate for every hour over **40 in a workweek**. The rule applies per week, not per pay period, so 45 hours one week and 35 the next still earns 5 hours of overtime. A few states add daily overtime: California pays time-and-a-half after 8 hours in a day and double time after 12. Elsewhere the picture varies widely. The European Union caps the average working week at 48 hours but leaves overtime pay to national law and contracts, the United Kingdom has no statutory overtime rate at all, and Canadian thresholds are set by each province (often 40 or 44 hours). Check your employment contract or local labour rules and enter the matching threshold and multiplier above. To turn an hourly figure into annual pay, use the [salary calculator](https://methodcalculator.com/salary-calculator).

## Rounding rules and common mistakes

- **Quarter-hour rounding:** US regulations allow employers to round punches to the nearest 15 minutes (the "7-minute rule": 7 minutes or less rounds down, 8 or more rounds up) as long as it does not consistently favour the employer. This calculator uses exact minutes; round only if your employer does.
- **Only deduct unpaid breaks:** rest breaks under about 20 minutes are paid time under federal rules and should not be subtracted.
- **Do not mix formats:** 7:30 is 7.5 hours, not 7.3. Keep h:mm for people and decimal hours for payroll.
- **Overnight shifts:** enter the whole shift on the day it starts. Splitting it across two rows gives the same total but can distort daily-overtime checks.
- **Pre-shift work counts:** if you are required to be on site before your official start time, that time is normally compensable; clock in when you start working.

## **Frequently asked questions **

### **How do I calculate hours worked by hand?**

Subtract the start time from the end time, then subtract any unpaid break. For a 9:00 to 17:00 day with a 30-minute lunch, 17:00 minus 9:00 is 8 hours, and 8 hours minus 30 minutes is 7 hours 30 minutes. To get decimal hours for payroll, divide the minutes by 60: 30 ÷ 60 = 0.5, so the day is 7.5 hours.

### **What is the difference between 7:30 and 7.3 hours?**

7:30 means 7 hours and 30 minutes, which is 7.5 hours in decimal form. 7.3 hours is 7 hours and 18 minutes (0.3 × 60 = 18). Payroll systems multiply decimal hours by the hourly rate, so mixing the two formats is one of the most common timesheet errors.

### **How does the calculator handle night shifts?**

If the end time is earlier than the start time, the calculator assumes the shift ended the next morning. A shift entered as 22:00 to 06:00 therefore counts as 8 hours. Enter the whole shift on the day it started rather than splitting it across two rows.

### **When is overtime paid in the United States?**

Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, non-exempt employees must receive at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a single workweek. Some states go further: California, for example, also requires overtime after 8 hours in a day. Salaried exempt employees, many managers and some professions are excluded from the federal rule.

### **Are breaks paid or unpaid?**

Under US federal rules, short rest breaks of roughly 5 to 20 minutes count as paid work time, while a bona fide meal break of 30 minutes or more can be unpaid if you are fully relieved of duties. Only enter unpaid breaks in the break column so they are deducted from your hours.

## **Related calculators **

- [**Time Calculator**](https://methodcalculator.com/time-calculator)
- [**Salary Calculator**](https://methodcalculator.com/salary-calculator)
- [**Date Calculator**](https://methodcalculator.com/date-calculator)
- [**Military Time Converter**](https://methodcalculator.com/military-time-converter)

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