What this time card calculator does
This time card calculator adds up a week of clock-in and clock-out times and tells you how many hours you worked, how many of them are overtime and what that pays before tax. Each day takes up to two in/out pairs, so a punched lunch or a split shift fits on one row, plus a box for an unpaid break that was never punched. A shift that ends after midnight is handled automatically.
Every day shows its total in two forms: hours and minutes (8:15) and decimal hours (8.25), the number payroll multiplies by your rate. The week is then split into regular and overtime hours under the limits you choose, and you can copy a summary, download a CSV or print a signed-off time card. It works as an hours worked calculator for a single day too: fill in one row and ignore the rest.
How to use the calculator
- Pick the clock format. 12-hour shows an AM/PM button inside each time box; 24-hour accepts times such as 17:30. Switching later converts what you typed.
- Choose the day your week starts. Workweeks commonly run Sunday to Saturday or Monday to Sunday; use your employer's. The order matters for overtime, explained below.
- Choose punch rounding if your employer rounds: none, 5 minutes, 6 minutes (a tenth of an hour) or 15 minutes.
- Type the in and out times.
8,830,8.30and8:30all work, and in 12-hour mode you can addaorp. Without AM or PM, each time is read as the first match after the previous punch, so 8:00 then 4:30 means 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. Press the AM/PM button to change it. If no time on a row has AM or PM set, the first one is read as AM; the hours are the same for 10:00–6:30 either way, but the summary, CSV and printout then show that row without AM/PM rather than guess. - Add unpaid break minutes only for a break you did not punch out for.
- Set the overtime rules and your hourly rate. Weekly overtime after 40 hours is on by default; daily overtime is off until you switch it on.
- Read the week summary, then use Copy summary, Download CSV or Print time card. Copy Monday to Tue–Fri fills a regular schedule in one click.
Problems are flagged on the row instead of being guessed: an in time with no out time, a time that cannot exist such as 8:75, a second pair that starts before the first one ends, or a break longer than the shift. In 12-hour mode a second pair that only fits as the next day is flagged too: 8:00, 5:00, 12:00, 1:00 reads the 12:00 as midnight and counts 10:00, so the row asks you to check AM/PM, because 12:00 PM would overlap the first pair. Incomplete and invalid pairs count as zero until you fix them.
How the hours are added up
The calculator works in whole minutes and converts to decimal only at the end, which keeps totals exact:
pair minutes = out − in (add 1,440 if out is earlier than in)
day minutes = pair 1 + pair 2 − unpaid break
decimal = minutes ÷ 60
The example week loaded on this page, at $20.00 an hour with overtime after 40 hours at 1.5x:
| Day | Punches | Break | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | 8:00 AM–12:00 PM, 12:30 PM–4:30 PM | – | 8:00 |
| Tue | 8:00 AM–12:00 PM, 12:30 PM–5:15 PM | – | 8:45 |
| Wed | 7:45 AM–12:00 PM, 12:30 PM–4:30 PM | – | 8:15 |
| Thu | 8:00 AM–4:30 PM | 30 min | 8:00 |
| Fri | 8:00 AM–1:00 PM, 1:30 PM–6:00 PM | – | 9:30 |
The week comes to 2,550 minutes, which is 42:30, or 42.50 decimal hours. Regular hours stop at 40:00, so 2:30 is overtime, and all of it lands on Friday, the day the running total passes 40. Pay is 40 × $20.00 = $800.00 regular plus 2.5 × $20.00 × 1.5 = $75.00 overtime, for $875.00 gross.
Adding the daily decimals (8.00 + 8.75 + 8.25 + 8.00 + 9.50) gives the same answer here, but with odd minutes the rounded decimals drift. Three days of 8:13 show 8.22 each, which adds up to 24.66, while the exact total of 24:39 is 24.65 hours. That is why the week is converted once, from minutes.
Lunch breaks, split shifts and overnight shifts
A time card calculator with lunch has to know whether the lunch was punched. If you clocked out at 12:00 and back in at 12:30, use both pairs and leave the break box empty. If you punched once, from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, and the 30 minutes are deducted automatically, use one pair and type 30 as the break. Both give 8:00; entering the lunch both ways would take it off twice.
The second pair also covers split shifts, such as 6:00–10:00 AM and 4:00–8:00 PM for a restaurant worker, 8 hours in total.
Night shifts need no extra setting. Enter 10:00 PM in (type 10p, or switch that first punch to PM) and 6:30 out with a 30-minute break: the out time is earlier than the in time, so it is read as the next morning and the day shows 8:00. A shift is counted on the day it starts.
Time clock rounding: 5, 6 and 15 minutes
Many time clock systems round each punch to the nearest mark before adding. Rounding applies to each punch, never to the day total. One day punched at 7:53 AM, 12:04 PM, 12:36 PM and 4:38 PM:
| Rounding | Punches become | Day total | Decimal |
|---|---|---|---|
| None | 7:53, 12:04, 12:36, 4:38 | 8:13 | 8.22 |
| Nearest 5 minutes | 7:55, 12:05, 12:35, 4:40 | 8:15 | 8.25 |
| Nearest 6 minutes | 7:54, 12:06, 12:36, 4:36 | 8:12 | 8.20 |
| Nearest 15 minutes | 8:00, 12:00, 12:30, 4:45 | 8:15 | 8.25 |
Quarter-hour rounding is often called the 7-minute rule: up to 7 minutes past a quarter rounds down, 8 or more rounds up. In the U.S., 29 CFR 785.48(b) accepts rounding to the nearest 5 minutes, tenth or quarter hour when it averages out so employees are paid for all the time they work over time. Some states are stricter; California, for example, does not allow rounding of meal-break punches (Donohue v. AMN Services, 2021). A policy that only ever rounds down is a different matter. Choose the rule your employer actually uses.
How overtime is split without double counting
The calculator offers two limits. The weekly limit counts hours over 40 (or any number you type, such as 37.5 or 44) in the workweek. The daily limit counts hours over 8 (or your number) in one day.
With both on, daily overtime is taken first, and only each day's remaining regular hours count toward the weekly limit. Take five 9-hour days and a 5-hour Saturday, 50 hours in all, with both limits on:
- Daily overtime: 1 hour on each weekday, 5:00 in total.
- That leaves 45 regular hours, and 5 of them fall after the 40th hour: 5:00 of weekly overtime, all on Saturday.
- Total overtime 10:00, regular 40:00. Adding the two rules separately would claim 5 + 10 = 15 overtime hours, which counts the same hours twice.
In practice you get whichever total is larger: daily overtime or hours over the weekly limit, never both. Four 10-hour days show the difference. With the weekly rule alone, 40:00 has no overtime and pays $800.00 at $20.00 an hour. Add a daily 8-hour limit and 8:00 becomes overtime: $640.00 + $240.00 = $880.00.
Which rule applies is a legal question, not a math one. The federal U.S. baseline under the Fair Labor Standards Act is overtime at no less than 1.5 times the regular rate after 40 hours in a workweek for non-exempt employees. The workweek is a fixed, recurring 168-hour period the employer chooses (29 CFR 778.105), which is why the week start setting exists. States can add more: California, for example, also counts hours over 8 in a day and pays double time after 12, which this tool does not split out. Other countries set their own limits. Check your contract, your employer's policy or your local labor authority before relying on a figure.
Tips and common mistakes
- Writing 8:30 as 8.30. Eight and a half hours is 8:30 or 8.50, not 8.30. The minutes to decimal converter has a full chart.
- Deducting a paid break. U.S. federal rules treat short rest breaks of about 5 to 20 minutes as paid work time (29 CFR 785.18). Only real unpaid meal periods belong in the break box.
- Using the wrong week start. The weekly total is the same, but the day the overtime lands on, and the split across two pay weeks, can change.
- Comparing with a rounded pay stub. If payroll rounds punches and you do not, a few minutes a day can differ. Set the same rounding to compare.
- Forgetting overnight AM/PM. For a night shift, set the first punch to PM; the out time then reads as the next morning.
To turn a weekly total into yearly pay, the hourly to salary calculator takes it from there, and the pay raise calculator shows what a new rate does to every paycheck.
Privacy and limitations
The time card is calculated in your browser and stored in its local storage, on this device only, so the week is still there when you return. Nothing is uploaded, and Clear all days removes the entries.
The tool counts whole minutes and ignores seconds. It applies one overtime multiplier, does not calculate double time, seventh-day rules, shift differentials, tips or the extra pay that can change a regular rate, and does not estimate taxes. It is an estimate for checking your own records, not payroll, tax or legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate hours worked from clock-in and clock-out times?
Subtract the in time from the out time for each stretch you worked, add the stretches together and take off any unpaid break. Working in minutes avoids mistakes: 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM is 510 minutes, and a 30-minute unpaid lunch leaves 480 minutes, which is 8:00 or 8.00 hours. If the out time is earlier than the in time, the shift ended the next day, so add 24 hours before subtracting.
How do I fill in a time card with a lunch break?
If you clock out for lunch, enter the morning as the first in/out pair and the afternoon as the second: 8:00–12:00 and 12:30–4:30 make 8 hours. If your employer deducts lunch automatically and you only punch in and out once, enter 8:00–4:30 as one pair and 30 in the unpaid break box. Both give 8:00. Do not do both, or the lunch is taken off twice.
What is the 7-minute rule for time clocks?
It is the usual name for rounding punches to the nearest quarter hour. A punch 1 to 7 minutes past a quarter rounds down and 8 to 14 minutes past rounds up, so 8:07 becomes 8:00 and 8:08 becomes 8:15. U.S. federal rules (29 CFR 785.48(b)) accept rounding to the nearest 5 minutes, tenth or quarter hour if, over time, employees are paid for all the time they actually work. Some states are stricter; California, for example, does not allow rounding of meal-break punches.
When does overtime start?
Under the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act, non-exempt employees earn at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, which is a fixed, recurring 7-day period set by the employer. Some states add daily rules: California, for example, also pays overtime after 8 hours in a day. Other countries set their own limits. This is general information, so check your contract and local rules.
Are short breaks paid or unpaid?
Under U.S. federal rules, rest breaks of about 5 to 20 minutes count as hours worked and are paid (29 CFR 785.18). A genuine meal period, usually 30 minutes or more during which you are fully relieved of duty, does not count (29 CFR 785.19). So only enter breaks that are truly unpaid in the break box. State laws and other countries can differ, so follow your employer's policy.
How do I record a night shift that goes past midnight?
Type the times exactly as they happened, such as 10:00 PM in and 6:30 AM out. Because the out time is earlier than the in time, the calculator treats it as the next morning and counts 8 hours 30 minutes. The whole shift is counted on the day it started. If your workweek ends at midnight, your employer may split such a shift between two weeks.
Why does my total show 42:30 here but 42.50 on my pay stub?
They are the same amount written two ways. 42:30 means 42 hours and 30 minutes, while 42.50 is decimal hours, because 30 minutes is half an hour. Payroll multiplies decimal hours by the hourly rate, so the calculator shows both on every day and in the weekly total. Use the minutes to decimal converter for other values, such as 8:13 = 8.22 hours.
Is my time card saved, and who can see it?
It is saved only in this browser's local storage on this device, so the week is still there when you come back. Nothing is uploaded or sent to a server, and no account is needed. On a shared computer, use Clear all days or Reset everything when you finish. Download the CSV or print the card if you need a copy elsewhere.