Overtime Calculator

What is overtime pay and how does it work?

Overtime pay is the extra compensation you earn when you work beyond your standard hours. In the United States, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets the federal minimum: non-exempt employees must receive at least 1.5 times their regular rate for every hour worked over 40 in a single workweek. That 1.5x rate is what most people call “time and a half.”

The word “workweek” is important here. The FLSA defines it as any fixed 7-day period, not necessarily Monday through Sunday. Your employer sets the workweek schedule, and that schedule determines when overtime kicks in. If your workweek runs Wednesday through Tuesday, overtime is calculated based on that window, not the calendar week.

Not every worker is entitled to overtime. The FLSA divides workers into two categories:

• Non-exempt employees must receive overtime pay when they work over 40 hours per week. This includes most hourly workers and many salaried workers earning under the threshold.
• Exempt employees are not covered by the federal overtime rules. To qualify as exempt, an employee must generally (a) earn at least $684 per week (as of 2024), (b) be paid on a salary basis, and (c) perform certain executive, administrative, or professional duties.

The full overtime calculation formula

Getting your overtime pay right requires three pieces: your regular rate, your overtime multiplier, and the number of overtime hours. Let’s walk through the complete formula.

The effective hourly rate tells you your blended pay rate across all hours worked. If you worked 50 hours at $20/hr with 1.5x OT, your effective rate is ($800 + $300) / 50 = $22/hr. That blended number is useful for comparing pay across weeks with different amounts of overtime.

For salaried employees who are non-exempt, the “regular rate” needs to be calculated first. You divide the weekly salary by the number of hours the salary is supposed to cover (typically 40). From there, the 0.5x premium applies to each overtime hour (since the base rate already covers the regular hour itself).

Weekly vs. daily overtime: what’s the difference?

Under federal law, overtime is purely weekly. You work more than 40 hours in a workweek, you get OT. Period. There’s no federal daily overtime rule.

But several states have layered on their own daily overtime requirements:

When both daily and weekly OT rules apply, you don’t double-count. California, for example, calculates daily and weekly overtime separately and pays the higher of the two resulting amounts. A worker who puts in 10-hour days for 4 days (40 hours total) would owe 8 hours of daily OT in California even though no weekly threshold was crossed.

If you’re in one of these states, the Daily mode in this calculator lets you model your pay accurately.

Federal overtime is a floor, not a ceiling. States can always set higher standards, and employees are always entitled to whichever protection is more favorable.

Overtime multipliers explained: 1.5x, 2x, and double time

The federal minimum is 1.5x. But different situations can call for higher rates.

1.5x (time and a half) is the standard FLSA rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. Most overtime you’ll encounter falls here.

2x (double time) applies in specific circumstances:

• California daily OT after 12 hours in a workday
• California OT for the first 8 hours on the 7th consecutive day of a workweek
• Many union agreements and employer policies, especially for holidays and weekends
• Some industries with collective bargaining agreements

Custom multipliers come up in contracted roles, certain professions, or company policies that exceed the legal minimum. Some employers pay 1.75x on Sundays or 2.5x on certain holidays. This calculator’s Custom Rate tab lets you enter any regular and OT rate directly, so it handles any arrangement.

How overtime affects your taxes

Overtime income is taxed the same way as regular income. There’s no special “overtime tax rate.” The US income tax system is marginal, meaning different portions of your income are taxed at different rates. Your OT earnings are added on top of your regular wages for the year and taxed at whatever bracket they fall into.

The confusion arises from withholding. When a single paycheck is larger than usual (because it includes OT), your employer’s payroll system may withhold at a higher rate for that period. This isn’t a higher tax on overtime specifically; it’s the system estimating what your annualized income would be if every paycheck were that size. When you file your annual return, any over-withheld amount comes back to you as a refund.

That said, earning significantly more overtime can push your total annual income into a higher marginal bracket. If your last dollar of overtime crosses from the 22% bracket into the 24% bracket, you pay 24% on that portion. But again, only the income above the bracket threshold faces the higher rate.

Social Security tax (6.2%) and Medicare tax (1.45%) also apply to overtime wages, just like regular wages.

Common overtime violations to watch for

Overtime violations are more common than most workers realize. The Department of Labor recovers hundreds of millions of dollars each year in back overtime wages. Here are the most frequent ones:

Misclassifying employees as independent contractors. If you’re treated like an employee (set schedule, employer-provided tools, no control over how you do the work), you may be entitled to OT even if you’re classified as a contractor.

Off-the-clock work. If you’re expected to answer emails, prep equipment, or finish tasks before clocking in or after clocking out, that time counts toward your 40-hour threshold.

Averaging hours across two weeks. Some employers tell workers they can work 50 hours one week and 30 the next and call it “even.” This isn’t how the FLSA works. Overtime is calculated workweek by workweek, not as an average.

Comp time in the private sector. Private employers cannot offer paid time off in lieu of overtime pay for non-exempt employees. If you worked 45 hours this week, you’re owed 5 hours at 1.5x, not an IOU for 5 future hours off.

Incorrect regular rate. If your employer excludes non-discretionary bonuses or commissions from the overtime rate calculation, they’re underpaying you.

Overtime for specific situations

Hourly workers are the classic overtime case. Track your hours, apply the formula, and know your state rules.

Salaried non-exempt workers are entitled to overtime but their regular rate calculation is different. Divide the weekly salary by the hours it’s supposed to cover (usually 40), then add 0.5x that rate for each OT hour.

Part-time workers can earn overtime, but only if they actually cross the 40-hour (or applicable daily) threshold. Working 15 hours at two different employers doesn’t add up to OT; each employer’s hours are counted separately.

Remote workers working across time zones follow the laws of the state where they physically work, not where their employer is based. If you’re in California working for a company headquartered in Texas, California’s daily OT rules apply to you.

Seasonal and temporary workers are generally non-exempt and entitled to overtime unless they fall under specific exemptions (agricultural workers, certain amusement park workers, etc.).

State overtime laws: where federal rules are not enough

Federal FLSA sets the floor for overtime. Several states go further, and if you work in one of them, you may be entitled to more overtime pay than federal law requires.

California has the most employee-friendly overtime rules in the country. Overtime is required for hours over 8 in a single workday (not just 40 per week), and double time applies for hours over 12 in a day or for all hours on the seventh consecutive day in a workweek. A California worker who puts in 10 hours on Monday earns 8 hours at regular rate and 2 hours at 1.5x, regardless of how many total hours they work that week.

Alaska requires overtime for hours over 8 per day or 40 per week, whichever triggers it first.

Nevada requires daily overtime for hours over 8 per day for employees earning less than 1.5x the minimum wage.

Colorado requires overtime for hours over 12 per day or 40 per week, and double time for hours over 12 per day.

For workers in these states, the daily overtime calculator is the right choice in the Overtime Calculator above.

If your state isn’t on this list, federal rules apply: 40 hours per week, 1.5x for everything above that.