Overtime calculator
Enter the hours you worked this workweek, as a weekly total or day by day, with your hourly rate. Pick the federal rule or a state preset and the calculator splits your hours into regular, overtime and double time, applies the right multiplier to your regular rate, and estimates gross pay. Add a bonus or differential dollars and the regular rate adjusts the way the law requires.
How to use this calculator
- Choose Weekly total if you only know your hours for the week, or Per day to enter Monday through Sunday. Daily overtime and double time need per-day hours.
- Enter your hourly rate.
- Pick the overtime rule. Federal applies 1.5x after 40 hours in the workweek. California adds 1.5x after 8 hours in a day, 2x after 12, and the seventh-day rule.
- If you earned a nondiscretionary bonus or shift-differential dollars this week, enter the amount. The calculator spreads it over all hours to raise your regular rate before applying the overtime multiplier.
- Read the regular, overtime and double-time split, the regular rate used, and the gross estimate in the totals bar.
How overtime pay is calculated under federal law
The Fair Labor Standards Act requires overtime pay of at least one and one-half times your regular rate for every hour over 40 in a workweek (29 U.S.C. 207(a)). The workweek is a fixed, regularly recurring period of 168 hours, seven consecutive 24-hour periods, set by your employer (29 CFR 778.105). It does not have to be Monday to Sunday and it does not change with your pay schedule.
Overtime is counted per workweek, never across two weeks. On a biweekly paycheck, 45 hours in one week and 35 in the next is 5 hours of overtime, even though the two weeks total 80. There is no federal daily overtime: a 14-hour day in a 38-hour week earns no overtime under the FLSA.
The regular rate is not always your base rate
The overtime multiplier applies to the regular rate, which is all pay for employment in the workweek, divided by the hours worked, with a short list of exclusions (29 CFR 778.108 to 778.110). Nondiscretionary bonuses, such as attendance, production or shift bonuses promised in advance, and shift differentials must be included (29 CFR 778.207, 778.211). Discretionary bonuses, gifts and paid time off are excluded.
If you earn $20 an hour and a $100 nondiscretionary bonus in a 50-hour week, the regular rate is ($20 x 50 + $100) / 50 = $22, and the overtime rate is $33, not $30. This calculator makes that adjustment when you enter extra pay. If you work at two different rates in the same week, use the shift differential calculator, which applies the weighted-average method in 29 CFR 778.115.
State daily overtime rules
Some states require overtime before 40 hours. California pays 1.5x after 8 hours in a workday and after 40 in a workweek, 2x after 12 hours in a day, and on the seventh consecutive day of the workweek 1.5x for the first 8 hours and 2x beyond that (California Labor Code 510). Alaska and Nevada have daily overtime after 8 hours under their own conditions, and Colorado after 12 hours. The presets apply these thresholds and never count the same hour as both daily and weekly overtime.
States without a daily rule follow the federal 40-hour threshold. If your employer's policy is more generous than the law, the policy applies. This calculator covers the general rules, not industry exemptions, alternative workweek schedules or collective bargaining agreements.
Checking your overtime against a pay stub
Compare the overtime hours on your stub with the split here, then compare the overtime rate. The two most common errors are overtime computed on the base rate when a differential or bonus should have raised it, and daily overtime missing in a daily-rule state. If you find a gap, the PunchStamp app keeps every punch time-stamped and runs this check against each paycheck automatically.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate overtime pay?
Find your hours over 40 in the workweek, multiply your regular rate by 1.5 to get the overtime rate, and multiply that by the overtime hours. At $20 an hour, 45 hours is 40 x $20 plus 5 x $30, or $950. In states with daily overtime, hours over the daily threshold are overtime even if the week is under 40.
Is overtime calculated per day or per week?
Under federal law, per workweek only: hours over 40. California, Alaska, Nevada and Colorado add daily thresholds. Use the per-day entry mode and a state preset to see both applied together without double counting.
Does overtime apply on a biweekly pay period after 80 hours?
No. Overtime is measured in each workweek separately. 50 hours one week and 30 the next is 10 hours of overtime, even though the pay period totals 80 hours.
What is the regular rate of pay?
Your total straight-time pay for the workweek, including nondiscretionary bonuses and shift differentials, divided by total hours worked. The overtime multiplier applies to this rate (29 CFR 778.108). With a single hourly rate and no extra pay it equals your hourly rate.
Do I get overtime for working more than 8 hours in a day?
Not under federal law. California pays 1.5x after 8 hours in a day and 2x after 12. Alaska and Nevada have daily overtime after 8 hours in certain conditions, and Colorado after 12. Choose the matching preset.
Does a bonus change my overtime pay?
A nondiscretionary bonus, one promised in advance for attendance, production or similar, must be added to the regular rate for the weeks it covers, which raises the overtime rate. Enter it as extra pay here. Purely discretionary bonuses do not change the regular rate.
Is this calculator accurate for salaried employees?
It is built for hourly workers. Salaried non-exempt employees are owed overtime too, but the regular rate is derived from the salary and hours, and exempt employees are not owed overtime at all. Treat results as an estimate and check your classification.
Why does my employer's overtime number differ from this one?
Common reasons: a different workweek start day, rounding of punches, overtime computed on the base rate instead of the regular rate, breaks deducted that you worked through, or a state daily rule not applied. The time card calculator on this site lets you compare rounded and actual minutes.
Related calculators
This calculator produces estimates for your own records. It is not payroll, tax or legal advice. Overtime rules vary by state, industry and employer policy. Sources: U.S. Department of Labor, 29 CFR Parts 516, 778 and 785; state labor codes named above.