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PTO Calculator

Project your PTO balance on any date, convert hours into days, and see what unused time off is worth at your pay rate.

PTO Calculator

Match whichever wording your policy or pay stub uses.

hrs
hrs

Hours already banked on the start date below.

hrs

Used for every conversion between hours and days. Most policies assume 8.

Balance on that date

-

In workdays

-

Earned each pay period

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Pay periods counted-
Accrued over that stretch-
A full year at this rate-
Days in the date range364 days

Enter your accrual rate and the two dates to see the balance build.

Guide

How is PTO calculated?

Every paid time off policy comes down to one line of arithmetic: a rate, multiplied by the time that has passed, added to whatever you had already banked. The confusion comes from the units, because policies are written in hours per paycheck, days per year, or hours earned per hour worked, and the number on your pay stub is almost always in hours.

The formula

PTO balance = starting balance + (hours accrued per pay period x pay periods completed)

Worked example

Take an offer letter that promises 15 paid days a year, paid every two weeks. First convert the days to hours: 15 days at 8 hours each is 120 hours a year. Then divide by the 26 biweekly paychecks in a year, which gives 4.62 hours added to your balance every payday. Six months in, after 13 paychecks, you have banked 60 hours, or 7.5 days off.

The calculator above does this for any combination of rate and pay frequency, and it counts only whole completed pay periods, which is how balances actually post. It does not subtract time off you have already taken, so if you have used days since the start date you set, take those hours off the result yourself.

How is your accrual rate written?

Before you can calculate anything you need to know which of three shapes your policy takes. Find the paragraph in your handbook or the line on your pay stub, then match it to one of these:

  1. Hours per pay period

    The most common wording on a US pay stub. A set number of hours lands in your balance every time you are paid, so the balance grows through the year rather than arriving all at once.

  2. Days or weeks per year

    The wording used in offer letters. Multiply the days by the length of your workday to get hours, then divide by your number of pay periods to see what each paycheck adds.

  3. One hour for every N hours worked

    Used where hours vary week to week, including many part time and hourly roles and several state sick leave rules. Your accrual tracks the hours you actually work.

Accrual rates themselves vary enormously by employer, industry, and length of service, and there is no US federal minimum for paid vacation, so treat any single number you see quoted online as the policy of one employer rather than a standard. What is commonly seen is a starting allowance in the region of two weeks that steps up with tenure, often at the five and ten year marks, and separate sick leave in the states and cities that require it. Your own handbook is the only authority on your own balance.

Front loaded is not the same as accrued

Some employers grant the full year of PTO on day one instead of accruing it. That is better for you if you want time off in January, but if you leave mid year many of those policies reclaim the unearned portion from your final paycheck where state law allows it. Check which kind you are on before you book anything expensive.

How many days is your PTO balance?

Balances post in hours and get discussed in days, which is why so much of this cluster is people trying to convert one to the other. The conversion is your balance divided by the length of your working day, and the only thing you have to get right is that second number. Eight hours is the standard assumption, but a four day week on ten hour shifts or a 7.5 hour paid day changes the answer.

Two weeks of PTO means 10 working days, not 14, because weekends were never workdays. On an eight hour day that is 80 hours. Three weeks is 15 days, or 120 hours. Running it the other way, a balance of 100 hours is 12.5 days on an eight hour day and 10 days on a ten hour day. The hours and days tab above converts in both directions and lets you set the workday length to whatever you are actually scheduled for.

What happens to PTO you do not use?

Three things can happen at the end of a leave year, and your handbook will say which. The balance can roll over, sometimes with a cap on how much travels. It can expire, which is the use it or lose it arrangement, and several states restrict or prohibit that for accrued vacation. Or it can be paid out, converting the hours to cash at your regular rate.

The same three way split applies when you leave a job, and the rules are set at state level rather than federal. Some states treat accrued vacation as earned wages that have to be paid on separation. Others let the employer set the rule, provided it is written down and was communicated to you. This page is general information rather than legal advice, so read your handbook and check your state labor department before you count on a payout.

What the payout tab above does give you is the number to plan around. Multiply your unused hours by your hourly rate and you have the gross value of the balance, before tax and withholding. If you are paid a salary, switch the input to salary and the tool derives the hourly rate the same way payroll does, by dividing by the hours you work in a year. The hourly to salary calculator shows that conversion in full if you want to see the working.

Time an exit around the balance, not the other way round

If unused PTO is paid out where you work, the balance is part of what leaving is worth, and it usually peaks just before an annual reset or a rollover cap bites. If it is not paid out, the only way to realise it is to take the time. Either way, work out the number before you hand in notice rather than after.

PTO questions

How do I calculate my PTO?

Start with the rate your policy quotes, turn it into hours per pay period, and multiply by the pay periods that have passed. If your policy is written in days, multiply the days by the length of your workday first. 15 paid days at 8 hours a day is 120 hours a year, and across 26 biweekly paychecks that is 4.62 hours added each time you are paid. Add whatever balance you already had, and subtract any time off you have taken since.

How much PTO per 40 hours worked?

It depends entirely on the accrual rate in your policy, since there is no federal minimum for paid time off in the US. Work it backwards instead: take your annual PTO hours, divide by the hours you work in a year, and you have your rate per hour worked. Someone with 120 hours of PTO who works 2,080 hours a year earns about 0.058 hours of PTO per hour worked, which is roughly 2.3 hours for every 40 hour week.

Is 1 hour of PTO for every 30 hours worked good?

One hour for every 30 hours worked comes to about 69.3 hours a year for a full time schedule, which is around 8.7 days off. Whether that is good depends on what it covers. If it is your only paid leave, covering vacation and sickness together, it is on the thin side. If it is a sick leave bank sitting on top of separate vacation days, it is a normal way for that kind of accrual to be written. Set the accrual mode above to the hours worked option to see your own figure.

Does 2 weeks PTO mean 10 or 14 days?

Ten. PTO is counted in working days, not calendar days, because you were never scheduled to work the weekend in the first place. Two weeks is 10 working days, which is 80 hours on a standard eight hour day. Three weeks is 15 working days, or 120 hours. If a policy really does mean calendar days it will say so explicitly, and that is worth confirming in writing.

How many days of PTO is 29 hours?

On a standard eight hour workday, 29 hours is 3.63 days, so three full days with five hours left over. On a ten hour day it is 2.9 days. That is the reason the converter above asks how long your workday is: the same balance is a different number of days depending on the schedule you are on.

Do employers have to pay out unused PTO when you leave?

It depends on your state and on your employer policy, and this is general information rather than legal advice. Some states treat accrued vacation as earned wages that must be paid on separation, some allow employers to set their own rule as long as it is written down and communicated, and some leave it entirely to the contract. Check your handbook first, then your state labor department. If you are planning an exit, our resignation letter generator can handle the letter once you know where you stand.

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