Hours calculator
Hours worked between two clock times, minus breaks, in decimal and h:mm.
Hours worked
8.00
09:00 → 17:30 with a 30 minute break
- Hours and minutes
- 8h 00m
- Gross pay
- $200.00
- Break
- 30 min
What this calculator gives you
The time between two clock times, minus any unpaid break, expressed three ways: decimal hours, hours and minutes, and gross pay at an hourly rate. It also handles shifts that run past midnight, which is where most simple time calculators quietly break.
Decimal hours versus hours and minutes
These are not the same number and confusing them is a classic payroll error.
- 8 hours 30 minutes = 8.50 decimal hours
- 8 hours 50 minutes = 8.83 decimal hours
Minutes are sixtieths, so you divide by 60, not by 100. A timesheet that says “8.50” means eight and a half hours; a clock that says “8:50” means ten to nine. The calculator shows both so the conversion is never ambiguous.
A worked example
Start 09:00, end 17:30, unpaid break 30 minutes.
- Total span: 8 hours 30 minutes = 510 minutes
- Minus the break: 480 minutes
- Decimal hours: 8.00
- At $25 an hour: $200.00 gross
Overnight and split shifts
A shift that starts at 22:00 and ends at 06:00 is eight hours. The calculator detects that the end time is earlier than the start and adds 24 hours, then subtracts the break as usual. A split shift — a few hours in the morning and a few in the evening — has to be entered as two separate calculations and added up, because the gap between them is unpaid by definition.
Breaks, and why the break field is unpaid by default
Most hourly work has one unpaid meal break and paid short rests. Entering the meal break is what makes the total match a payslip. If your break is paid, set it to zero; if you take two unpaid breaks, add them together and enter the total.
Rounding
Employers round in different places, and the difference is real. Rounding each punch to the nearest quarter hour, rounding the daily total, and rounding the weekly total can produce three different numbers for the same week. If your payslip is short by ten or fifteen minutes, rounding is the first thing to check, before assuming an error.
What the pay figure is and is not
It is gross pay: hours × rate. It ignores overtime multipliers, shift differentials, tips, and every deduction. Those rules are country-specific and often contractual, so this page does not pretend to model them. Use the hours total and apply your own rate structure if it is more complicated than a single hourly figure.
Frequently asked questions
Why is 30 minutes shown as 0.50 hours?
Payroll systems use decimal hours, where the minutes are divided by 60. Thirty minutes is 30 ÷ 60 = 0.50, fifteen minutes is 0.25, and forty-five minutes is 0.75. Writing "8.50" means eight and a half hours; writing "8:50" would mean ten minutes to nine.
How do overnight shifts work?
If the end time is earlier than the start time, the calculator assumes the shift crosses midnight and adds 24 hours. A shift from 22:00 to 06:00 is eight hours, not minus sixteen. The result line is labelled "overnight" so the assumption is visible.
Should the lunch break be subtracted?
Only if it is unpaid. Many jobs pay for short breaks but not for a meal break, and the contract decides. Enter 0 if the break is paid, or the full break length if it is not.
Does the pay figure include tax?
No. It is gross pay: hours multiplied by the hourly rate. Income tax, social security and pension contributions are deducted by the employer afterwards, and they depend on where you live, so a take-home figure here would be a guess.
Why does my employer's total differ by a few minutes?
Rounding rules. Some payroll systems round each punch to the nearest quarter hour, some round the daily total, and some round the weekly total. Rounding per punch can move a week by up to half an hour, which is why the order of rounding matters.
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