Calculate your work hours with an unpaid lunch break removed, for a single day, a full weekly timesheet, or to find the time you can clock out to hit a target.
Hours Worked With Lunch Formula
The calculator works in three modes. Pick the one that matches what you want to find.
To find hours worked in one day, it subtracts the unpaid lunch from the time between clock in and clock out:
H = (OUT - IN) - L
To find a weekly total, it adds up the net hours for each day:
W = sum of (OUT - IN - L) for each day
To find the clock-out time that reaches a target number of paid hours, it adds the target and the lunch to your start time:
OUT = IN + T + L
If you enter an hourly pay rate, gross pay is the net hours times the rate:
PAY = H * R
- H = net hours worked in the day, after lunch is removed
- W = net hours worked across the week
- IN = clock in (start) time
- OUT = clock out (end) time
- L = unpaid lunch break, expressed in hours (30 minutes is 0.5)
- T = target paid hours you want to work
- R = hourly pay rate
The lunch break is treated as unpaid, so it is taken out of the total before hours or pay are reported. If your lunch is paid, set the lunch field to 0. In day and week modes you enter the start and end times and the lunch, and the calculator returns the net hours. In clock-out mode you enter your start time, the hours you need to work, and your lunch, and it returns the time you can leave. Entering a pay rate is optional and only adds a gross pay figure on top of the hours.
Lunch Break Time Conversions
Lunch breaks are usually entered in minutes, but hours are reported in decimal form for payroll. Use this table to see how a break converts.
| Lunch break | Decimal hours removed |
|---|---|
| 15 minutes | 0.25 |
| 30 minutes | 0.50 |
| 45 minutes | 0.75 |
| 60 minutes | 1.00 |
| 90 minutes | 1.50 |
The next table shows the net hours for a shift that runs from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM (9 gross hours) with different unpaid lunches.
| Lunch break | Net hours (8 AM to 5 PM) |
|---|---|
| No lunch | 9.00 |
| 30 minutes | 8.50 |
| 45 minutes | 8.25 |
| 60 minutes | 8.00 |
Example Problems
Example 1. You clock in at 8:00 AM and clock out at 4:30 PM with a 30 minute unpaid lunch. The gross time is 8 hours and 30 minutes, or 8.50 hours. Subtract the 0.50 hour lunch and you worked 8.00 net hours.
Example 2. You start at 9:00 AM, you need to log 8 paid hours, and you take a 60 minute unpaid lunch. Add the 8 target hours and the 1 hour lunch to your start time: 9:00 AM plus 9 hours is 6:00 PM. You can clock out at 6:00 PM.
FAQ
Is the lunch break paid or unpaid? The calculator treats the lunch break as unpaid and removes it from your total. Most unpaid meal breaks of 30 minutes or more are not counted as work time. If your employer pays you through lunch, set the lunch field to 0 so none of the time is deducted.
How are minutes turned into decimal hours? Divide the minutes by 60. A 30 minute lunch is 30 divided by 60, which is 0.50 hours. A 15 minute break is 0.25 hours. Payroll systems use these decimal hours rather than hours and minutes.
How do I find what time to clock out to hit 8 hours? Switch to the clock-out mode, enter your start time, set the target to 8 hours, and enter your lunch length. The calculator adds the target hours and the lunch to your start time and shows the exact time you can leave.
