How PTO accrual is calculated
Employers set PTO in one of three ways, and each one turns into hours earned per pay period:
Per hour worked: hours worked × (PTO earned ÷ hours needed)
Per pay period: the same hours every paycheck
Per year: yearly hours ÷ pay periods in a year
The balance grows by that amount each pay period. Time you plan to take is spread evenly over the periods you look ahead.
Worked example
A worker earns 1 hour of PTO for every 30 hours worked and is paid every two weeks for 80 hours.
| Step | Hours |
|---|---|
| Each pay period | 80 × 1 ÷ 30 = 2.67 |
| One year, 26 periods | 2,080 ÷ 30 = 69.33 |
| In 8-hour days | 69.33 ÷ 8 = 8.67 days |
With an 80-hour cap and nothing taken, a worker earning 4 hours every two weeks reaches the cap in pay period 20. The last 6 periods add nothing: 24 hours that would have been earned are not.
Converting between accrual rates
The same yearly allowance looks different depending on how it is stated. For a full-time worker on 40 hours a week, paid every two weeks:
| PTO a year | Days of 8 h | Per pay period | Per hour worked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40 hours | 5 | 1.54 h | 0.0192 h |
| 80 hours | 10 | 3.08 h | 0.0385 h |
| 120 hours | 15 | 4.62 h | 0.0577 h |
| 160 hours | 20 | 6.15 h | 0.0769 h |
Per pay period is the yearly hours divided by 26. Per hour worked is the yearly hours divided by 2,080. A part-time worker on a per-hour policy earns less, because the rate is multiplied by fewer hours.
Caps, carryover and payout
- Cap. Some policies stop accrual while the balance sits at a limit and restart it once you take time off. The calculator credits only the room left under the cap and shows the hours not earned because of it.
- Carryover. Enter last year's unused hours as your balance now. If that is already over the cap, the balance is kept but nothing more is earned until it falls below the cap.
- Payout. The payout value is the balance times your hourly rate.
What the law says
Federal law does not require paid time off. The Department of Labor says the Fair Labor Standards Act "does not require payment for time not worked, such as vacations, sick leave or federal or other holidays." These benefits are a matter of agreement between an employer and an employee. Some states and cities do require paid sick leave or set rules on payout, so check your state's labor department for the rules where you work.
U.S. Department of Labor, Vacation Leave.
Questions
How many PTO hours is 2 weeks?
80 hours on 8-hour days: 10 workdays × 8 hours.
How do I count PTO on 10-hour days?
Divide your hours by 10. An 80-hour balance covers 8 days off on a 4 × 10 schedule, not 10.
Sources
- Rules checked
- October 26, 2026
- Written by
- SumTrue
- Tested against
- Published test cases
- Limits
- Not legal, tax or payroll advice. An estimate from the rules named above. See the Disclaimer.