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Work & Pay

Overtime Calculator

Work out overtime pay at time and a half, double time, or a daily rule — with bonuses handled the way the law actually requires.

Enter your hourly rate and the hours you worked to see the overtime split.

Overtime rules

40 under federal law.

1.5 is time and a half.

Some states and union contracts require a 2× tier above a higher threshold.

Bonus

Production, attendance or incentive bonuses must be folded into the regular rate, which raises overtime pay.

Exact calculation. Given your inputs, this is the answer — no estimation involved.

How this calculator works

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, overtime is one and a half times your **regular rate** — and the regular rate is not always your hourly wage. Non-discretionary bonuses, shift differentials and production incentives all have to be folded into it before the overtime premium is worked out.

This calculator implements that properly. Enter a bonus and it is spread across every hour you worked, raising the regular rate and therefore raising your overtime pay. Most online overtime calculators simply add the bonus at the end, which understates what you are owed.

Double time is optional and applies above its own, higher threshold. Hours paid at double time are removed from the time-and-a-half tier, so no hour is ever counted in both.

The formula

Exactly what happens to your numbers, step by step.

  1. The FLSA regular rate

    regular rate = (hourly rate × all hours + non-discretionary bonus) ÷ all hours

    With no bonus this is simply your hourly rate.

  2. Overtime and double-time hours

    double-time hours = max(0, hours − double-time threshold)
overtime hours    = max(0, min(hours, double-time threshold) − overtime threshold)
regular hours     = hours − overtime − double time

  3. Total pay

    total = regular rate × all hours + bonus
      + (multiplier − 1) × regular rate × overtime hours
      + (double multiplier − 1) × regular rate × double-time hours

    Straight time is paid on every hour; overtime adds a premium on top rather than replacing the base pay.

A worked example

50 hours at $20 an hour, plus a $100 production bonus for the week.

What you enter

Hourly rate
$20.00
Hours worked
50
Bonus
$100.00
Overtime after
40 hours

The working

Straight-time earnings
50 × $20 = $1,000
Regular rate
($1,000 + $100) ÷ 50 = $22.00
Overtime hours
10
Overtime premium
0.5 × $22 × 10 = $110
Total
$1,000 + $100 + $110

Total pay: $1,210.00

Without folding the bonus into the regular rate you would get $1,200 — the bonus is worth an extra $10 in overtime premium beyond its face value. On a larger bonus or more overtime hours the gap grows quickly.

Assumptions

Every result here rests on these. Change your inputs and the result changes with them.

  • The federal 40-hour workweek is the default. Your state or union contract may require overtime sooner.
  • The bonus entered is non-discretionary — promised in advance for production, attendance or hitting a target. A genuinely discretionary holiday gift does not enter the regular rate.
  • The calculation covers one workweek. Overtime cannot be averaged across two weeks of a pay period.
  • Pay is gross, before tax.

What this cannot tell you

  • It cannot tell you whether you are exempt from overtime. Salaried does not mean exempt — exemption depends on your duties and salary level.
  • Piece-rate, commission and tipped-employee regular-rate calculations follow different rules and are not modelled.

Questions people ask

What is time and a half?

One and a half times your regular rate. At $20 an hour, overtime hours are paid at $30. Federal law requires it for non-exempt employees on hours beyond 40 in a workweek.

Does a bonus really increase my overtime pay?

Yes, if it is non-discretionary. The law requires such bonuses to be included in the regular rate, which is the base for the overtime premium. This is one of the most commonly missed parts of overtime calculation.

Do I get overtime for working more than eight hours in a day?

Not under federal law, which counts by the week. Several states, California among them, do require daily overtime. The Time Card Calculator supports a daily threshold if your state has one.

Can my employer average two weeks together?

No. Overtime is calculated on each workweek separately, even if you are paid every two weeks. 50 hours one week and 30 the next means 10 hours of overtime, not zero.

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Sources and review

Sources

Methodology version 1.0.0 · Last reviewed