What this free timecard calculator does
A timecard calculator turns clock-in and clock-out punches into the numbers payroll actually needs: total hours, regular hours, overtime hours, double time and gross pay. You enter the times you started and stopped work, add any unpaid lunch or break minutes, and the calculator handles the rest — including overnight shifts, split shifts, multiple pay-period lengths, PTO and holidays, tips and bonus, and even a rough estimate of net pay.
This version is built around the four pay periods that cover most hourly work in the US and Canada: weekly (7 days), biweekly (14 days), semi-monthly (the 1st–15th or the 16th–end of the month) and monthly. It also supports the overtime rules you actually encounter — the federal 40-hour rule, the daily 8-hour rule used in Alaska and Nevada, the full California daily rule with double time and the seventh-day calculation, the Colorado 12-hour rule, or no overtime at all for exempt staff.
Every calculation runs in your browser. There is no account, no email capture and nothing sent to a server. Your timesheet saves automatically to this browser's local storage so a refresh or a closed tab will not wipe it.
Common time card answers at a glance
| Shift | Hours | Decimal | With 30-min lunch |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM | 8:00 | 8.00 | 7:30 / 7.50 |
| 9:00 AM – 5:30 PM | 8:30 | 8.50 | 8:00 / 8.00 |
| 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM | 8:30 | 8.50 | 8:00 / 8.00 |
| 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM | 9:00 | 9.00 | 8:30 / 8.50 |
| 7:00 AM – 3:30 PM | 8:30 | 8.50 | 8:00 / 8.00 |
| 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM | 4:00 | 4.00 | 3:30 / 3.50 |
| 10:00 PM – 6:30 AM (overnight) | 8:30 | 8.50 | 8:00 / 8.00 |
How to use the timecard calculator
- Choose your pay period and enter the first day. The calculator builds the right number of rows automatically — 7 for weekly, 14 for biweekly, 13–16 for semi-monthly, 28–31 for monthly.
- Enter clock-in and clock-out times. Click the clock icon for a picker with hour, minute and AM/PM grids. Or type directly:
9,9a,9:00,900,9:00 AM,21:00,9.30,noonandmidnightall work. Values normalize to your chosen display format on blur. - Add break minutes for each day. Unpaid — subtracted from the gross clock-in to clock-out span.
- Add split shifts by clicking + shift. Remove the last shift with ×.
- Mark non-working days. Click the day-type dot to cycle Work → PTO → Sick → Holiday → Unpaid. Click the day name to expand and enter PTO hours.
- Set pay and overtime rules. Enter hourly rate, currency, and overtime rule. Advanced options add rounding, time format, default break and PTO bank settings.
- Read your totals. Total, regular, overtime, double time and gross pay. The bar chart shows the shape of your week.
- Print, download or share. Print gives a signed timesheet. CSV exports to a spreadsheet. JSON saves everything. Summary copies as text. Share link encodes the whole state.
💡 Fast entry tip. Type 9 in the IN field and press Tab. It normalizes to 9:00 AM. Type 5 in the OUT field and press Tab — it normalizes to 5:00 PM (the calculator assumes morning-in, afternoon-out).
How timecard hours are calculated
Weekly regular hours = min(total minutes, 40 × 60) ÷ 60
Weekly overtime hours = max(0, total minutes − 40 × 60) ÷ 60
Gross pay = (regular hours × rate) + (OT hours × rate × OT multiplier)
Worked example. Mon–Fri, 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM, 30-minute lunch each day.
- Gross daily span: 510 minutes (8 h 30 min).
- Net daily: 510 − 30 = 480 = 8.0 hours.
- Weekly total: 5 × 480 = 2,400 min = 40.0 hours.
- At $25/hour: gross = $1,000.00.
Add Saturday 9:00 AM–1:00 PM (no lunch): +240 min = 44.0 total hours. Overtime = 4.0 h at 1.5×. Gross = $1,000 + (4 × $37.50) = $1,150.00.
Decimal hours vs hours and minutes
| Time | Decimal | Time | Decimal |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7:15 | 7.25 | 7:35 | 7.58 |
| 7:20 | 7.33 | 7:40 | 7.67 |
| 7:25 | 7.42 | 7:45 | 7.75 |
| 7:30 | 7.50 | 7:50 | 7.83 |
⚠ The single most common payroll error is reading 7:45 as 7.45 hours instead of 7.75 hours. At $20/hour that mistake underpays the employee by $6.00 on a single day — $30 a week, roughly $1,500 a year.
Overtime rules explained
| Rule | Overtime starts after | Double time | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal (FLSA) | 40 hours in a single workweek | None | Default in most US states |
| Daily 8-hour | 8 hours/day or 40/week | None | Alaska, Nevada, parts of other states |
| California | 8 h/day at 1.5×, 12 h/day at 2×, 7th consecutive day escalates | Yes | California |
| Colorado | 12 h/day or 40 h/week, whichever pays more | None | Colorado |
| None | — | — | Exempt salaried staff |
Overtime is per workweek, not per pay period. Biweekly periods cover two workweeks, each tested at 40 hours separately. Working 45 hours one week and 35 the next is 5 hours of overtime, not zero. The week subtotals table shows this for periods longer than 7 days.
Rounding and the 7-minute rule
Under 29 CFR § 785.48, employers may round to 5, 6 or 15 minutes provided the rounding is neutral over time. The 7-minute rule is quarter-hour rounding: 1–7 minutes past a quarter round down, 8–14 round up. Clocking in at 8:07 rounds to 8:00; at 8:08 rounds to 8:15. Rounding applies to each punch before the duration is computed and before break minutes are subtracted.
PTO, sick leave and holidays
PTO, sick and holiday hours are paid at the regular rate but do not count toward the 40-hour overtime threshold — matching how most payroll systems handle them. Marking PTO as hours worked can push an employee into overtime they're not actually owed.
Common mistakes
- Reading 7:45 as 7.45 hours. It's 7.75 decimal hours. Underpays by $6/day at $20/hour.
- Forgetting the break. 30 minutes unpaid = 2.5 hours a week = $62.50 at $25/hour.
- Applying overtime to the pay period instead of the workweek. 45 hours one week and 35 the next is still 5 hours OT.
- Not handling overnight shifts. 10 PM to 6 AM is 8 hours, not negative. Overnight is detected automatically.
- Splitting a split shift into one long span. 8–12 and 4–8 is 8 hours, not 12. Enter two blocks.
- Rounding inconsistently. Round both in and out, not just in. One-sided rounding is an FLSA violation.
- Counting PTO as hours worked. PTO is paid but not OT-eligible.
Who this timecard calculator is for
- Hourly employees verifying hours and pay before a paycheck arrives.
- Small business owners and managers totalling timesheets without a payroll platform.
- Freelancers and contractors billing clients on hourly contracts.
- Staffing and shift-based businesses verifying punches for temp or part-time staff.
- Restaurant, hospitality, healthcare, security, logistics workers with split and overnight schedules.
- HR and payroll students learning FLSA overtime and rounding rules.
- Tipped workers tracking base pay plus tips.
Limitations
- The tax estimate uses simple flat percentages. Not a substitute for real payroll withholding.
- Overtime rules cover the federal baseline and the most common state variants. Collective bargaining agreements may add more.
- Round-to-nearest on a 15-minute grid matches the 7-minute rule, but does not model every employer-specific policy.
- Split-shift scheduling premiums are not computed separately.
- The tool is a calculator, not payroll software. It does not file anything, generate official pay stubs, or connect to a bank.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate my time card hours?
For each day, subtract the clock-in time from the clock-out time, then subtract any unpaid break minutes. Add the daily totals together for the pay period. 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM is 8.5 hours gross, and after a 30-minute lunch the net is 8.0 hours.
How many hours is 9 to 5 with a 30-minute lunch?
9:00 AM to 5:00 PM is 8 hours. Subtracting a 30-minute unpaid lunch leaves 7.5 hours worked — 7 hours 30 minutes, or 7.50 decimal hours.
How do you convert minutes to decimal hours?
Divide the minutes by 60. 15 minutes is 0.25 hours, 30 minutes is 0.50, 45 minutes is 0.75, and 7:45 is 7.75 hours. Do not read 7:45 as 7.45 — that is a common payroll error that underpays the employee.
What is the 7-minute rule?
The 7-minute rule is the common name for rounding punch times to the nearest 15-minute increment. Under 29 CFR 785.48, an employer may round to the nearest 5 minutes, tenth of an hour (6 minutes) or quarter hour (15 minutes). With quarter-hour rounding, 1–7 minutes past the quarter round down and 8–14 round up. Rounding must be neutral over time and may not systematically underpay employees.
How is overtime calculated on a time card?
Under the federal FLSA, covered non-exempt employees earn 1.5× their regular rate for hours worked over 40 in a single workweek. Some states add daily overtime: California pays 1.5× after 8 hours in a day and 2× after 12 hours, Alaska pays 1.5× after 8 hours in a day or 40 in a week, and Colorado pays 1.5× after 12 hours in a day or 40 in a week, whichever pays more.
Is overtime calculated weekly or by pay period?
Under the FLSA overtime is always calculated on a fixed 7-day workweek, even if you are paid biweekly or semi-monthly. A biweekly paycheck covers two separate workweeks, and each is tested against the 40-hour threshold on its own.
How does California's seventh-day overtime rule work?
In California, if an employee works all seven days of a workweek, the first 8 hours on the seventh consecutive day are paid at 1.5× and any hours beyond 8 on that day are paid at 2×. The rule resets at the start of each new workweek.
Can I enter split shifts?
Yes. Click the + shift button next to any day to add a second or third block of clock-in and clock-out times. Each block is calculated separately and summed into the daily total.
How are overnight shifts handled?
If the clock-out time is earlier than the clock-in time, the calculator treats it as an overnight shift and adds 24 hours to the clock-out before computing the duration. A 10:00 PM to 6:30 AM shift therefore resolves to 8.5 hours.
Can I track PTO, sick leave and holidays?
Yes. Click the day-type dot to cycle Work → PTO → Sick → Holiday → Unpaid. Expand the day name to enter the paid hours separately. PTO hours are paid at the regular rate but do not count toward the overtime calculation.
Does the calculator save my data?
Yes, in your own browser only. Every change is written to localStorage so a refresh or a closed tab does not wipe the timesheet. Multiple timesheets can be saved and switched between. Nothing is uploaded or sent to a server.
Can I print or export the timesheet?
Yes. Print opens your browser's print dialog with a clean layout. Download CSV saves the rows and totals as a spreadsheet-ready file. Export JSON saves the whole timesheet for later re-import. Copy summary produces plain text. Share link encodes the whole timesheet into a URL that reproduces it.
Is this timecard calculator free?
Yes. The calculator is free to use and requires no account, email address or payment. All calculations run in your browser.
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Sources & methodology
- U.S. Department of Labor — Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): federal 40-hour overtime threshold and 1.5× regular-rate requirement.
- 29 CFR § 785.48 — Use of time clocks: regulatory basis for rounding punches to 5, 6 or 15 minutes.
- California Department of Industrial Relations — Overtime: daily 8-hour overtime, 12-hour double time, and the seventh-consecutive-day rule under Labor Code §510.
- Colorado Department of Labor and Employment — COMPS Order: 12-hour daily / 40-hour weekly overtime and "whichever pays more" test.
- Alaska Statute 23.10.060: daily overtime after 8 hours or weekly overtime after 40 hours.
- IRS Publication 15 — Employer's Tax Guide: context for the optional tax estimate panel and its limitations.