Time Calculator — Add, Subtract & Timesheet Hours

Time Calculator

Add time, subtract time, find the time between two clock times, and total a weekly timesheet, all in one place. This time calculator adds and subtracts durations in hours, minutes, and seconds, finds the duration between a start time and an end time in 12-hour or 24-hour form, converts any duration to decimal hours for payroll, and totals five timesheet rows with breaks, overtime, and an optional pay estimate. Everything updates instantly in your browser.

Clock arithmetic is hard by hand because minutes and seconds carry at sixty, not at one hundred. Adding 2 hours 45 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes is not 3 hours 75 minutes in finished form. It is 4 hours 15 minutes, after carrying one hour from the minutes. Subtracting across midnight, converting to decimal hours, and totaling a week of mixed shifts all add more chances to slip by an hour. This calculator converts every duration to total seconds first, does the arithmetic in seconds, and converts back, so carrying, borrowing, overnight spans, and negative results are all handled the same reliable way.

The defaults show a complete result the moment the page loads: 2 hours 30 minutes plus 1 hour 45 minutes is 4 hours 15 minutes, 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM with a 30-minute break is 8 hours, and a five-day timesheet of 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM days with a 30-minute break totals 37 hours 30 minutes. Change any field and all three results update together. The sections below explain duration arithmetic, clock time formats, overnight shifts, decimal hours, and timesheet rules, with worked examples for payroll, travel, study, and exercise.

Add or subtract durations

Time between two clock times

Weekly timesheet: Monday to Friday

How to Use the Time Calculator

All three parts of the calculator are on one page and all three update together. Use the part that matches your question, and ignore the others. The duration part adds or subtracts two durations. The time between part finds the span between two clock times. The timesheet part totals a five-day week.

  1. Add or subtract durations: enter hours, minutes, and seconds for the first duration, pick add or subtract, and enter the second duration. Minutes and seconds are capped at 59 in the fields, because 60 minutes is one hour. Hours can be any size, so totals over 24 hours work correctly.
  2. Find time between clock times: enter a start time and an end time with the time pickers, and enter any unpaid break in minutes. If the end time is earlier than the start time, the calculator counts it as the next day, which is the overnight rule. Switch to same day only if you want a negative result for an earlier end time instead.
  3. Total a timesheet: enter a start and end time for each weekday, and a break length that applies to each day. The calculator totals paid time after breaks, shows overtime over 40 hours, and estimates gross pay at the hourly rate you enter.
  4. Read decimal hours for payroll. Every result shows decimal hours alongside hours and minutes. Payroll systems, invoices, and time tracking tools almost always want decimal hours, so copy that number for billing and payroll.
  5. Check negative results carefully. Subtracting a larger duration from a smaller one gives a negative duration, shown with a minus sign. That is correct arithmetic, and it usually means the two durations were entered in the wrong order, or a deficit needs attention.

If a time field is blank, the calculator treats the missing duration as zero rather than failing, so a blank row in the timesheet counts as no time for that day. If a break is longer than the span, the paid time for that day is floored at zero in the timesheet, because paid time cannot be negative for a single day in that view, while the time between part shows the arithmetic result plainly so you can see the break problem.

Entering Times in 12-Hour and 24-Hour Form

The time pickers use your device setting, which may show 12-hour form with AM and PM or 24-hour form. Both forms mean the same times, and the calculator accepts the value the picker returns. In 12-hour form, 12:00 AM is midnight, the start of the day, and 12:00 PM is noon. In 24-hour form, midnight is 00:00, noon is 12:00, and 5:30 PM is 17:30. The most common entry error is typing 12:00 AM when noon is meant, or the reverse, so double-check any time that uses 12. The time.gov site shows official United States time in each time zone, which is a good check when you are unsure whether a time is AM or PM.

Reading Hours, Minutes, and Seconds Results

Results appear in three forms. The big line shows hours, minutes, and seconds with colons, such as 4:15:00, which can exceed 24 hours for long totals. The line below it shows days, hours, minutes, and seconds in words, such as 1 day, 2 hours, 30 minutes, 0 seconds, which is easier to read for multi-day spans. The table shows total seconds, total minutes, and decimal hours, which are the forms used for further math, for spreadsheets, and for payroll. Use the form that matches the next step in your work, and do not mix forms in one calculation.

Adding and Subtracting Durations

Duration arithmetic follows one rule: convert to a single unit, do the arithmetic, and convert back. The calculator converts to seconds, because seconds are the smallest unit shown, and every duration in hours, minutes, and seconds is an exact number of seconds. Adding 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours 30 minutes is 6,300 seconds plus 9,000 seconds, which is 15,300 seconds, which converts back to 4 hours 15 minutes. Subtracting works the same way, and the result can be negative, which the calculator shows with a minus sign rather than hiding it or clamping it to zero.

First durationOperationSecond durationResultDecimal hours
2h 30mAdd1h 45m4h 15m4.25 hours
8h 15mAdd7h 45m16h 0m16.00 hours
5h 0mSubtract2h 30m2h 30m2.50 hours
1h 30mSubtract2h 0m-0h 30m-0.50 hours
23h 30mAdd2h 0m25h 30m25.50 hours
0h 45m 30sAdd0h 20m 45s1h 6m 15s1.10 hours

Carrying and borrowing are where hand arithmetic fails. When minutes reach 60, carry one hour. When seconds reach 60, carry one minute. When subtracting and minutes are short, borrow 60 minutes from the hours. The seconds method avoids all of that by doing the arithmetic in one unit. If you must do it by hand, work from seconds upward: add seconds, carry to minutes, add minutes, carry to hours, and the answer will match the calculator.

  • Adding durations: add hours to hours, minutes to minutes, and seconds to seconds, then carry every 60 minutes into an hour and every 60 seconds into a minute.
  • Subtracting durations: subtract in seconds, or borrow 60 minutes when the minutes to subtract are larger than the minutes you have.
  • Multiplying a duration: multiply the total minutes or total seconds, then convert back. Three shifts of 1 hour 30 minutes are 270 minutes, or 4 hours 30 minutes.
  • Dividing a duration: divide the total seconds, then convert back. Splitting 2 hours evenly gives 1 hour each. Splitting 1 hour 30 minutes into three parts gives 30 minutes each.
  • Totals over 24 hours: keep counting hours past 24. A 25-hour total is not 1 hour. Only clock times wrap at 24 hours. Durations do not.

Durations and Clock Times Are Different Things

A duration is a length of time, such as 4 hours 15 minutes. A clock time is a point in time, such as 4:15 PM. Durations add and subtract freely and can exceed 24 hours. Clock times wrap around midnight and need a date to be unambiguous across days. Confusing the two is the most common time error after the AM and PM mix-up. If you are adding two lengths of time, use the duration part. If you are finding how long a shift lasted, use the time between part, which takes two clock times and returns a duration. If you are adding a duration to a clock time to find an end time, add the duration in seconds to the start time and wrap past midnight, which is what the time between part does in reverse when it counts an overnight span.

Seconds, Minutes, and Hours Conversions

The conversion factors are fixed: 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, 24 hours in a day, 7 days in a week. Those factors never change, unlike calendar months, which is why duration math is more reliable than date math. The table below gives the conversions used throughout this page and in most payroll and billing systems.

UnitEqualsIn secondsCommon use
1 minute60 seconds60Short tasks, breaks, exercise intervals
1 hour60 minutes3,600Shifts, classes, travel, billing
1 day24 hours86,400Multi-day totals, deadlines
1 week7 days, 168 hours604,800Timesheets, project plans
1 work week, 40 hours40 hours144,000Full-time payroll standard

Time Between Two Clock Times

The time between two clock times is the duration from the start time to the end time, on the same day unless the end time is earlier, in which case the overnight rule counts it as the next day. From 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM is 8 hours 30 minutes before any break. Subtract a 30-minute unpaid break and the paid time is 8 hours. From 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM is 8 hours, counted overnight, because the end time is earlier on the clock but later in time. From 11:20 AM to 12:40 PM is 1 hour 20 minutes. The calculator shows the clock span, the break, and the paid time separately, so each piece can be checked.

Start timeEnd timeClock spanBreakPaid time
9:00 AM5:30 PM8h 30m30m8h 0m
10:00 PM6:00 AM, next day8h 0m0m8h 0m
11:20 AM12:40 PM1h 20m0m1h 20m
8:00 AM4:00 PM8h 0m60m7h 0m
6:00 PM2:00 AM, next day8h 0m30m7h 30m
12:00 AM11:59 PM23h 59m0m23h 59m

Breaks deserve care. A paid break, such as a short rest break, is not subtracted. An unpaid meal break is subtracted. A break that is interrupted by work may count as paid time under wage rules, even if it was scheduled as unpaid. The calculator subtracts whatever break length you enter, and it labels the result as paid time after break, so the assumption is visible. For payroll, confirm with your employer or with the wage rules that apply whether a break is paid or unpaid, and whether it must be a minimum length to count as a meal break.

Overnight Shifts and Crossing Midnight

Overnight shifts cross midnight, and the end time on the clock is earlier than the start time. The calculator handles this by adding 24 hours to the span when the end time is earlier and the overnight setting is automatic. That rule works for shifts up to 24 hours long, which covers every normal shift. For a span longer than 24 hours, clock times alone are not enough, because the date matters, and you should use dates with times, or add the extra days as a duration. If you set the overnight setting to same day only, an earlier end time gives a negative span, which is useful for checking data entry errors, because a negative shift usually means a time was typed wrongly.

  • Night shift example: 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM is 8 hours, not negative 16 hours, because the end is the next day.
  • Evening to early morning: 6:00 PM to 2:00 AM is 8 hours, crossing midnight once.
  • Split shifts: calculate each part separately and add the durations, subtracting any unpaid gap between parts if the gap is not paid time.
  • On-call time: on-call hours may or may not count as paid time depending on the rules that apply. Calculate the clock span first, then apply the pay rule to it.

AM and PM Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

The 12-hour clock repeats every 12 hours, so 8:00 can mean 8:00 AM or 8:00 PM, and the two are twelve hours apart. A shift entered as 8:00 to 4:00 without AM and PM markers is ambiguous, and the calculator relies on the time picker to carry the marker. When you type times by hand, always write AM or PM, and when you read a result that looks twelve hours off, check the markers first. The 24-hour clock removes the ambiguity: 08:00 is morning, 16:00 is afternoon, 20:00 is evening, and 00:00 is midnight. Many payroll and scheduling systems prefer 24-hour form for exactly that reason, and the time pickers on this page accept the form your device uses.

Decimal Hours for Payroll and Billing

Decimal hours express a duration as a single number of hours with a decimal fraction. One hour 30 minutes is 1.50 hours. One hour 45 minutes is 1.75 hours. One hour 15 minutes is 1.25 hours. The fraction is minutes divided by 60, not minutes divided by 100, which is the mistake that produces wrong pay. Forty-five minutes is 0.75 hours, not 0.45 hours. Thirty minutes is 0.50 hours, not 0.30 hours. The calculator shows decimal hours to two places for every result, which matches the rounding most payroll systems use.

MinutesDecimal hoursMinutesDecimal hours
00.00300.50
50.08350.58
100.17400.67
150.25450.75
200.33500.83
250.42550.92

To convert by hand, divide the minutes by 60 and add the whole hours. For 7 hours 45 minutes, 45 divided by 60 is 0.75, so the decimal total is 7.75 hours. To convert back, multiply the decimal fraction by 60. For 7.75 hours, 0.75 times 60 is 45 minutes, so the time is 7 hours 45 minutes. To estimate pay, multiply decimal hours by the hourly rate. At 25 dollars per hour, 7.75 hours is 193.75 dollars. At 20 dollars per hour, 8.50 hours is 170.00 dollars. The timesheet part does that multiplication for you, and the salary calculator extends the same idea to weekly, monthly, and yearly pay.

Rounding Rules for Payroll

Payroll rounding rules vary by employer and by law, and the most common rules are rounding to the nearest quarter hour, to the nearest tenth of an hour, or to the nearest minute. Rounding to the nearest quarter hour turns 7 hours 38 minutes into 7.50 hours, because 38 minutes is closer to 45 than to 30, while rounding to the nearest tenth turns it into 7.60 hours. The calculator does not round the underlying seconds, and it shows decimal hours to two places, so you can apply your employer’s rounding rule to the exact result. Keep the exact result for your own records, and submit the rounded result in the form payroll asks for, and note which rounding you used if there is a place to note it.

Decimal Hours in Spreadsheets

Spreadsheets store times as fractions of a day, which is a different representation again. In a spreadsheet, 12:00 noon is 0.5, because it is half a day, and 6:00 PM is 0.75. Multiplying a spreadsheet time by 24 gives decimal hours. If you copy a duration from a spreadsheet into this calculator, convert it to hours and minutes first, or multiply by 24 to get decimal hours and then split the fraction into minutes. Mixing spreadsheet fractions with decimal hours without converting is a common source of pay errors that are off by a factor of 24, so check the units before you paste.

Weekly Timesheet Totals and Overtime

A timesheet totals paid time across a week, day by day, after breaks. The calculator totals Monday through Friday, with the same break length each day, and reports the weekly total, the average per day, and the overtime over 40 hours. Five eight-hour days total 40 hours exactly, with no overtime. Four ten-hour days also total 40 hours, with a different daily pattern. A week of 8, 7.5, 8, 8.5, and 6.75 hours totals 38.75 hours, with no overtime, because the total, not any single day, is what the 40-hour rule measures in most United States federal overtime practice for a workweek.

Week patternDaily paid hoursWeekly totalOvertime over 40
Five standard days8, 8, 8, 8, 840.00 hours0.00 hours
Four long days10, 10, 10, 10, 040.00 hours0.00 hours
Mixed week8, 7.5, 8, 8.5, 6.7538.75 hours0.00 hours
Overtime week9, 9, 9, 9, 945.00 hours5.00 hours
Short week8, 8, 8, 0, 024.00 hours0.00 hours

Overtime rules vary. Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, non-exempt employees are generally paid time and a half for hours over 40 in a workweek, but the workweek can start on any day, state rules can add daily overtime, and exempt employees are not covered by the same rule. The calculator estimates gross pay at the straight rate with no overtime uplift, and it labels that plainly, so the estimate is never mistaken for a payroll calculation. For an exact paycheck, apply the overtime rule that covers your job to the daily totals, or ask payroll to confirm the workweek start day and the overtime uplift. The percentage calculator can help you work out the overtime uplift as a share of straight pay once you know the uplift rate.

  • Record start and end times, not just totals. Start and end times can be audited. Totals alone cannot.
  • Record breaks separately. A break that is not recorded cannot be proven paid or unpaid later.
  • Total daily first, then weekly. Daily totals catch entry errors that a weekly total hides.
  • Check the 40-hour line weekly. A week that crosses 40 hours needs an overtime check, even if no single day looks long.
  • Keep the workweek start day fixed. Moving the start day changes which hours count as overtime, so the start day should be set by policy, not by convenience.

Timesheet Example: A Week With a Late Day

Monday through Thursday at 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM with a 30-minute break is 7.50 hours each, or 30 hours for four days. Friday at 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM with a 30-minute break is 9.50 hours. The weekly total is 39.50 hours, just under overtime. If Friday ran to 7:30 PM instead, the Friday total would be 10 hours, and the weekly total would be 40 hours exactly. Small changes on one day move the weekly total across the overtime line, which is why daily accuracy matters more than weekly rounding.

Part-Time, Split, and On-Call Schedules

Part-time schedules total the same way, with fewer days or shorter days. Split schedules need each part calculated separately and added, because the unpaid gap between parts is not paid time. On-call schedules need a rule for whether on-call hours count, and the calculator cannot decide that rule for you. Enter the hours that count as paid under your rule, total them, and keep a note of the rule. For a six-day or seven-day week, calculate the extra days in the duration part and add them to the five-day total, because the timesheet part covers Monday through Friday only by design.

Time Calculations for Travel, Study, and Exercise

Time arithmetic shows up far beyond payroll. Travelers add flight durations to departure times to find arrival times, with time zone changes handled separately. Students add study blocks to plan a week, with breaks between blocks. Runners and cyclists add lap times and split times to find total times and average paces. Cooks add cooking and resting times to plan a meal. In each case, the method is the same: convert to minutes or seconds, add or subtract, and convert back, carrying at sixty.

UseCalculationExampleResult
Flight arrivalDeparture plus flight duration10:00 AM plus 5h 30m3:30 PM, same zone
Study planThree blocks plus breaks50m plus 10m plus 50m plus 10m plus 50m2h 50m total
Race totalLap times added8m 30s plus 8m 15s plus 8m 45s25m 30s
Cooking planPrep plus cook plus rest20m plus 1h 10m plus 15m1h 45m
Commute weekDaily commute times five45m each way, five days7h 30m per week

For travel, remember that arrival time in the destination time zone is not departure time plus flight duration. It is departure time plus flight duration plus the time zone difference, with daylight saving time checked for both places on the travel date. The time calculator gives the duration part correctly. The zone part needs a world clock check, and the official time reference for United States zones is the time.gov site run from National Institute of Standards and Technology time services. For study and exercise, the duration part is the whole answer, and the calculator gives it directly.

Pace and Speed From Durations

Average pace is duration divided by distance, and average speed is distance divided by duration. A 5-kilometer run in 25 minutes 30 seconds is a pace of 5 minutes 6 seconds per kilometer. A 10-mile drive in 20 minutes is an average speed of 30 miles per hour. The time calculator gives the duration. The distance comes from your run, ride, or drive. The speed converter on this site converts the resulting speed between miles per hour, kilometers per hour, and other units, so a pace or speed calculated here can be expressed in the unit your training plan uses.

Time Zones, Daylight Saving, and Clock Changes

Clock times are local, and local time changes with time zones and with daylight saving time. The United States has four main time zones in the contiguous states: Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific, plus Alaska and Hawaii-Aleutian zones, and the territories add more. A 2:00 PM meeting in New York is 11:00 AM in Los Angeles. A flight that takes five hours from New York to Los Angeles lands at a clock time only two hours later than departure, because the flight gains three hours of zone difference. The time calculator does not apply time zones, because it works with durations and with clock times that are already in one zone, and any cross-zone result needs the zone difference added or subtracted after the duration.

  • Spring forward: on the second Sunday in March, 2:00 AM becomes 3:00 AM. A shift from 1:00 AM to 4:00 AM that morning is 2 hours of elapsed time, not 3, because the hour from 2:00 to 3:00 does not exist.
  • Fall back: on the first Sunday in November, 2:00 AM becomes 1:00 AM again. A shift from 12:00 midnight to 4:00 AM that morning is 5 hours of elapsed time, not 4, because the hour from 1:00 to 2:00 happens twice.
  • Time zone travel: a flight from New York to Chicago gains an hour on the clock, because Chicago is one hour behind. A flight from Chicago to New York loses an hour. The flight duration is the same either way.
  • Scheduling across zones: state the time zone with every meeting time. A 2:00 PM meeting is ambiguous without a zone when attendees are in different zones.

This calculator works in clock time without a date or a zone, which is correct for ordinary shifts on an ordinary day. For a shift that crosses a daylight saving change, subtract or add one hour from the clock difference to get elapsed time, and note the change on the timesheet. For a meeting across zones, convert one zone to the other first, then use the time between part to find the gap.

Coordinated Universal Time and Local Time

Coordinated Universal Time, abbreviated UTC, is the global time standard. Local times are UTC plus or minus an offset that depends on the zone and on whether daylight saving time is in effect. Eastern Time is UTC minus 5 hours in standard time and UTC minus 4 hours in daylight time. Pacific Time is UTC minus 8 hours in standard time and UTC minus 7 hours in daylight time. When a system logs a time in UTC, convert it to local time by applying the offset for the date, not the offset for today, because the offset changes twice a year.

Common Time Calculation Mistakes

Time mistakes follow a short list of patterns. Learning the list is the fastest way to avoid them, because each pattern produces a wrong answer that looks plausible until it is checked.

  • Treating minutes as hundredths. Forty-five minutes is 0.75 hours, not 0.45 hours. Always divide minutes by 60 for decimal hours.
  • Forgetting to carry at sixty. Seventy-five minutes is 1 hour 15 minutes, not 75 minutes in a finished answer, and not 1 hour 75 minutes. Carry 60 minutes into an hour.
  • Mixing 12:00 AM and 12:00 PM. Midnight is 12:00 AM. Noon is 12:00 PM. Swapping them shifts a result by twelve hours.
  • Forgetting the overnight rule. An end time earlier than the start time usually means the next day, not a negative span.
  • Subtracting breaks twice. If a break is already excluded from the end time, do not subtract it again in the break field.
  • Clamping totals at 24 hours. Durations can exceed 24 hours. Only clock times wrap at midnight.
  • Ignoring daylight saving changes. A shift across a clock change weekend is one hour different in elapsed time from its clock difference.
  • Rounding too early. Round at the end, after totaling, not after each day, or rounding errors accumulate across the week.

How to Check a Time Result Twice

Check every important time result by a second method. For a duration, check it in minutes as well as in hours and minutes. For a clock span, check it by adding the result to the start time and confirming the end time. For a timesheet, add the daily decimal hours by hand and compare with the calculator total. For a pay estimate, multiply the decimal hours by the rate by hand, or with the percentage calculator for a rate change. A result that passes two methods is almost certainly right, and a result that fails one of them has an error that is worth finding before the timesheet is submitted or the invoice is sent.

Time Calculator Accuracy and Limits

This calculator is exact for durations in hours, minutes, and seconds, for clock spans within a single day or across one midnight, for decimal hour conversion to two places, and for weekly totals across five days with a fixed break. It treats blank fields as zero, it carries minutes and seconds at sixty, and it never clamps a duration at 24 hours. The results are computed in your browser, and no times are sent to a server.

The limits are about dates, zones, and pay rules. The calculator does not know the date, so it cannot apply daylight saving changes, and it does not know your time zone. It does not know your employer’s rounding rule, workweek start day, or overtime uplift, and it does not know whether a break is paid or unpaid. For those, apply the rule that covers your job to the exact result this page gives you.

  • Exact: duration addition and subtraction, clock spans with the overnight rule, decimal hour conversion, and weekly totals with a fixed break.
  • Needs your rule: overtime uplift, rounding, workweek start day, and whether a break is paid or unpaid.
  • Not covered: dates, time zones, daylight saving changes, and legal pay interpretations for a specific job.

Time Math for Cooking, Fitness, and Study

Time math outside work follows the same rules as time math at work, with smaller numbers and more frequent use. A recipe that needs 20 minutes of prep, 45 minutes in the oven, and 10 minutes of rest needs 1 hour 15 minutes in total, and it must start 1 hour 15 minutes before serving time. A workout with a 10-minute warm-up, 30 minutes of main work, and a 10-minute cool-down is 50 minutes in total. A study session with three 50-minute blocks and two 10-minute breaks is 2 hours 50 minutes of elapsed time, but only 2 hours 30 minutes of study time, and the difference is the breaks.

For planning across days, pair the time result with a date result: the date difference calculator gives the gap between two dates, and the countdown timer ticks live toward a deadline, so a study plan can show both the hours per day and the days remaining. The time converter on this site converts a duration between seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, and months for the same plan.

  • Cooking: add prep, cook, and rest times, then work backward from the serving time to find the start time.
  • Fitness: add warm-up, main work, and cool-down, and keep the total under the time you actually have, not the time you wish you had.
  • Study: add study blocks and breaks separately, so the study total and the elapsed total are both visible.
  • Music practice: add practice blocks across the week, and keep a daily minimum, because daily practice beats a single long session.
  • Screen time: add daily screen blocks across the week, and compare the weekly total with a weekly limit you set for yourself.
  1. List each block of time with its length in minutes.
  2. Add the blocks in the duration part of the calculator, in minutes and hours.
  3. Read the total in hours and minutes, and the decimal total for comparison with a goal.
  4. Work backward from the finish time to find the start time, allowing for breaks.

Checking a Timesheet Before You Submit It

A timesheet submitted with an error can delay pay, trigger a correction, or create a record that is hard to fix later. Check it before you submit it, and keep a copy of what you submitted.

  • Each day: confirm the start time is AM or PM as intended, the end time is later, and the break is the unpaid length that applies.
  • Breaks: confirm the break was subtracted once, not twice, and that a paid break was not subtracted at all.
  • Weekly total: add the daily decimal hours by hand and compare with the calculator total.
  • Overtime: confirm whether the week crosses 40 hours, and note the overtime hours separately if it does.
  • Rate: confirm the hourly rate entered matches the rate on your pay agreement, before you read the pay estimate.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I add hours and minutes?

Enter the first duration in hours, minutes, and seconds, pick add, and enter the second duration. The calculator adds in seconds and carries at sixty, so 2 hours 30 minutes plus 1 hour 45 minutes is 4 hours 15 minutes. The decimal result, 4.25 hours, is shown alongside.

How do I calculate hours worked from clock in and out times?

Enter the clock in time as the start time, the clock out time as the end time, and the unpaid break in minutes. The calculator subtracts the break and shows the paid time. For a full week, use the timesheet part instead, with a start and end time for each day.

How do I convert minutes to decimal hours?

Divide the minutes by 60 and add the whole hours. Forty-five minutes is 0.75 hours, so 7 hours 45 minutes is 7.75 hours. Thirty minutes is 0.50 hours, so 7 hours 30 minutes is 7.50 hours. The minutes-to-decimal table above gives the common values.

How do I handle an overnight shift?

Enter the start time in the evening and the end time in the morning, and leave the overnight setting on auto. The calculator treats an end time earlier than the start time as the next day. For example, 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM is 8 hours, minus any break.

What if I subtract a larger time from a smaller time?

The duration result is negative, shown with a minus sign, such as -0h 30m. That is correct arithmetic, and it usually means the order of the two durations was swapped, or a break was entered that is longer than the span. Check the entries and swap them if needed.

How many hours are in a work week?

A standard full-time work week in the United States is 40 hours, usually five eight-hour days. The timesheet defaults on this page total 37.50 hours, because each day is 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM with a 30-minute unpaid break, which is 7.50 paid hours per day. A week with no unpaid break at the same hours would total 40 hours.

How do I total a timesheet with breaks?

Enter each day’s start and end times and the break length that applies each day. The calculator subtracts the break from each day, totals the paid time, and shows the average per day and any overtime over 40 hours. If a break is paid, enter zero for the break, because a paid break is not subtracted.

What is the difference between 1.50 hours and 1 hour 50 minutes?

They are different. One point five zero hours is 1 hour 30 minutes, because 0.50 times 60 is 30. One hour 50 minutes is 1.83 hours, because 50 divided by 60 is 0.83. The mistake is treating the minutes as hundredths, and it is the most common decimal-hours error.

Does the calculator account for daylight saving time?

No. It works in clock time without a date or a time zone, which is correct for ordinary shifts. A shift across a clock change weekend needs one hour added or subtracted, as explained in the time zones section above.

Can I use this calculator for billing and invoices?

Yes, for preparing the numbers. Use decimal hours for billing, multiply by your hourly rate, and round as your client or contract requires. Keep the exact result for your records, and note the rounding you used on the invoice if there is a place to note it.

Disclaimer: This calculator is for general information and planning only. It estimates pay at the straight rate with no overtime uplift, and it does not apply rounding, overtime, or tax rules. Check important results against your pay agreement, your employer’s rounding and overtime rules, and local labor law before you rely on them.