How the Hours Calculator Works
The Hours Calculator finds how much time passes between a start time and an end time, and adds up several blocks of time into one total. It is useful for a timesheet, a shift, or any time that you need to add up in hours and minutes.
What you enter
- One or more time blocks, each with a start time and an end time. Use as many blocks as you need, up to 20.
- An unpaid break (optional), in minutes, which is taken off the total.
- An hourly rate (optional), to work out the pay.
The steps
minutes of a block = end time - start time (in minutes from midnight) total minutes = sum of all the blocks - unpaid break hours = total minutes / 60 pay = hours x hourly rate
A time such as 13:30 is 13 x 60 + 30 = 810 minutes from midnight. The calculator works in minutes, so there are no rounding errors when it adds up the blocks. The decimal hours are only worked out at the end.
Worked example: two blocks
| Block | Calculation | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 08:00 to 12:00 | 720 - 480 minutes | 4 h 00 min (4 hrs) |
| 13:00 to 17:00 | 1020 - 780 minutes | 4 h 00 min (4 hrs) |
| Total | 240 + 240 minutes | 8 h 00 min (8 hrs) |
Each block is shown below. Each block of the chart is one hour of the day, from midnight to midnight. Gray is time off, and green is time worked.
00:00 12:00 24:00 ████████████████████████
Shifts that go past midnight
When the end time is earlier than the start time, the block is counted as ending on the next day. A shift from 22:00 to 06:00 is 22:00 to 24:00 (2 hours) plus 00:00 to 06:00 (6 hours), a total of 8 hours. The calculator adds 24 hours to the end time to find this: 06:00 + 24 h - 22:00 = 8 h.
00:00 12:00 24:00 ████████████████████████
If the start and the end are the same, it is unclear whether the block is 0 hours or 24 hours, so the calculator asks you to change one of them.
Example with a break and pay
A shift from 22:00 to 06:00 (8 hours), with an unpaid break of 30 minutes, at $15.50 an hour:
| Step | Result |
|---|---|
| Time before the break | 8 h 00 min |
| Unpaid break | 30 min |
| Time worked (480 - 30 minutes) | 7 h 30 min = 7.5 hrs |
| Pay (7.5 x $15.50) | $116.25 |
Minutes as decimal hours
Payroll often needs hours as a decimal, not as hours and minutes. Divide the minutes by 60:
| Minutes | Decimal hours | Minutes | Decimal hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 0.08 | 30 | 0.50 |
| 10 | 0.17 | 40 | 0.67 |
| 15 | 0.25 | 45 | 0.75 |
| 20 | 0.33 | 50 | 0.83 |
So 8 hours and 20 minutes is 8.33 hours, and not 8.20 hours.
Chart: a week of work
Each block is 15 minutes. Green days are 8 hours or less, and amber days are longer than 8 hours.
Mon ██████████████████████████████████ 8.5 hrs Tue ████████████████████████████████ 8 hrs Wed ████████████████████████████████████ 9 hrs Thu ██████████████████████████████ 7.5 hrs Fri ████████████████████████████████ 8 hrs Total: 41 hrs
Add the days by using one block for each day, and the total for the week is the sum of the days. The rules for overtime are not the same everywhere. Some places count it after 8 hours in a day, some after 40 hours in a week, and some use both. Check the rules that apply to you.
Tips
- Use the 24-hour clock in your head. The time fields follow the setting of your device, so they can show AM and PM. The calculator works the same with both.
- Use a separate block for each period. A morning and an afternoon shift are two blocks, and the lunch in between is not counted.
- Use the break box for a break inside a block. For example, a shift from 09:00 to 17:00 with a 30 minute lunch that you do not get paid for.
- Check the numbers. Some places round the time to the nearest 5, 10 or 15 minutes. This calculator does not round.
What this calculator does not include
- Overtime rates, taxes or other deductions from the pay.
- Time that runs across more than one night in a single block (a block is at most 24 hours).
- Changes of the clock in spring and autumn. A night shift on the day when the clocks change can be an hour longer or shorter.
This tool gives an estimate for general information. For pay, follow your contract and the rules of your employer.