acalculator

How much PTO do I earn?

Say how your employer states your PTO (per year, per pay period, or 1 hour for so many hours worked), your weekly hours and how often you are paid. The PTO calculator shows what you earn each payday, each hour and each year.

Your numbers

You know the PTO
Pay frequency
More options
PTO per year
80

You earn 80 hours of PTO a year: 3.08 hours each pay period, or 10 days.

PTO per pay periodhours
3.08
PTO per hour workedhours
0.038462
PTO per monthhours
6.67
PTO days per yeardays
10
Balance after those pay periodshours
80

PTO per year: 80. You earn 80 hours of PTO a year: 3.08 hours each pay period, or 10 days.

The results are estimates for information only. They are not financial, tax, or legal advice. Check the numbers with your lender or a qualified professional before you decide. Terms of use

How to calculate

Works out paid time off accrual: PTO hours earned per year, per pay period and per hour worked from any one of them, in days too, and the balance after a number of pay periods with a cap.

Example with the default inputs (You know the PTO Per year, PTO hours per year 80, Hours worked per week 40, Pay frequency Every 2 weeks (26), Hours in a work day 8, PTO balance now 0, Pay periods ahead 26): You earn 80 hours of PTO a year: 3.08 hours each pay period, or 10 days.

Method: Per year = typed, or per pay period × pay periods a year, or hours worked a year ÷ hours per PTO hour. Per pay period = per year ÷ pay periods; per hour = per year ÷ (hours a week × 52); days = per year ÷ hours a day.

  • A work year is 52 weeks of the typed weekly hours (2,080 hours at 40 a week).
  • PTO is earned evenly over the year; no waiting period, carryover limit or use is taken off.
  • A cap stops new PTO once the balance reaches it; a balance already over the cap stays as it is.

Machine-readable copies: Markdown, JSON.

Worked examples

Each example is checked against the calculator on every build.

  1. You know the PTO Per year, PTO hours per year 80, Hours worked per week 40, Pay frequency Every 2 weeks (26), Hours in a work day 8, PTO balance now 0, Pay periods ahead 26 gives PTO per year 80, PTO hours per pay period 3.076923, PTO per hour worked 0.038462, PTO per month 6.666667, PTO days per year 10, Balance after those pay periods 80.Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Vacation Leave: the Fair Labor Standards Act does not require payment for time not worked, such as vacations; vacation benefits are an agreement between employer and employee, https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/workhours/vacation_leave
  2. You know the PTO Per pay period, PTO hours per pay period 4, Hours worked per week 40, Pay frequency Twice a month (24), Hours in a work day 8, PTO balance now 0, Pay periods ahead 0 gives PTO per year 96, PTO per hour worked 0.046154, PTO per month 8, PTO days per year 12, Balance after those pay periods 0.Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Vacation Leave: the Fair Labor Standards Act does not require payment for time not worked, such as vacations; vacation benefits are an agreement between employer and employee, https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/workhours/vacation_leave
  3. You know the PTO Per hours worked, Hours worked for 1 hour of PTO 30, Hours worked per week 40, Pay frequency Every 2 weeks (26), Hours in a work day 8, PTO balance now 0, Pay periods ahead 0 gives PTO per year 69.333333, PTO hours per pay period 2.666667, PTO days per year 8.666667.Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Vacation Leave: the Fair Labor Standards Act does not require payment for time not worked, such as vacations; vacation benefits are an agreement between employer and employee, https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/workhours/vacation_leave
  4. You know the PTO Per year, PTO hours per year 120, Hours worked per week 40, Pay frequency Every 2 weeks (26), Hours in a work day 8, PTO balance now 20, Pay periods ahead 10, PTO cap 40 gives PTO hours per pay period 4.615385, PTO days per year 15, Balance after those pay periods 40.Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Vacation Leave: the Fair Labor Standards Act does not require payment for time not worked, such as vacations; vacation benefits are an agreement between employer and employee, https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/workhours/vacation_leave
  5. You know the PTO Per year, PTO hours per year 80, Hours worked per week 30, Pay frequency Every 2 weeks (26), Hours in a work day 6, PTO balance now 10, Pay periods ahead 13 gives PTO per hour worked 0.051282, PTO days per year 13.333333, Balance after those pay periods 50.Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Vacation Leave: the Fair Labor Standards Act does not require payment for time not worked, such as vacations; vacation benefits are an agreement between employer and employee, https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/workhours/vacation_leave

How it works

Pick how you know your PTO, then type your weekly hours w, your pay frequency (pay periods a year N: weekly 52, every 2 weeks 26, twice a month 24, monthly 12) and the hours in a work day d. Hours worked a year = w × 52.

PTO per year (Y), from what you typed:

  • per year: Y = the hours you typed
  • per pay period p: Y = p × N
  • 1 hour for every h hours worked: Y = w × 52 ÷ h

Then:

  • PTO per pay period = Y ÷ N
  • PTO per hour worked = Y ÷ (w × 52)
  • PTO per month = Y ÷ 12
  • PTO days per year = Y ÷ d
  • Balance after n pay periods = balance now + n × (Y ÷ N). With a cap C: if the balance now is above C it stays as it is; otherwise the result is the smaller of C and that sum.

PTO per hour worked shows to 6 decimal places, every other value to 2. The maths runs in floating point and rounds for display only.

Assumptions: PTO is earned evenly through the year; waiting periods, carryover limits, rounding by the employer and PTO you use are not counted.

Rules

  • PTO a year from 0 to 2,000 hours; per pay period from 0 to 200; hours worked for 1 hour of PTO from 1 to 1,000; hours a week from 1 to 168; hours in a day from 1 to 24; balance and cap from 0 to 10,000 hours; pay periods ahead from 0 to 520 (whole). A value outside that shows a message on its field.
  • The cap may be left empty for no cap.

Worked examples by hand

Two weeks a year, paid every two weeks. Y = 80. Per pay period = 80 ÷ 26 = 3.077. Per hour = 80 ÷ 2,080 = 0.038462. Per month = 6.67. Days = 80 ÷ 8 = 10. After 26 pay periods from 0: 26 × 3.077 = 80.

4 hours each semimonthly payday. Y = 4 × 24 = 96. Per hour = 96 ÷ 2,080 = 0.046154. Per month = 8. Days = 12.

1 hour for every 30 hours. Y = 2,080 ÷ 30 = 69.33. Per pay period (26) = 2.667. Days = 8.67.

A cap. Y = 120, so 4.615 a pay period. From 20 hours, 10 pay periods would give 20 + 46.15 = 66.15, but the 40-hour cap holds it at 40.

Part time. 30 hours a week (1,560 a year), Y = 80, 6-hour days: per hour = 80 ÷ 1,560 = 0.051282; days = 13.33. From 10 hours, 13 pay periods: 10 + 13 × 3.077 = 50.

Other questions people ask

How is PTO accrual calculated?

Divide the PTO hours you earn in a year by the hours you work in a year. 80 hours a year at 40 hours a week is 80 ÷ 2,080 = 0.0385 hours of PTO for every hour worked, or 80 ÷ 26 = 3.08 hours each biweekly paycheck.

How many hours of PTO is two weeks of vacation?

Two weeks of five 8-hour days is 80 hours. Paid every two weeks, that is 3.08 hours a pay period; paid twice a month, 3.33 hours.

What does "1 hour for every 30 hours worked" give in a year?

Full time, 40 × 52 = 2,080 hours worked a year, so 2,080 ÷ 30 = 69.33 hours of PTO, or about 8.7 eight-hour days.

Is PTO required by law?

Not by federal law. The U.S. Department of Labor says the Fair Labor Standards Act does not require pay for time not worked, such as vacations; PTO is set by your employer’s policy or your contract. Some states and cities require paid sick leave, often 1 hour for every 30 hours worked.

What is a PTO cap?

The most PTO you can hold. Once your balance reaches the cap, you stop earning until you use some. With a 40-hour cap, a balance of 20 hours that would grow to 66 hours stops at 40.

Why does my PTO per paycheck differ from what HR says?

Employers round differently and some count 2,080 hours a year while others count 2,088 or actual hours. This calculator uses 52 weeks of your typed hours and does not round between steps; check your pay stub for the rule your employer uses.