The work-hours formula
Hours worked = (end time − start time − unpaid break minutes) ÷ 60. Convert the clock times into minutes first. If the shift ends the following day, add 1,440 minutes to the end time before subtracting the start time.
The weekly time card calculator does this for each day and adds the results. Use one-shift mode if you only need today's total.
Example 1: a daytime shift with lunch
You start at 8:00 am and finish at 4:30 pm. That is 8 hours 30 minutes, or 510 minutes. Subtract a 30-minute unpaid lunch: 510 − 30 = 480 minutes. Divide by 60 to get 8.00 paid hours.
Only subtract breaks you intend to exclude from paid time. The calculator cannot decide whether a particular break should be paid. If you record lunch-out and lunch-back punches, use the time card with lunch breaks instead of estimating the lunch duration.
Example 2: an overnight shift
You start at 10:00 pm and finish at 6:00 am the next morning. There are two hours before midnight and six after it: eight hours total. With a 30-minute unpaid break, the result is 7 hours 30 minutes, or 7.50 decimal hours.
Our calculators interpret an earlier finish time as the following day. Equal start and finish times count as zero hours, not a 24-hour shift. These tools use wall-clock times: they do not adjust for daylight-saving changes, travel between time zones, or shifts spanning more than one midnight.
Example 3: a weekly total
Suppose you work 8 hours on Monday, 7 hours 30 minutes on Tuesday, 8 hours on Wednesday, 6 hours 45 minutes on Thursday and 8 hours on Friday. Add the minutes: 480 + 450 + 480 + 405 + 480 = 2,295. That gives 38 hours 15 minutes, or 38.25 decimal hours.
A fortnightly total is the sum of both weeks. The biweekly calculator applies its user-entered overtime threshold to each week separately, then adds the pay estimates.
Convert minutes into decimal hours
Divide the minutes by 60 and add the whole hours. For example, 7 hours 45 minutes = 7 + 45 ÷ 60 = 7.75 hours. It is not 7.45 hours: the digits after the decimal are fractions of an hour, not clock minutes.
- 15 minutes = 0.25 hours
- 30 minutes = 0.50 hours
- 45 minutes = 0.75 hours
Use the hours-to-decimal converter or the minute conversion chart to check other values. Totals use the underlying minutes; displayed decimal results are rounded to two places.
Estimate gross pay
For a purely mathematical example, enter 42 hours, a $25 hourly rate, a 40-hour weekly threshold and a 1.5 multiplier. Regular pay is 40 × $25 = $1,000. Overtime pay is 2 × $25 × 1.5 = $75. Estimated gross pay is $1,075 before deductions.
Those settings are an example, not a rule for your job. Check your applicable agreement and enter your own values in the overtime calculator. Taxes, daily overtime, shift penalties and other adjustments are not included.
Keep a dated timesheet
- Select the Monday for the week you want to record.
- Enter the start, finish and unpaid break for each working day.
- For repeating shifts, choose a source day and tick the days that should receive it. Copying replaces the selected days; Undo restores them.
- Your edits save automatically in this browser. Use Saved weeks to reopen an earlier period.
- Download a CSV from the weekly calculator or print a copy before clearing browser data.
Saved weeks do not sync to other devices. Keep an exported copy if you need a lasting record. Read the privacy information and calculation assumptions for details.