How overtime works
Under the federal rule, overtime starts from a simple count: the hours in one workweek. This guide shows the federal rule in the official words, then works one week through step by step.
Example: five days of 8:00 AM to 5:30 PM with a 30-minute lunch is 45 h (45.00 hours). Under the federal rule below, 5 h of that is overtime. At $20.00 an hour that is about $950.00 before taxes, compared with about $900.00 if every hour were paid at the plain rate.
Estimate based on what you entered. Not legal or payroll advice; check it against your employer's records.
How to use it
- Pick the fixed seven-day workweek and add up the hours worked in it.
- Subtract the weekly threshold from the total. If the answer is above zero, that many hours are overtime hours.
- Multiply the overtime hours by the hourly rate and by the overtime multiplier.
- Add the pay for the regular hours to get the estimate before taxes.
What the official sources say
- The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. § 207) sets overtime pay at not less than 1.5 times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, for employees it covers who are not exempt.
- Under federal regulations, a workweek is a fixed and regularly recurring period of 168 hours, which is seven consecutive 24-hour periods.
"Covered" and "exempt" are legal terms. HoursPad cannot tell whether either one applies to a job. The sources listed at the bottom of the page explain them.
Worked example, step by step
- Each day is 8:00 AM to 5:30 PM minus a 30-minute lunch, so 9 h.
- Five days add up to 45 h, which is 45.00 hours.
- The weekly threshold used in this example is 40 hours. The difference, 5 h, is overtime.
- Regular hours (40 h) are counted at $20.00 an hour in this example. The overtime hours are counted at 1.5 times that rate.
- The estimate is about $950.00 before taxes and deductions.
The pay figure uses the hourly rate you type and nothing else. If your pay includes more than an hourly rate, ask your employer how overtime is figured.
Why the workweek matters
HoursPad's count restarts at the start of each workweek. A heavy week followed by a light one does not cancel out in HoursPad's count. You can pick the day your workweek starts in Settings ("Workweek starts on"), and HoursPad splits a longer card into workweeks before counting. For a two-week card, see the biweekly time card calculator.
Try your own week
Enter your times in the time card calculator and pick "Federal (FLSA)" in the Overtime box under Settings, or use the overtime calculator. To see how a week's hours are added up first, read how to calculate hours worked. HoursPad's overtime mode is federal only; it does not apply state rules.
Questions
How is overtime calculated?
The federal rule quoted on this page works on one workweek at a time. HoursPad adds up the hours worked in the workweek, counts the hours past the weekly threshold as overtime hours, and multiplies them by the hourly rate and the overtime multiplier. The rule and its official sources are on this page.
Is overtime counted per day or per week under federal law?
The federal rule quoted on this page is written for a workweek, not for a day. HoursPad's overtime mode follows that federal rule only. It does not apply any state's daily rules.
Does a two-week pay period get one overtime total?
The federal rule quoted here is about a workweek, so HoursPad splits a two-week card into its two workweeks and works out each week separately.
Can HoursPad tell me if overtime applies to my job?
No. Whether the rule covers a job depends on facts about the employee and employer that a calculator cannot know. HoursPad adds up hours and shows what the quoted federal rule gives for the hours you type. The official sources at the bottom of this page are the place to read the details.
Official sources
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29 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1) (opens in new tab), U.S. Government Publishing Office (U.S. Code).
“for a workweek longer than forty hours unless such employee receives compensation for his employment in excess of the hours above specified at a rate not less than one and one-half times the regular rate at which he is employed.”
Checked November 11, 2026. Rules change; verify with the source. -
Overtime Pay (Wage and Hour Division) (opens in new tab), U.S. Department of Labor.
“Unless exempt, employees covered by the Act must receive overtime pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek at a rate not less than time and one-half their regular rates of pay.”
Checked November 11, 2026. Rules change; verify with the source. -
29 CFR § 778.105 Determining the workweek (opens in new tab), Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR).
“An employee's workweek is a fixed and regularly recurring period of 168 hours—seven consecutive 24-hour periods.”
Checked November 11, 2026. Rules change; verify with the source.
These are summaries of what the official sources say, not legal advice. Laws change and exceptions apply. Check with your employer or your state labor department about your own job.