How to Calculate Hours Worked, Breaks and Pay From Start and End Times
Enter start, end and break to get hours per day, week and month, add an hourly rate to see pay, and handle shifts that cross midnight.
A timesheet or a freelancer's invoice needs accurate hours. Subtracting clock times by hand is error-prone, especially with breaks and night shifts.
Quick answer
Enter start time, end time and the break in minutes. You get hours worked per day, per week and per month. Add an hourly rate and the number of days to see pay. Shifts that cross midnight are handled.
How it works
Hours worked = (end − start) − break.
Example: 09:00 to 17:30 with a 30-minute break is 8 hours.
A night shift from 22:00 to 06:00 with a 45-minute break is 8 hours minus 45 minutes = 7 h 15 min (7.25 h).
Pay
Pay = hours worked × hourly rate × days.
7.25 h × 12 per hour × 5 days = 435 a week.
Steps
- Enter the start and end time.
- Enter the break.
- Enter the hourly rate and working days per week.
- Read the daily, weekly and monthly hours and pay.
Decimal hours for timesheets
Many payroll systems want decimals: 7 h 15 min = 7.25, 7 h 30 min = 7.5, 7 h 45 min = 7.75.
Tips
- Round according to your contract; some round to the nearest 15 minutes.
- Unpaid breaks are subtracted; paid breaks are not.
- Overtime may have a different rate; calculate it separately.
- Keep a daily log instead of reconstructing the week from memory.
