Overtime Pay Calculator
Calculate overtime pay including time-and-a-half.
Formula
OT Pay = Rate × Multiplier × OT Hours
Example
$30/hr, 40 reg + 10 OT at 1.5× → $1,650/week.
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Understanding the Overtime Pay Calculator
An overtime pay calculator answers a specific payroll question: how much does an hourly employee actually earn in a week once time-and-a-half kicks in. It sounds simple until you realize most people eyeball it wrong, either underestimating what they're owed or, for employers, underestimating what a busy week costs. The federal baseline is time-and-a-half after 40 hours in a workweek, but the real number depends on the exact rate, the hours split, and sometimes state-specific rules the federal floor doesn't cover.
How it actually works
Enter the regular hourly rate, the regular hours worked (defaulting to 40), and the overtime hours at whatever multiplier applies (1.5x is the federal standard). The calculator multiplies rate by regular hours for base pay, then rate by the multiplier by overtime hours for the overtime premium, and adds them for the weekly total. At $22/hour, 40 regular hours, and 8 overtime hours at 1.5x, that's $880 in regular pay plus $264 in overtime pay, for a weekly total of $1,144 - and the calculator also projects that out to an annualized figure at 52 weeks if that overtime pattern held steady.
| Hourly rate | Regular pay (40h) | OT pay (8h @ 1.5x) | Weekly total |
|---|---|---|---|
| $15.00 | $600.00 | $180.00 | $780.00 |
| $20.00 | $800.00 | $240.00 | $1,040.00 |
| $25.00 | $1,000.00 | $300.00 | $1,300.00 |
| $30.00 | $1,200.00 | $360.00 | $1,560.00 |
The deeper context most people miss
The part people miss most often is that overtime is calculated on a workweek basis, not a pay period - if your pay period is biweekly, overtime is figured separately for each of the two workweeks inside it, not on the combined 80-hour total. Someone who works 35 hours one week and 45 the next doesn't average out to no overtime; they're owed 5 hours of overtime premium for the second week regardless of the first week's lighter schedule. This trips up both employees estimating their paycheck and employers running payroll by hand.
Where the 1.5x multiplier and the 40-hour threshold come from
The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), enacted in 1938 and still the governing law today, sets the baseline: non-exempt employees must be paid at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. There's no federal requirement for daily overtime (working a 12-hour day doesn't automatically trigger overtime under federal law if the weekly total stays at or under 40) - that's purely a workweek-total rule. A handful of states go further: California requires overtime after 8 hours in a single day, plus double-time after 12 hours in a day or after 8 hours on a seventh consecutive workday, which is significantly more generous than the federal floor. Alaska and Nevada have their own daily-overtime variations too. If you're in one of those states, the federal 40-hour weekly calculation this tool runs is a floor, not the whole picture - check your state labor department's rules, because state law always applies when it's more favorable to the employee than federal law. For the roughly 45 other states, the federal 40-hour weekly threshold is the operative rule, and this calculator's math lines up exactly.
A worked example: a week with a late Friday push
Say someone earning $28/hour works a standard 40-hour week, but a Friday deadline pushes them to 6 extra hours, and they pick up another 2 hours covering a coworker's shift over the weekend - 8 overtime hours in total. Regular pay is straightforward: $28 × 40 = $1,120. Overtime pay is $28 × 1.5 × 8 = $336. The weekly total comes to $1,456, meaning that Friday push and weekend coverage added $336 to the paycheck, not just '8 more hours at my normal rate' ($224), which is the mistake people commonly make when mentally estimating overtime pay. Annualized (52 weeks at this exact pattern, which is unrealistic but useful for comparison), that's $75,712 a year versus $58,240 at a flat 40-hour week with no overtime - a meaningful difference that matters both for the employee budgeting around it and the employer forecasting labor costs for a project that requires overtime.
Deciding whether to offer overtime or bring on part-time help
For a manager staffing a busy season, the overtime pay calculator answers a real cost question: is it cheaper to pay existing staff time-and-a-half, or to hire additional part-time workers at their regular rate? Run the math both ways. Five existing employees at $22/hour working 10 hours of overtime each costs 5 × $22 × 1.5 × 10 = $1,650 in overtime premiums for that week (on top of their regular pay). Hiring one part-time worker at $22/hour for 40 hours to cover the same total additional hours (50 extra hours needed, minus the part-timer's 40) would cost $880 in regular wages plus training time and onboarding friction for a temporary hire. There's no universal right answer - it depends on how temporary the need is, whether existing staff want the overtime, and whether a new hire is worth the administrative overhead for a short-term crunch - but running the actual dollar comparison, rather than assuming overtime is always more expensive, often changes the decision.
Exempt versus non-exempt: why some salaried employees don't get this at all
A common point of confusion is that not every employee is entitled to overtime pay under the FLSA, even if they work well over 40 hours in a week. 'Exempt' employees - generally those in bona fide executive, administrative, professional, or certain computer-related roles, and paid on a salary basis above a federally set minimum threshold - are not entitled to overtime pay regardless of hours worked. 'Non-exempt' employees, whether paid hourly or on salary, are entitled to overtime once they cross 40 hours in a workweek. The salary threshold for exemption is set by the Department of Labor and has been updated periodically (it's worth checking the current DOL figure, since it changes and has been the subject of litigation over the years) - a salaried employee paid below that threshold is non-exempt regardless of their job title, and misclassifying someone as exempt when they don't meet both the duties test and the salary test is one of the most common wage-and-hour violations employers face. This calculator is built for the straightforward non-exempt hourly case; if you're salaried and unsure whether you're exempt, that classification - not this calculator's math - is the question to resolve first.
Variations: double-time, weighted average rates, and bonuses
Some situations use a multiplier other than 1.5x. California's double-time rule (2x pay) applies after 12 hours in a single day or on the seventh consecutive day of work in a workweek, and this calculator's default 1.5x multiplier field can simply be changed to 2 to model that scenario. A trickier variation is the 'weighted average' or 'blended rate' calculation required when a non-exempt employee works at two different hourly rates in the same week (say, $20/hour doing one task and $28/hour doing another) - federal rules require the overtime premium be calculated on a weighted average of both rates, not just the higher or lower one, which this simple calculator doesn't handle and needs a payroll specialist or dedicated tool for. Non-discretionary bonuses (tied to performance or attendance, as opposed to a surprise holiday bonus) can also need to be factored into the regular rate for overtime purposes under federal rules, another wrinkle this basic hourly-rate calculator doesn't capture.
Estimating overtime pay accurately
Confirm first whether you're non-exempt and covered by standard overtime rules, since exempt salaried employees aren't entitled to overtime regardless of hours worked. Check your state's overtime rules in addition to federal law - if you're in California, Alaska, Nevada, or a handful of other states with daily-overtime provisions, the federal 40-hour weekly calculation understates what you're actually owed. Remember overtime is calculated per workweek, not per pay period, so a light week followed by a heavy week doesn't average out. If you're working at two different pay rates in the same week, know that the correct legal calculation uses a weighted average rate for the overtime premium, not simply your higher or lower rate - this tool's flat-rate math is a solid estimate for the common single-rate case but isn't a substitute for that calculation.
What people get wrong
- Assuming overtime is calculated on a pay period rather than a workweek, which misses cases where one week has overtime and the other doesn't.
- Treating exempt salaried employees as though they're owed overtime pay, when FLSA exemption rules mean many salaried roles aren't covered at all.
- Ignoring state-specific daily-overtime rules (California, Alaska, Nevada) that can require overtime well before the federal 40-hour weekly threshold.
- Mentally estimating overtime hours 'at the normal rate' instead of at the 1.5x premium, which understates the actual cost or pay by a third.
Where the math comes from
Regular Pay = Hourly Rate × Regular Hours. Overtime Pay = Hourly Rate × OT Multiplier × Overtime Hours. Weekly Total = Regular Pay + Overtime Pay. Annualized = Weekly Total × 52. This mirrors the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) standard: at least 1.5 times the regular rate for hours worked beyond 40 in a single workweek.
Questions and answers
What is a realistic long-term return rate?
US large-cap equities have returned ~10% nominal and ~7% real since 1928. For projections, 6-7% nominal is conservative; 8-9% is the historical average for US-tilted portfolios.
How does inflation affect long-term projections?
Use real returns (return minus inflation) for inflation-adjusted projections. A nominal $1M in 30 years has the purchasing power of about $412K today at 3% inflation.
Should I include dividends?
Yes - total return (price appreciation + dividends reinvested) is the right number. Using only price appreciation undercounts equity returns by ~1.5-2 percentage points annually.
How do fees affect the projection?
A 1% expense ratio compounds to roughly 25% less ending balance over 40 years. Low-cost index funds typically charge 0.03-0.20%; actively managed funds 0.5-1.5%.
What happens during bear markets?
Markets recover - historically every drawdown has eventually been followed by a higher peak. The math of compounding actually rewards consistent buying through downturns.
Is overtime always calculated at 1.5 times the regular rate?
Under federal law (the FLSA), yes - 1.5x is the minimum for non-exempt employees working beyond 40 hours in a workweek. Some states require more in specific situations: California requires double-time (2x) after 12 hours in a single day or on a seventh consecutive workday, and a few other states have their own daily-overtime provisions. Always check state rules in addition to the federal floor, since state law applies whenever it's more generous to the employee.
Does overtime kick in after 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a week?
Under federal law, it's 40 hours in a workweek, with no daily threshold - working a 10-hour day doesn't trigger overtime under federal rules alone if the weekly total stays at or under 40. A small number of states, most notably California, add a daily threshold (overtime after 8 hours in a day) on top of the federal weekly rule, so the answer depends on which state you're in.
Are salaried employees entitled to overtime pay?
It depends on whether they're classified as exempt or non-exempt under the FLSA. Exempt employees - generally executive, administrative, professional, or certain computer roles paid above a federally set salary threshold - aren't entitled to overtime regardless of hours worked. Non-exempt employees are covered whether they're paid hourly or on salary, so job title alone doesn't determine the answer; the actual duties and pay level do.
How is overtime calculated if I work two different jobs at two different pay rates for the same employer in one week?
Federal rules generally require calculating a weighted average of both rates to determine the regular rate used for the overtime premium, rather than simply applying the higher or lower rate. This is more complex than the flat single-rate math in this calculator and is worth double-checking with a payroll professional or your state labor department if it applies to you.
Does a bonus affect how overtime pay is calculated?
It can. Non-discretionary bonuses - ones tied to performance, attendance, or production, as opposed to a surprise gift-type bonus - generally need to be included when calculating the 'regular rate' used for overtime purposes under federal rules, which can increase the effective overtime premium beyond a simple hourly-rate calculation. This is a nuance this basic calculator doesn't model.
How much does 8 hours of overtime add to a paycheck at $25/hour?
At $25/hour and a standard 1.5x multiplier, 8 overtime hours add $25 × 1.5 × 8 = $300 to that week's pay, on top of the regular 40-hour base pay of $1,000, for a weekly total of $1,300. That's a common estimating mistake people make: multiplying by the flat hourly rate ($200) instead of the 1.5x premium rate, which understates the real number by a third.
Should employers compare overtime costs to hiring additional staff?
It's worth running the numbers for any recurring, predictable overtime need. Paying existing staff time-and-a-half is often simpler administratively for short, unpredictable crunches, but if overtime is becoming a regular weekly pattern, the accumulated 1.5x premium can add up to more than hiring a part-time employee at their regular rate, once you also account for training and onboarding time for a truly temporary need.
Sources & References
Authoritative references consulted in building this calculator and educational content. These are primary sources — check directly for the most current figures.
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