How the hours are counted
The calculator takes the clock time from start to end, subtracts your break, and reports the result three ways: hours and minutes (for people), decimal hours (for timesheets and payroll) and total minutes. If the end time is at or before the start time, the shift is assumed to cross midnight and 24 hours are added automatically — 22:00 to 06:00 is 8 hours, no checkbox needed. Tick "overnight shift" only when the end time is on the next day but later on the clock, e.g. 09:00 today to 17:00 tomorrow (32 hours).
Worked example
Shift from 08:30 to 17:15 with a 45-minute lunch: the raw span is 8 hours 45 minutes (525 minutes); minus the 45-minute break leaves 8 hours 0 minutes worked — exactly 8.00 decimal hours, or 480 minutes. Repeated five days a week, that is a 40-hour week.
Decimal hours for payroll
Timesheets record time as decimal hours because pay is hourly-rate × hours. Minutes convert by dividing by 60: 15 minutes = 0.25, 20 minutes = 0.33, 45 minutes = 0.75. So a 7 hour 50 minute shift is 7.83 decimal hours, and at $18/hour it pays 7.83 × 18 = $140.94. The calculator rounds decimal hours to two places, the usual payroll precision.
Common uses
- Filling in weekly timesheets in decimal hours.
- Checking a payslip: shift length minus unpaid breaks.
- Planning rotas, including night shifts that cross midnight.