What is work hours calculator?
A work hours calculator finds the length of a shift after the break and turns it into a number you can use for payroll or invoices.
It handles shifts that pass midnight, such as 10 pm to 6 am, and multiplies by the number of days and your hourly rate.
How to use the work hours calculator
- Enter the start and end time.
- Enter the break and the number of days.
- Add an hourly rate if you want the pay.
How the work hours calculator works
The end time minus the start time gives the shift length, adding 24 hours if it ends after midnight. The break is subtracted. Decimal hours equal minutes divided by 60. Pay equals decimal hours times the rate.
Worked example
Common uses of the work hours calculator
- Weekly timesheets.
- Freelance invoices.
- Shift planning.
- Checking payslips.
- Estimating monthly pay.
Tips and common mistakes
Use decimal hours on invoices, for example 7.5 for 7 hours 30 minutes.
Check how your employer rounds time to the nearest quarter hour.
Background: what to know before you rely on it
Timesheets cause many pay disputes because of small errors in breaks and rounding. Some employers round to the nearest quarter hour, some count exact minutes. Laws on breaks, overtime and night work differ by country, so use the calculator for planning and check your contract for the rules. For freelance work, record start and end times as you go, since memory is poor after a week, and bill in decimal hours to avoid confusion.
Private, free and fast
This tool runs entirely in your browser. What you type or choose is not uploaded to a server and is not saved after you close the page, which keeps it fast and private. It is free to use as often as you like. See more in all date and time tools, or browse the full list of tools.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate hours worked?
Subtract the start from the end and subtract breaks.
Does it handle night shifts?
Yes. A shift that ends before it starts is counted as passing midnight.
What is a decimal hour?
Minutes divided by 60. 30 minutes is 0.5.
Does it include overtime?
No. Multiply overtime hours by the overtime rate separately.
Related tools
Time Calculator
Enter two durations in days, hours, minutes and seconds, choose add or subtract and see the result plus...
Finance CalculatorsHourly to Salary Calculator
Multiply your hourly rate by hours per week and weeks per year to get your annual salary. At 40 hours...
Date and Time ToolsBusiness Days Calculator
Choose a start and an end date and your weekend days. The tool counts working days, weekend days and...
CalculatorsTip Calculator
Multiply the bill by the tip percentage to get the tip, add it to the bill, then divide by the number of...
Date and Time ToolsAge Calculator
An age calculator finds the time between your date of birth and a chosen date. Enter both dates to get...
Date and Time ToolsDate Difference Calculator
To find the number of days between two dates, subtract the earlier date from the later one. This...
Results are for information and education. For legal, financial, medical or security decisions, check with a qualified professional. For legal deadlines, confirm how your contract or court counts days.