Time-and-a-Half Calculator

How to use this calculator

Three tabs handle overtime at different multipliers. Choose the one that matches your situation or your employer’s policy.

Tab 1 – Standard 1.5x: The most common overtime rate. Enter your regular hourly rate, your overtime hours for the period, and your regular hours. The calculator returns your overtime pay, regular pay, and total gross pay for the period.

Tab 2 – Double Time: Some employers pay 2.0x for holidays, Sundays, or hours beyond a daily threshold. Enter the same fields and the calculator applies the 2.0x multiplier to your overtime hours.

Tab 3 – Custom Rate: If your employer uses a non-standard multiplier (1.25x, 1.75x, 2.5x, etc.) or your contract specifies a particular rate, enter the multiplier directly. This tab also shows your effective blended hourly rate for the pay period.

The overtime pay formulas

Time and a half means you earn one and a half times your regular rate for each overtime hour.

For the standard 1.5x case, the overtime rate is simply 1.5 times the regular rate. For double time, it is 2.0 times. For a custom multiplier, substitute whatever rate applies.

Common overtime rate quick-reference

What qualifies as overtime under federal law

In the United States, overtime rules for most private sector workers are governed by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The core rule is straightforward: non-exempt employees must receive at least 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for every hour worked beyond 40 in a single workweek.

Key points about FLSA overtime:

It is calculated weekly, not daily. Under federal law, there is no requirement to pay overtime just because you worked 9 hours on a single day, as long as your total for the week does not exceed 40. You could work 10 hours Monday through Thursday (40 hours total) and owe no overtime under federal law.

The workweek is employer-defined. Your employer picks any fixed 7-day period as the workweek. It does not have to start on Monday. Hours cannot be averaged across two weeks; each workweek is evaluated independently.

“Regular rate” includes more than base pay. The FLSA regular rate includes most forms of compensation: commissions, production bonuses, shift differentials, and some other payments. Pure gifts, vacation pay, overtime premium pay itself, and certain profit-sharing plans are excluded.

Exempt employees are excluded. Salaried workers classified as exempt (executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, or computer employees meeting specific criteria) are not covered by FLSA overtime rules and have no federal entitlement to overtime pay.

When does double time apply?

Double time (2.0x) is not required by federal law in the United States. It is either a state law requirement or an employer-specific policy.

California double time: California is the main exception. State law requires double time for hours worked beyond 12 in a single day and for all hours on the seventh consecutive day of a workweek. This is why California overtime rules are significantly more generous than federal minimums.

Collective bargaining agreements: Many union contracts specify double time for holidays, Sundays, or scheduled days off. If you are covered by a union contract, check the agreement directly rather than relying on federal law.

Employer policy: Some non-union employers voluntarily offer double time as an incentive for working on major holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas. This is entirely at the employer’s discretion.

Split shift and daily overtime: A few states (Alaska, California, Nevada) require overtime for daily hours over 8 even if the weekly total is under 40. In those states, a worker doing four 10-hour days could owe daily overtime even with a 40-hour week.

If your employer operates in multiple states, the law of the state where the work is performed typically applies, which can mean different employees on the same payroll receive different overtime treatment.

How overtime affects your effective annual compensation

Adding up your overtime pay across a full year changes your total compensation picture in ways that a simple annual salary comparison does not capture.

When overtime is reliable and recurring, the hourly job may pay significantly more than a salaried alternative at the same stated rate. This math is one reason why many experienced tradespeople, nurses, and logistics workers prefer hourly positions over management-track salaried roles.

The key question is whether the overtime hours are predictable. Irregular or mandatory overtime that disrupts personal plans has real costs beyond the math.

Overtime and taxes

Overtime pay is taxed as ordinary income at your marginal rate, not at a special rate. However, a larger paycheck in a single period can sometimes push you into withholding at a higher bracket for that pay period.

Withholding vs actual tax liability: Federal income tax withholding is estimated based on your annualized earnings for each pay period. If you receive a large OT paycheck, your employer may withhold at a higher rate, making your take-home look smaller than expected. This does not mean you owe more tax annually. You will reconcile the actual amount owed when you file, and any excess withholding comes back as a refund.

FICA taxes: Social Security and Medicare taxes apply to overtime pay just as they apply to regular pay. For 2024, Social Security applies up to the wage base ($168,600). Medicare has no cap and includes an additional 0.9% surcharge above $200,000 in earnings.

Pre-tax deductions: Many pre-tax benefits like 401(k) contributions and health insurance premiums reduce your taxable wages. If your plan bases contributions on a percentage of gross pay, overtime hours automatically increase your 401(k) contributions in that pay period, which can be a useful way to boost retirement savings in high-overtime periods.

Can an employer deny overtime or comp time instead?

Private sector employers covered by the FLSA cannot legally deny overtime pay to non-exempt employees who have already worked the hours. If you worked more than 40 hours in a workweek, you are legally entitled to overtime pay for those hours. An employer who refuses to pay is in violation of federal law.

Comp time: State and local government employers may offer compensatory time off at 1.5 hours for each overtime hour, as an alternative to cash payment, under certain conditions. Private sector employers cannot substitute comp time for overtime cash pay under federal law.

“Off the clock” work: Asking employees to work before clocking in, through lunch, or after clocking out without pay is an FLSA violation. If you regularly perform work outside your logged hours, document it and discuss it with your employer. If the issue persists, you can file a wage complaint with the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

Mandatory overtime: Employers can require overtime. There is no federal law that limits the number of hours an employer can require an adult employee to work (with the exception of certain safety-regulated industries like commercial trucking). You can be disciplined or terminated for refusing mandatory overtime in most cases. Some states have specific exceptions for healthcare workers.

Understanding your rights helps you verify that the numbers in this calculator match what appears on your paycheck.

Overtime pay for different worker classifications

Not all workers are entitled to overtime under the FLSA. The law divides employees into exempt and non-exempt categories, and only non-exempt workers receive time-and-a-half.

Non-exempt employees (entitled to overtime): Most hourly workers are automatically non-exempt. Salaried employees earning less than $684 per week ($35,568/year) are also non-exempt regardless of job duties. When the salary threshold was last updated in 2024, it was proposed to rise to $1,128/week, though legal challenges continued.

Exempt employees (not entitled to overtime): To qualify as exempt, an employee must meet both a salary test (earning above the threshold) and a duties test. The main exemption categories:

• Executive exemption: manages 2+ employees, has authority to hire/fire
• Administrative exemption: office work directly related to management, exercises independent judgment on significant matters
• Professional exemption: work requiring advanced knowledge in a specialized field, typically requiring a degree
• Computer exemption: systems analysts, programmers, software engineers earning above the salary threshold

Common misclassification issues. Some employers incorrectly classify workers as exempt to avoid paying overtime. If your title says “manager” but you spend most time doing non-managerial work and supervise fewer than 2 employees, you may be non-exempt and entitled to overtime you haven’t been receiving. The Department of Labor investigates misclassification complaints and can order back pay for up to 2 years (3 for willful violations).

Independent contractors are not employees and are not covered by FLSA overtime rules. If you’re classified as a contractor but work like an employee (set schedule, single client, employer-directed work), you may be misclassified. This is a separate legal issue from overtime exemption.

Practical examples: time-and-a-half across different pay rates

Minimum wage overtime. Federal minimum wage is $7.25/hour. Time-and-a-half rate: $7.25 x 1.5 = $10.875/hour. A minimum wage worker who puts in 10 overtime hours in a week earns: $7.25 x 40 = $290 regular + $10.875 x 10 = $108.75 overtime = $398.75 total. Many states have higher minimum wages; use your state’s rate for accurate results.

Median wage overtime. The US median hourly wage is around $22/hour. Time-and-a-half rate: $33/hour. 5 overtime hours per week for 52 weeks: $33 x 5 x 52 = $8,580/year in overtime earnings on top of a base of $45,760. That’s 18.7% more in annual pay.

Healthcare worker overtime. Registered nurses frequently work 12-hour shifts and may exceed 40 hours in a week. At $40/hour, time-and-a-half is $60/hour. Eight overtime hours in a week (one extra 8-hour shift equivalent): $60 x 8 = $480 extra that week. For travel nurses and per-diem workers with high base rates, overtime quickly compounds into substantial additional income.