How the hours are counted
Both the start and end times are converted to minutes past midnight. The calculator subtracts the start from the end to get the elapsed minutes, removes the break, and divides by 60 for decimal hours. The same total is also shown as hours and minutes.
If the end time is earlier than the start time, the tool assumes the shift crossed midnight and adds a full day, so a 22:00 start and 06:00 finish is read as eight hours rather than a negative span. This makes night shifts and on-call windows work without any special handling.
Decimal hours versus hours and minutes
Payroll systems almost always want decimal hours — 8 hours 30 minutes becomes 8.5 — because you multiply that figure directly by an hourly rate. The hours-and-minutes form is easier to read at a glance and matches how people describe a shift.
They are the same amount of time shown two ways: 0.25 hours is 15 minutes, 0.5 is 30, and 0.75 is 45. Use the decimal figure for any rate calculation.
Tips and caveats
A few things to watch:
- Enter times in 24-hour HH:MM format (for example 14:30, not 2:30 PM).
- The break is subtracted in minutes; a 60-minute lunch removes a full hour from the total.
- If the break is longer than the time worked, the calculator reports an error rather than negative hours.
- This computes a single shift. For a full week with overtime, use the time card calculator.
Formula
minutes = (end − start, +24h if overnight) − breakMinutes; hours = minutes / 60Frequently asked questions
- How are overnight shifts handled?
- If the end time is earlier than the start time, 24 hours are added so the shift is assumed to cross midnight.