Overtime Calculator
Overtime pay at time-and-a-half or double time, under federal or daily-overtime rules.
The week
40 under federal law
1.5 = time and a half
This works out your gross pay for a week that includes overtime. Enter your hourly rate and hours, and it returns the regular pay, the overtime pay and the total.
You can enter hours day by day if daily overtime rules apply where you work, and change the threshold and multiplier to match your state or contract.
How overtime pay works
Overtime is the extra pay you get for hours beyond a set limit. Under US federal law, that limit is 40 hours in a workweek, and the rate is one and a half times your regular pay.
The rule comes from the Fair Labor Standards Act. It applies to non-exempt employees, which is most hourly workers, and it is based strictly on the week, not the day or the pay period.
So 50 hours one week and 30 the next is not 'even out to 40'. The first week owes 10 hours of overtime regardless of what the second week looks like.
Only the hours past 40 are paid at the higher rate. The first 40 stay at the normal rate, which is why total pay does not jump as much as people expect.
What to enter
- Hourly rate
- Your base pay per hour. If you earn non-discretionary bonuses or shift premiums, read the FAQ on the regular rate first, because your legal overtime rate may be higher than 1.5 times this.
- Hours this week
- Total hours worked in the workweek. Your employer defines the week, but it must be a fixed, recurring 168-hour period.
- Enter hours day by day
- Use this where daily overtime applies, such as California, where hours past 8 in a single day count even if the week stays under 40.
- Weekly OT starts at / multiplier
- Defaults to 40 hours and 1.5×, the federal rule. Change them for a state rule or a union contract that is more generous.
Rules that differ from the federal baseline
- Federal (FLSA)
- Time and a half past 40 hours in a week. No daily overtime requirement, and no double time.
- Daily overtime states
- California and a few others pay overtime past 8 hours in a day, and California adds double time past 12.
- Seventh consecutive day
- Some state rules pay a premium for working every day of the week, regardless of total hours.
- Exempt employees
- Salaried staff meeting the duties and salary tests get no overtime. Being paid a salary alone does not make someone exempt.
- Contracts and unions
- Can be more generous than the law, never less. Check your agreement before assuming the federal minimum.
What this assumes
You are a non-exempt employee covered by overtime rules.
Figures are gross, before tax and deductions.
State rules vary and change. Check your own state's labor department for anything that affects your pay.
How to calculate overtime pay
Split the week at the threshold, pay each part at its own rate, then add them.
- regular hours
- Up to 40 in the week
- overtime hours
- Everything past that
- 1.5
- The federal multiplier, sometimes called time and a half
Count the week's hours. Use your employer's defined workweek, not the calendar week or the pay period.
Split at 40. Anything above 40 is overtime. Below, it is regular time.
Work out the overtime rate. Multiply your regular rate by 1.5. At $20 an hour that is $30.
Add the two parts. Regular pay plus overtime pay gives your gross for the week.
See a worked example: 48 hours at $20 an hour
- Rate
- $20 per hour
- Hours
- 48 in the week
Regular: 40 hours × $20 = $800.
Overtime hours: 48 − 40 = 8.
Overtime rate: $20 × 1.5 = $30.
Overtime pay: 8 × $30 = $240.
Total gross: $800 + $240 = $1,040.
$1,040 gross for the week
Frequently asked questions
Multiply your regular rate by 1.5. At $20 an hour, overtime is $30 an hour.
But if you receive non-discretionary bonuses, shift differentials or commissions, your legal overtime rate is higher than that. See the next question, because this is where underpayment usually happens.
It is the figure overtime must be based on, and it is not always your hourly rate. The law requires most non-discretionary payments to be folded in first: production bonuses, attendance bonuses, shift differentials and commissions.
Example: $20 an hour for 40 hours plus a $100 production bonus. The regular rate becomes ($800 + $100) ÷ 40 = $22.50, so overtime is $33.75 an hour, not $30.
Genuinely discretionary gifts, like an unexpected holiday bonus, are excluded. Anything promised or expected in advance generally is not.
No, not for FLSA purposes. Overtime is calculated per workweek, even if you are paid every two weeks or twice a month.
So 50 hours followed by 30 owes 10 hours of overtime for the first week. Averaging them to 40 each is not permitted.
Not under federal law, which only counts the week. But some states do require daily overtime.
California is the main one: time and a half past 8 hours in a day, and double time past 12. Use the day-by-day entry above if that applies to you.
Not automatically. Being paid a salary is only one part of the test. The job duties must also qualify, and the salary must meet a minimum threshold.
Plenty of salaried workers are still entitled to overtime. If you are unsure, the Department of Labor publishes the current duties and salary tests.
Generally no. Overtime is based on hours actually worked, so holiday, sick leave and vacation usually do not count towards the 40-hour threshold.
So a week with 8 hours of holiday and 36 worked is 36 hours for overtime purposes, even though you are paid for 44. A contract can be more generous, but the law does not require it.
Problems people actually run into
Overtime calculated on the base rate when a bonus applies
This is the most common underpayment in the whole topic, and it is rarely deliberate. Payroll multiplies the hourly rate by 1.5 and stops there, ignoring the non-discretionary bonus that legally belongs in the regular rate.
On $20 an hour with a $100 weekly production bonus, the correct overtime rate is $33.75 rather than $30. Across a year of regular overtime, that gap is substantial.
Comp time offered instead of overtime pay
Private employers generally cannot swap overtime pay for time off in a later week. Compensatory time is largely a public-sector arrangement with its own rules.
Being offered an extra day off next week instead of overtime pay is worth questioning if you work in the private sector.
Results are estimates for general information only and are not professional financial, medical, or legal advice. Read our full disclaimer.
Sources
- Overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act · U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division
- Fact Sheet #56A: Overview of the regular rate of pay · U.S. Department of Labor
Last updated: September 3, 2026