This time card calculator turns a week of clock-in and clock-out times into payroll-ready totals. Type one line per day — "9:00 AM - 5:30 PM" or 24-hour "9:00-17:30" both work — and add unpaid break minutes after a comma. The calculator subtracts breaks, totals the week, splits hours into regular and overtime, and computes gross pay at time-and-a-half.
Every line is validated individually, so a typo is flagged with its line number instead of silently corrupting the total. A daily breakdown table shows exactly how each day contributed, making it easy to reconcile against a punch clock or an employer's timesheet.
How Timesheet Hours and Overtime Are Calculated
Each day is computed as clock-out minus clock-in, minus the unpaid break, with shifts that end before they start treated as crossing midnight. Daily results are summed into the weekly total, which is then split at the overtime threshold:
- Regular hours = the lesser of total hours and the threshold (default 40)
- Overtime hours = anything above the threshold
- Gross pay = regular hours × rate + overtime hours × rate × 1.5
The 40-hour weekly threshold and the 1.5× premium come from the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which covers most non-exempt employees. If your state or contract uses a different trigger — some use 44 hours, some union contracts use 37.5 — just change the threshold field.
Timesheet Rules Worth Knowing
A few practical rules when preparing a time card for payroll:
- Only unpaid breaks should be deducted; short paid rest breaks (5–20 minutes) legally count as hours worked in the U.S.
- Overtime is computed per workweek — a fixed, recurring 168-hour period. Averaging two weeks (30 hours, then 50) does not cancel out the 10 overtime hours in week two
- California and a few other states add daily overtime: over 8 hours in a day earns 1.5×, over 12 earns 2×, regardless of the weekly total
- Quarter-hour rounding is legal only if it is neutral over time; keeping exact minutes, as this calculator does, is always safe
- Salaried non-exempt employees still accrue overtime based on hours actually worked
Example: A 41.5-Hour Week at $20/hour
Consider this week: Monday through Wednesday run 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM with 30-minute lunches (8 hours each), Thursday runs 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM with a 60-minute lunch (8 hours), and Friday is a long 8:00 AM to 5:30 PM day with just a 30-minute break (9 hours). The daily breakdown sums to 41.5 hours.
At a $20.00 rate with the standard 40-hour threshold, the split is 40 regular hours and 1.5 overtime hours. Regular pay is 40 × $20 = $800.00; overtime pay is 1.5 × ($20 × 1.5) = $45.00; gross pay is $845.00 before taxes.
Note the leverage: each hour past 40 is worth $30 instead of $20 — a 50% premium — which is exactly why payroll departments and employees alike double-check time cards near the threshold.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I calculate my time card hours?
For each day, subtract the clock-in time from the clock-out time and remove unpaid breaks, then add the days together. For example, 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM with a 30-minute lunch is 8 hours; five such days total 40. Enter each day on its own line above and the calculator totals and validates everything.
How is overtime calculated on a weekly time card?
Under the FLSA, hours over 40 in a single workweek are paid at 1.5 times the regular rate. A 46-hour week at $18/hour pays 40 × $18 = $720 regular plus 6 × $27 = $162 overtime, $882 gross. Some states, like California, additionally require daily overtime past 8 hours.
What time formats does the calculator accept?
Each line accepts 12-hour times like "9:00 AM - 5:30 PM" or 24-hour times like "9:00-17:30", separated by a hyphen. An optional comma-separated number at the end is the unpaid break in minutes, e.g. "8:30 AM - 4:30 PM, 45". Blank lines are ignored, and malformed lines are reported by line number.
Should lunch breaks be deducted from a time card?
Deduct a meal break only if it is unpaid and you were fully relieved of duties — typically 30 minutes or longer. Short rest breaks of 5 to 20 minutes are considered paid working time under U.S. federal rules and should stay in your hours, so do not list them in the break column.
How do I handle an overnight shift on the time card?
Enter it normally — if the clock-out time is earlier than the clock-in time, the calculator assumes the shift crossed midnight. For example, "11:00 PM - 7:00 AM, 30" records 7.5 hours. For payroll purposes, employers typically credit the full shift to the day it started.