Find what fraction of an hour a number of minutes is, such as 15 minutes = 1/4 hour, with decimal hours, or convert a fraction of an hour back to minutes.

Blank fields count as zero. Minutes over 59 are fine (90 minutes = 1 1/2 hours).

Decimal display precision

Fraction of an Hour Formula

Select one of three conversions: time to decimal hours, decimal hours to time, or fractional hours to time. Decimal and fraction inputs are rounded to the nearest whole second for HH:MM:SS; the decimal display precision does not change that conversion.

Time to decimal hours:

Decimal hours = H + M / 60 + S / 3600

Decimal hours to time:

Total seconds = D × 3600

Variables:

  • H = whole hours
  • M = minutes (values over 59 are allowed)
  • S = seconds (0 to 59)
  • D = decimal hours

The “Time to decimal” mode adds hours, minutes, and seconds after converting each to hours, then reports decimal and reduced fractional hours. The “Decimal to time” mode multiplies decimal hours by 3600, rounds to the nearest second, and splits the duration into hours, minutes and seconds. The fraction mode first divides numerator by denominator. A reduced input fraction can differ from the fraction after whole hours when second rounding is needed.

Common Fractions of an Hour

Use this table to convert minutes to a fraction or decimal hour at a glance.

Minutes Fraction of hour Decimal hour
51/120.0833
61/100.10
101/60.1667
121/50.20
151/40.25
201/30.3333
301/20.50
402/30.6667
453/40.75
505/60.8333

The table below illustrates decimal hours displayed to two places. Actual timekeeping and payroll rounding rules vary; this calculator does not apply a payroll policy.

Time worked Payroll decimal
7 hr 30 min7.50
8 hr 15 min8.25
8 hr 45 min8.75
9 hr 20 min9.33
10 hr 6 min10.10

Example Problems

Example 1. You worked 6 hours and 45 minutes. What fraction of an hour is the leftover, and what is the decimal total?

Decimal hours = 6 + 45/60 = 6 + 0.75 = 6.75 hours. The 45 minutes is 45/60, which reduces to 3/4 of an hour.

Example 2. A log file shows 2.4 hours. Convert that back to hours, minutes, and seconds.

Total seconds = 2.4 × 3600 = 8,640 seconds. That splits into 2 hours, 24 minutes, 0 seconds. The fraction after the whole hours is 24/60, or 2/5 of an hour.

FAQ

How do you turn minutes into a fraction of an hour?
Put the minutes over 60 and reduce. For 20 minutes, that is 20/60 = 1/3.

How do you turn minutes into a decimal hour?
Divide minutes by 60. For 20 minutes, that is 20 ÷ 60 = 0.3333 hours.

Why does my payroll decimal not match the exact value?
Displaying hours to two decimal places rounds in increments of 0.01 hour, or 36 seconds. For example, 9 hr 20 min is exactly 9⅓ hours, displayed as 9.33. An employer’s timekeeping policy may use different rules.

What does the “fraction after whole hours” line mean?
It is the leftover time expressed as a reduced fraction of one hour. For 1 hour 30 minutes, the whole hour is 1 and the leftover is 30/60 = 1/2.