UtilibyWritten by the Utiliby editorial team · Last updated October 12, 2026 · Rules and formulas reviewed October 2026
What is a time card calculator?
A time card calculator, also called a timesheet calculator or hours calculator, adds up the time a person worked across a pay period. You enter the start and end time for each day, subtract unpaid breaks and the tool gives total hours as hours and minutes and as decimal hours. A good one also applies rounding and overtime rules and turns hours into pay.
This free online time card calculator covers weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly, monthly and custom periods. It handles overnight shifts and split shifts, rounds time to 5, 6, 10, 15 or 30 minutes, applies common overtime rules, includes a paid leave column and prints a clean timesheet with signature lines. A second tab adds and subtracts durations and converts between decimal hours and hours:minutes. It runs in your browser, so the times and pay rate you enter stay on your device.
How to calculate hours on a time card
- Choose the pay period and its start date. The grid lists every day.
- Enter start and end times for each day you worked, or use Quick fill to copy the same times to chosen weekdays.
- Enter the unpaid break in minutes, or set an automatic deduction.
- Pick rounding and the overtime rule in the options if your employer uses them.
- Read the totals. The tiles show total, regular and overtime hours, days worked and gross pay if you entered a rate.
- Print, copy or download the timesheet.
The formula behind each day is simple: hours worked = end time minus start time minus unpaid break. If the end is earlier than the start, 24 hours are added first. Overtime is worked out afterwards from the daily and weekly totals.
Overtime rules: weekly, daily and seventh day
Overtime is pay at a higher rate for hours beyond a limit. The limit and the rate depend on where you work. The calculator supports the patterns most people ask about, and a custom rule for the rest.
| Rule | How it works |
|---|---|
| US federal (FLSA) | Non-exempt employees receive at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. |
| Daily overtime | Hours over a daily limit, often 8, are overtime even if the week is under 40. |
| California pattern | Daily over 8 at 1.5x, daily over 12 at 2x, weekly over 40 at 1.5x for hours not already overtime, and special seventh-consecutive-day premiums. |
| Custom | Choose weekly and daily limits, the multipliers and the seventh-day option. |
A workweek is a fixed, recurring period of seven days, such as Monday to Sunday, that can start on any day and hour. Overtime is counted inside each workweek, not across the pay period, so a biweekly period is split into two separate weeks. Choose the day your workweek starts in the options. Paid leave hours are paid at the regular rate and are not counted toward overtime thresholds in this calculator, which matches common practice but not every employer or country.
Rounding time: 5, 6, 10, 15 and 30 minutes
Many employers round clock times. A time clock might round each punch to the nearest quarter hour, or payroll might round the daily total. The common option is the nearest 15 minutes, often called the 7-minute rule: up to 7 minutes round down and 8 or more round up. Rounding to 6 minutes works with a tenth-of-an-hour system, where 6 minutes equals 0.1 hours.
Rounding is lawful in many places only if it is neutral over time, meaning it does not consistently cheat the worker of paid time. Policies that always round down, or rounding that is applied only when it benefits the employer, can create wage claims. Use the direction option to compare the effect of nearest, up and down on the same week, and compare the daily and per-punch methods. The difference is usually a few minutes a day.
Minutes to decimal hours: the conversion most people need
Payroll systems often store time as decimal hours, so 7 hours 45 minutes becomes 7.75. To convert, divide minutes by 60. The table below lists common values, and the tool in the third tab converts any number both ways.
| Minutes | Decimal hours | Minutes | Decimal hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 0.083 | 35 | 0.583 |
| 10 | 0.167 | 40 | 0.667 |
| 15 | 0.25 | 45 | 0.75 |
| 20 | 0.333 | 50 | 0.833 |
| 25 | 0.417 | 55 | 0.917 |
| 30 | 0.5 | 60 | 1.0 |
A common mistake is to type 7.45 for 7 hours 45 minutes. That is 7 hours 27 minutes. Always convert minutes to a fraction of an hour before you multiply by a pay rate.
Breaks, overnight shifts and split shifts
Unpaid breaks. A meal break is usually unpaid when the worker is fully relieved of duty. Enter it in minutes per day or let the tool deduct a standard break from shifts above a length. Short rest breaks are often paid, so do not deduct them unless your employer does.
Overnight shifts. Enter the real start and end times. A night shift from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. is 8 hours, and the hours are counted on the day the shift starts, which is how most employers assign them for weekly overtime. Some jurisdictions assign hours differently, so check local rules.
Split shifts. Some days have two work periods with a long gap. Turn on the second shift columns and enter both. The unpaid gap between them is not counted unless you enter it as part of a shift. Some places require extra pay for split shifts, which this tool does not add.
Weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly and monthly pay periods
A weekly period has 7 days, and a biweekly period has 14 and gives 26 pay days a year. A semi-monthly period runs from the 1st to the 15th and the 16th to the end of the month, giving 24 pay days. A monthly period is a calendar month. The calculator builds the right number of rows for each type, and the Previous and Next buttons move through periods while keeping your entries.
Because semi-monthly and monthly periods do not match seven-day weeks, the weekly summary tab groups days into workweeks that may straddle two periods. Where a workweek starts before the period begins, the calculator counts only the hours you entered, and it tells you so.
Turning hours into pay
Enter an hourly rate and a currency symbol to see gross pay. Regular and leave hours are paid at the rate. Overtime hours are paid at the rate times the overtime multiplier, usually 1.5. Double-time hours are paid at the double-time multiplier, usually 2. The weekly summary shows the pay for each workweek and the period total.
Gross pay is before tax, social insurance, pension and other deductions, and it does not include tips, commission, shift differentials, bonuses or other premiums that may count toward the regular rate for overtime. For official pay, use payroll software or a payroll professional.
Adding hours and minutes
Sometimes you only need to add a list of durations: the hours from several jobs, a week of project time or the length of several recordings. The adder reads values like 8:30, 1h 20m, 45m and 2.5, handles minus signs for subtraction and returns the total as hours:minutes, decimal hours and days. The time-between tool finds the duration between two clock times, including past midnight, with an optional break.
Who uses a time card calculator
- Employees checking that their payslip matches the hours they worked.
- Small business owners and managers preparing timesheets for a team without software.
- Freelancers and contractors turning hours into an invoice.
- Shift workers tracking nights, weekends and overtime.
- Students and part-time workers keeping a record for a stipend or a work-hours limit.
- Bookkeepers and payroll clerks for quick checks and conversions.
Common time card mistakes
- Using decimal minutes. 7.45 is not 7 hours 45 minutes.
- Forgetting the break. A 30-minute lunch adds half an hour of pay by mistake.
- Mixing AM and PM. Use 24-hour times if in doubt.
- Counting overtime over the pay period. Overtime is counted per workweek.
- Rounding in one direction. Always rounding down can be unlawful.
- Treating overnight hours as the next day by habit. Check how your employer assigns them.
- Forgetting unpaid leave. Only paid leave belongs in the paid leave column.
Tips for accurate timesheets
- Record start and end times at the time, not at the end of the week.
- Keep a copy of the signed timesheet until the pay is confirmed.
- Compare the printed timesheet with the payslip each pay period.
- Ask for the written overtime and rounding policy.
- Keep the same workweek definition from period to period.
Privacy
The calculator runs entirely in your browser. The times, name and pay rate you enter are not sent to a server and are not stored on your device. Reloading the page clears everything. Files you download are created locally on your device.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate hours worked on a time card?
For each day, subtract the start time from the end time, then subtract any unpaid break. Add the days together. For example, 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. is 8 hours 30 minutes, and with a 30-minute unpaid break it is 8 hours. The calculator does this for every day and totals the period.
How do I calculate overnight shifts?
Enter the end time as the clock time you finish, even if it is after midnight. If the end time is earlier than the start time, the calculator treats the shift as running into the next day. A shift from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. is 8 hours.
How do I convert minutes to decimal hours?
Divide the minutes by 60. Thirty minutes is 0.5 hours, 15 minutes is 0.25, 45 minutes is 0.75 and 20 minutes is 0.333. For hours and minutes, add the whole hours: 7 hours 45 minutes is 7.75 hours.
How do I convert decimal hours to hours and minutes?
Keep the whole number as hours and multiply the decimal part by 60. For 7.75 hours, 0.75 times 60 is 45 minutes, so the answer is 7 hours 45 minutes. The converter in the third tab does it for you.
How is weekly overtime calculated?
Under a weekly rule, add up all hours in the workweek. Hours beyond the threshold, commonly 40 in the United States, are overtime and are usually paid at 1.5 times the regular rate. The calculator groups days into workweeks and shows regular and overtime hours separately.
Does overtime depend on the day or the week?
It can be either or both. Federal law in the United States uses a weekly rule, while some states, such as California, also apply daily rules and a seventh-day rule. Many countries use different limits. Pick the rule that matches your situation or build a custom rule.
What is the California overtime option?
It applies the commonly described California pattern: more than 8 hours in a day at 1.5 times, more than 12 hours in a day at 2 times, more than 40 hours in a week at 1.5 times for hours not already counted as daily overtime, and on the seventh consecutive day of work the first 8 hours at 1.5 times and further hours at 2 times. Exemptions and special rules exist, so confirm with official guidance.
What does rounding to the nearest quarter hour mean?
Times are adjusted to the closest 15-minute mark. With the 7-minute rule, 1 to 7 minutes past a quarter hour round down and 8 to 14 minutes round up. You can apply rounding to the daily total or to each clock-in and clock-out.
Should rounding apply to each punch or the daily total?
Both are used. Rounding each punch is how many time clocks work. Rounding the daily total is simpler and often closer to the real time worked. Your employer's policy decides, and in some places the policy must not favour the employer over time.
What is the difference between hours worked and hours paid?
Hours worked is the time on the job. Hours paid can include paid breaks, paid leave and holiday pay. This calculator counts leave hours separately, pays them at the regular rate and does not count them toward overtime thresholds.
How do I deduct an unpaid lunch break?
Type the break length in minutes in the Break column for each day, or set an automatic deduction in the options, for example 30 minutes for shifts of six hours or more. The break is subtracted from the shift length.
Can I enter split shifts?
Yes. Tick Show second shift columns and enter the second start and end time. The two shifts are added together and the calculator warns you if they overlap.
Can I calculate a biweekly or semi-monthly timesheet?
Yes. Choose Biweekly for 14 days, Semi-monthly for the 1st to 15th or 16th to the end of the month, Monthly for a calendar month, or Custom for any number of days up to 62.
How do I work out gross pay from hours?
Multiply regular hours by the hourly rate, add overtime hours multiplied by the rate and the overtime multiplier, and add any double time. Enter your hourly rate and the calculator shows gross pay for the period before tax and deductions.
What is an hours calculator for adding times?
It adds and subtracts durations such as 8:30, 7:45 and 1h 20m to give a total in hours and minutes, decimal hours and days. The Add hours and convert tab does this, so you can total hours from any source.
How do I print or save my timesheet?
Press Print / save timesheet as PDF. Only the timesheet is printed, with the employee, period, daily times, totals and signature lines. The rest of the page is left out.
Can I download my time card as a spreadsheet?
Yes. Download CSV creates a file you can open in Excel, Google Sheets or Numbers with every day's times, hours and overtime.
Does the calculator work for hourly employees and freelancers?
Yes. It works for anyone who tracks time by clock times: employees, contractors, freelancers and volunteers. It is also useful for checking a payslip or an invoice.
Does the calculator handle daylight saving time changes?
It works with clock times and does not adjust for the clock change. On a night when clocks move, a shift that crosses the change is an hour longer or shorter in real time, so adjust the end time or break if your employer pays the real elapsed time.
Is my time card data stored?
No. Everything is calculated in your browser. The times and pay rate you enter are not sent to a server or saved, and reloading the page clears them.
Is this time card calculator free?
Yes. It is free to use online with no account or limit on the number of timesheets.
Is the result accurate enough for payroll?
It is accurate for the rules it applies, but payroll rules vary and have exceptions. Use it for estimates and checking, and rely on your payroll system or professional for official figures.
Sources and further reading
- U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division: Fair Labor Standards Act overtime pay requirements and the definition of a workweek.
- U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet 53: The Fair Labor Standards Act and rounding of employee work hours (29 CFR 785.48).
- California Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement: overtime and double time rules and the seventh consecutive day of work.
- UK Government (GOV.UK): working time rules, rest breaks and the Working Time Regulations 1998.
- European Union, Working Time Directive 2003/88/EC.
Sources were consulted in October 2026. Standards and rules can change, so always check the official page for your situation.