Overtime Calculator guide
Enter your hourly rate and the hours you worked each day. Get regular, time-and-a-half and double-time hours plus gross pay under federal FLSA or California rules, including bonuses that raise your overtime rate.
The federal rule: 1.5x after 40 hours, full stop
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, a non-exempt employee earns at least one and a half times their regular rate for every hour worked past 40 in a workweek. That is the whole federal rule. There is no federal daily overtime, no overtime for weekends or holidays, and no double time. A 12-hour Saturday pays straight time if the week still totals 40 hours or less.
The workweek is a fixed, recurring block of 168 hours (seven consecutive 24-hour periods) that your employer sets. It does not have to be Sunday to Saturday, but it cannot be shuffled to dodge overtime, and two weeks cannot be averaged. Forty-five hours one week and 35 the next is 5 hours of overtime, even though the pay period averages 40.
California adds three extra triggers
California is the state people get wrong most often. On top of the 40-hour weekly rule, the Labor Code requires 1.5x for hours past 8 in a single workday, 2x for hours past 12 in a workday, and a special seventh-day rule: if you work all seven days of the workweek, the first 8 hours on day seven are paid at 1.5x and anything past 8 on that day is paid at 2x.
The subtle part is how daily and weekly overtime interact. Hours already paid as daily overtime do not count again toward the weekly 40. Only straight-time hours are added up for the weekly test. This calculator does exactly that, so it never double-pays (or under-pays) a long day inside a long week.
Worked example: four 10-hour days
Take a $25/hour worker on four 10-hour days plus a 6-hour Friday: 46 hours total. Under federal rules, 40 hours are regular and 6 are overtime. Pay is 40 × $25 = $1,000 plus 6 × $37.50 = $225, for $1,225.
Switch to California rules and the math changes. Each 10-hour day has 2 daily overtime hours, so Monday to Thursday produce 8 overtime hours. Straight-time hours are 8 + 8 + 8 + 8 + 6 = 38, which is under 40, so no weekly overtime is added on top. Pay is 38 × $25 = $950 plus 8 × $37.50 = $300, for $1,250. Same 46 hours, $25 more in California.
The gap gets bigger on a strict four-day, 40-hour schedule. Federal law pays $1,000 flat. California pays $1,100, because the 8 daily overtime hours earn a $12.50 premium each, unless the employer has adopted a valid alternative workweek schedule by secret-ballot vote.
Bonuses raise your overtime rate
Overtime is not always 1.5 times your hourly wage. It is 1.5 times your regular rate, and the regular rate includes non-discretionary pay: production bonuses, attendance bonuses, shift differentials, and most commissions. Discretionary gifts, like a surprise holiday bonus, are excluded.
The method: add all straight-time pay (hourly wages plus the bonus), divide by total hours worked to get the regular rate, then pay an extra half of that rate for each overtime hour. Example: 45 hours at $20 plus a $90 production bonus. Straight time is $900 + $90 = $990. Regular rate is $990 ÷ 45 = $22. The overtime premium is 5 × $11 = $55, so gross pay is $1,045. Paying 5 × $10 = $50 would short the worker $5, and that is exactly the kind of error that turns into a wage claim. Enter the bonus above and the tool applies this method automatically.
Who does not get overtime
Exempt employees are not owed overtime. To be exempt under the white-collar rules, a worker generally must be paid a salary (not hourly), earn at least the federal salary threshold of $684 per week, and do exempt executive, administrative, or professional duties. Job title alone never decides it. A salaried 'assistant manager' who spends the day on a register may still be non-exempt.
Independent contractors are not covered either, but calling someone a contractor does not make them one. If the business controls when, where, and how the work is done, the worker is likely an employee owed overtime.
Common mistakes that cost real money
Averaging two weeks to avoid overtime. Illegal under the FLSA; each workweek stands alone.
Leaving bonuses out of the regular rate. The most common payroll audit finding for hourly teams.
Offering comp time instead of cash. Private employers cannot swap overtime pay for future time off. Only public-sector employers can.
Not counting short breaks. Rest breaks of 5 to 20 minutes are paid hours worked and count toward overtime. Genuine meal periods of 30 minutes or more, fully relieved of duty, do not. If you track clock-in and clock-out times, run them through the time card calculator first, then drop the daily totals here.
How we calculate: sources
Frequently asked questions
How is overtime calculated?
Under federal law, non-exempt employees get 1.5 times their regular rate for every hour over 40 in a workweek. At $25 an hour, 46 hours pays 40 × $25 + 6 × $37.50 = $1,225.
Is overtime paid after 8 hours a day?
Not under federal law, which only looks at the 40-hour week. California, Alaska and Nevada (for lower earners) require daily overtime after 8 hours, and Colorado after 12. California also pays double time after 12 hours in a day.
What is the California 7th-day overtime rule?
If you work all seven days of a workweek in California, the first 8 hours on the seventh day are paid at 1.5x and any hours beyond 8 that day are paid at 2x.
Do bonuses affect overtime pay?
Yes. Non-discretionary bonuses (production, attendance, shift bonuses) must be added to the regular rate. Divide total straight-time pay including the bonus by all hours worked, then pay an extra half of that rate per overtime hour.
Can my employer average two weeks to avoid overtime?
No. Each workweek stands alone under the FLSA. Working 45 hours one week and 35 the next still earns 5 hours of overtime, even on a biweekly paycheck.
Who is exempt from overtime?
Salaried executive, administrative and professional employees who earn at least $684 per week and meet the duties tests, plus outside sales staff and some other groups. Job titles do not decide exemption.
Are my hours stored anywhere?
Everything runs in your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded to a server or stored by us.