PTO Accrual Calculator

Worked examples

4 hours every two weeks

26 biweekly periods × 4 h = 104 hours a year, or 13 days at 8 hours. With 20 hours banked and nothing planned, ten periods from now the balance is 60 hours.

One hour per 26 worked

0.0385 h per hour × 80 h a period = 3.08 h per biweekly period, about 80 hours a year.

A 40-hour cap

20 banked, 4 per period, cap 40: the bank is full after five periods and every period after that throws 4 hours away. Take time off before the cap, not after.

How it is calculated

Per-period accrual = the rate for per-period policies, or rate per hour × hours worked per period for hourly policies. Per year = per period × pay periods a year (52 weekly, 26 biweekly, 24 semi-monthly, 12 monthly); a lump-sum policy is simply the annual grant. Projected balance = today's balance + accrual for each whole pay period until the date − planned time off, never above the cap; hours over the cap are counted as lost.

Questions people ask

How is PTO accrual calculated?

Multiply the rate by the number of accrual events. Four hours per biweekly period is 104 hours a year; one hour per 30 worked at 80 hours a period is 2.67 hours a period. The calculator handles the three common policy shapes.

How many days is 80 hours of PTO?

Ten days at eight hours a day. Change the hours-in-a-day figure if your day is 7.5 or 10 hours.

What is a PTO cap?

A ceiling on the balance you can hold. Once you reach it, accrual stops or is forfeited until you take time off. Some policies use a use-it-or-lose-it deadline instead; several states restrict or forbid forfeiture, so check yours.

Does PTO accrue on overtime hours?

Under most hourly-accrual policies only regular hours count, but it is a policy question, not a legal one. Type the hours your policy counts.

Is PTO required by law?

No federal law requires paid vacation. Some states and cities require paid sick leave with their own accrual rates (commonly one hour per 30 worked), which this calculator can model with the per-hour method.