100% Free Timesheet Calculator

Calculate Your Work Hours & Pay

Instantly calculate total regular hours, overtime hours, and gross pay. The easiest way to fill out your weekly timesheet. This free online tool allows you to calculate work hours quickly and accurately. No sign-up or installation required.

The Ultimate Guide to Payroll and Timesheets

Whether you are an hourly employee verifying your paycheck, a manager calculating team budgets, or a freelancer generating an invoice, calculating work hours accurately is crucial. Even small mathematical errors can result in significant financial discrepancies over time.

Timesheet math can be deceptively tricky. You have to convert minutes to decimals, account for unpaid lunch breaks, navigate complex overtime laws, and handle overnight shifts that cross the midnight boundary. This guide breaks down everything you need to know about calculating your time and pay.

Time Format: Minutes vs. Decimals

One of the most common sources of payroll errors is confusing standard clock time (minutes) with decimal time. There are 60 minutes in an hour, but payroll systems operate on a base-10 decimal system.

For example, working 8 hours and 30 minutes does not equal 8.30 hours. Because 30 minutes is exactly half of an hour, it translates to 8.50 decimal hours.

Minutes	Decimal Equivalent	Calculation
15 minutes	0.25 hours	15 / 60 = 0.25
30 minutes	0.50 hours	30 / 60 = 0.50
45 minutes	0.75 hours	45 / 60 = 0.75

The Unpaid Break Trap

When calculating your daily hours, always ensure you deduct your unpaid meal periods. If you arrive at 9:00 AM and leave at 5:00 PM, you have been at the workplace for 8 hours. However, if you took a 30-minute unpaid lunch, your actual billable work time is 7.5 hours. Forgetting to deduct breaks is a common reason why employee calculations differ from official HR payroll outputs.

Understanding Overtime Rules

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in the United States, non-exempt employees must receive overtime pay for hours worked over 40 in a single workweek. The standard rate is "time and a half" (1.5 times the regular rate of pay).

The 40-Hour Rule: If you work 45 hours in a week at $20/hr, you receive 40 hours of regular pay ($800) and 5 hours of overtime pay at $30/hr ($150), totaling $950.
Daily Overtime: Some states, like California, require overtime to be paid for hours worked beyond 8 hours in a single day, regardless of the weekly total. Additionally, working more than 12 hours in a day may trigger "double time" (2.0x regular pay).
Global Variations: In parts of Canada, overtime triggers at 44 hours. In many European countries, maximum working hours are strictly capped. Always configure your calculator settings to match local legislation.

Expert Tip: Batching Timesheet Entry

If you work a highly consistent schedule (e.g., 9-to-5 every day), don't waste time manually entering your hours for every single day. Use the "Copy to all" feature in our calculator to instantly duplicate Monday's schedule across the entire week, then quickly toggle off Saturday and Sunday. This frictionless UX saves time and prevents manual data entry typos.

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about timesheets and payroll math.

How do I calculate my total work hours for the week?

To calculate total work hours, subtract your start time from your end time for each day, then subtract the duration of your unpaid lunch or breaks. Finally, add the daily totals together. Our calculator automates this by letting you input your times directly and handling the math instantly.

How is overtime pay calculated?

Overtime pay is typically calculated as 'time and a half' (1.5x your regular hourly rate) for any hours worked over a standard threshold, which is usually 40 hours in a single workweek in the United States. Our tool allows you to customize both the overtime multiplier and the threshold to match your local labor laws.

Are lunch breaks paid or unpaid?

In most jurisdictions, bona fide meal periods (typically 30 minutes or more where you are completely relieved of duties) are not considered work time and are therefore unpaid. Short breaks (usually 5 to 20 minutes) are typically counted as paid work time. Always check your local labor laws or company policy.