How often are the guides updated?

Each guide carries a published date. We review evergreen guides at least once a year and update them sooner when federal or major state rules change. See the editorial standards page for the full review process.

Where do the numbers and rules come from?

We cite primary sources — the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division, state labor agencies, and the IRS — wherever a guide states a rule, threshold, or formula. The methodology page lists the math behind every calculator.

Payroll & Time Guides

Practical, U.S.-focused reading on payroll hours, decimal time, overtime, rounding, biweekly timesheets, and freelance billing.

Every guide is paired with a free calculator on this site. The guides explain the rules — what counts as paid time, when overtime kicks in, how rounding works — and the calculators do the arithmetic in your browser. Nothing is stored, sold, or sent to a third party. Read the editorial standards for how content is sourced and reviewed.

How the guides are organized

Guides are grouped by the question they answer. Start with Payroll Hours if you are converting clock time to a paycheck for the first time, Time Conversion if you keep getting decimal-vs-minute math wrong, Overtime if you suspect a missing premium, or Rounding if your clock-in time keeps getting rounded against you.

Scope and limits

These are general-information articles for U.S. hourly workers, small employers, and freelancers. They do not replace HR, a CPA, or a labor attorney, and they do not cover every state-specific rule. Where state law diverges sharply from federal law (California meal periods, daily overtime, prevailing-wage jobs), the relevant guide says so and links to the primary source.

Payroll Hours

How to convert raw clock punches into the paid-hour totals your employer's payroll system actually reads.

How to Calculate Payroll Hours

Step-by-step guide to calculating payroll hours from clock in and clock out times, with break deductions, decimal conversion, and overtime examples.

Payroll vs Regular Hours

What is the difference between payroll hours and regular hours? Definitions, examples, and how each shows up on time cards and pay stubs.

Time Conversion

Decimal hours, base-60 minutes, and the conversion math that prevents the most common timesheet errors.

Minutes to Decimals

Convert minutes into decimal hours for payroll using a simple divide-by-60 method, with a full minute-to-decimal reference chart and worked examples.

Decimal Hours Explained

What decimal hours are, why payroll software uses 8.25 instead of 8h 15m, how to convert, and how decimal time avoids base-60 errors.

Time Card

Daily and weekly time card mechanics: punches, breaks, overnight shifts, and biweekly totals.

How to Calculate Time Card Hours

Calculate time card hours daily and weekly: clock in and out, lunch breaks, decimal conversion, and total weekly pay for hourly employees.

Biweekly Timesheet Guide

How to fill out and total a biweekly 14-day timesheet, calculate weekly overtime separately, and avoid common biweekly payroll errors.

Lunch Break Deductions

When lunch breaks are paid versus unpaid, how auto-deduct policies work, and how to deduct lunch correctly when calculating payroll hours.

Overtime

When overtime kicks in under federal and state law, and how time-and-a-half and double time are actually calculated.

How to Calculate Overtime

Calculate overtime hours and pay under the U.S. 40-hour weekly threshold, with time and a half, double time, and weekly worked examples.

Overtime Pay Examples

Worked overtime pay examples for hourly employees: 41-hour weeks, double time, holiday pay, and blended overtime rates.

Rounding

Time clock rounding rules (the 7-minute, 6-minute, and quarter-hour conventions) and when they cross the line into wage theft.

Time Clock Rounding Rules

Common time clock rounding rules used by U.S. employers: nearest 5, 6, 10, or 15 minutes, plus what neutral rounding means.

7 Minute Rule

How the 7 minute rule rounds clock times to the nearest quarter hour for payroll, with worked examples and common pitfalls.

Pay & Salary

Hourly to salary, salary to hourly, gross to net — the conversions you need to compare offers or check a paycheck.

Hourly vs Salary

Compare hourly pay and salary: overtime eligibility, paycheck math, pros and cons, and how to convert between the two.

Freelance

Billable hours, invoice math, and how to set a freelance rate that actually covers your expenses and taxes.

Billable Hours Guide

What billable hours are, how to track them, six minute rule basics, and how to translate tracked hours into clean client invoices.

Freelance Rate Guide

Set a freelance hourly rate from income goals, billable hours per week, business expenses, and self-employment tax estimates.

FAQ

Quick answers to the questions readers ask most often about payroll hours and timesheet math.

Payroll Calculator FAQs

Answers to common payroll calculator questions: decimal hours, overtime, lunch breaks, rounding, gross versus net pay, and biweekly math.

Need a tool? Browse all calculators →

Frequently Asked Questions

No. Every guide on this site is general U.S.-focused education only. Wage and hour law varies by state, by industry, and by employment classification, and tax outcomes depend on personal circumstances. For decisions that affect your paycheck, consult HR, a licensed CPA, or a labor attorney.

Before you use the result

Our calculators give quick payroll-time and pay estimates. Your final paycheck depends on factors this tool does not see, including employer policy, state and local rules, time clock rounding, paid versus unpaid breaks, premium pay, deductions, and how your payroll provider applies them.

Confirm pay rules with your employer, payroll provider, or HR team.
Overtime, breaks, and rounding rules can change by state.

For how each calculation is built, see our methodology and disclaimer.