Timesheet guides

Choose the part of your timecard you want to check. Each guide works through the numbers with an example you can follow by hand.

New research: How much does time clock rounding change your hours? We tested 692,640 shifts per rounding rule.

• How to calculate hours worked in a weekWork out each shift’s length, subtract unpaid breaks and add the week in minutes. Includes a five-day worked example and its decimal total.

  Short answer: Subtract each shift’s start from its finish, deduct unpaid breaks, then add the shifts in hours and minutes and convert to decimal once.

• How to calculate hours between two timesFind the hours and minutes between any two clock times, including spans that cross midnight, with the borrowing method and a decimal result.

  Short answer: Subtract the earlier time from the later one on a 24-hour clock, borrowing 60 minutes when needed; add 24 hours first if the end is after midnight.

• How to calculate overnight shift hoursCount a shift across midnight, subtract an unpaid break once and check what happens when the clocks change.

  Short answer: Add the time before midnight to the time after it, deduct the unpaid break once and record the shift on the date it started: 10 pm to 6 am is 8 hours.

• How to convert timesheet minutes to decimal hoursTurn hours and minutes into the decimal value on a timecard, with a full 1–60 minute chart and why a total rounded once can differ from its rows.

  Short answer: Divide the minutes by 60 and add the whole hours: 7 hours 45 minutes is 7.75 hours, and 30 minutes is 0.50.

• How to convert 24-hour (military) time to am and pmRead timeclock and payroll times written on a 24-hour clock. Includes a full hour-by-hour chart and the midnight rule for night shifts.

  Short answer: For hours 13 to 23, subtract 12 and add pm; 00:xx is 12:xx am and 12:xx is pm. 17:45 is 5:45 pm.

• Should lunch breaks be deducted from hours worked?Which breaks come off a timesheet: unpaid meal breaks versus paid rest breaks under US and UK rules, with a worked example and sources.

  Short answer: Deduct a lunch break only if it is unpaid and you were fully relieved from work; short paid rest breaks stay in your hours.

• How time clock rounding works (the 7-minute rule)See how 5-, 6- and 15-minute time clock rounding changes punches and shifts, why it should even out, and how to check whether it does for you.

  Short answer: Under the 7-minute rule a punch 1–7 minutes past a quarter hour rounds down and 8–14 minutes past rounds up, so each punch moves by up to 7 minutes.

• How many work hours are in a biweekly, semimonthly or monthly pay periodA 40-hour week gives 80 hours biweekly, 86.67 semimonthly and 173.33 a month on average. See why a real period can differ and how to count yours.

  Short answer: Count the scheduled days between the statement’s first and last dates and multiply by your daily hours; on a 40-hour week a biweekly period is always 80 hours.

• How to count overtime hours in a workweekCount the hours over 40 in each workweek, see why a biweekly total of 80 can still include overtime, and how daily overtime and UK rules differ.

  Short answer: Under US federal law, overtime hours are hours worked over 40 in a single fixed workweek; each workweek is counted on its own, never averaged.

• How many hours is part-time?Part-time has no single legal definition. Compare the US BLS, ACA and UK guidance thresholds and count your average weekly hours correctly.

  Short answer: There is no single legal number: US federal wage law does not define part-time, the BLS uses fewer than 35 hours a week, and the ACA treats 30 or more as full-time.

• How 4/10, 9/80 and 3/12 work schedules add upTotal the hours on 4/10, 9/80 and 3/12 compressed schedules, including clock times with lunch, and see where daily or weekly overtime can apply.

  Short answer: A 4/10 schedule is four 10-hour days, or 40 hours; a 9/80 is 80 hours over nine days in two weeks; a 3/12 is three 12-hour shifts, or 36 hours.

• How to compare timesheet hours with your payslipMatch the dates, pick the right hours on a payslip or pay stub, and express a difference in minutes you can trace back to a shift.

  Short answer: Subtract the payslip’s worked hours from your timesheet total for the same dates; the sign shows which record is higher.