By Amanda Reeds, Content Researcher · October 11, 2026

Why Calculating Overtime Pay Is Worth Getting Right

Your paycheck says one number, your own math says another, and the gap always seems to sit in the overtime line.

How to calculate overtime pay comes down to one formula: multiply your regular hourly rate by 1.5, then multiply that by the hours you worked beyond 40 in a workweek. Overtime pay is the premium wage the Fair Labor Standards Act requires employers to pay non-exempt employees. At $20 an hour, each overtime hour pays $30.

I have run these numbers for friends who suspected a short check. This guide covers time and a half, double time, salaried rules, holidays and tax, with figures you can match against your own pay stub.

How to Calculate Overtime Pay: The Formula and the Overtime Rate Per Hour

Overtime pay equals your regular hourly rate, times 1.5, times every hour you work past 40 in one workweek. According to the U.S. Department of Labor Fact Sheet #23, covered non-exempt employees must receive at least time and one-half their regular rate for those hours.

A workweek is a fixed, recurring block of 168 hours, and your employer picks the start day. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays earn nothing extra under federal law, according to that same fact sheet.

This one tripped me up too. When I first ran a 46-hour week for a $22.50 earner, I multiplied all 46 hours by 1.5 and got $1,552.50. The right answer is $1,102.50, because only 6 hours earn the premium. One wrong assumption inflated the week by $450.

Your overtime rate is 150 percent of your regular rate. That is the whole answer to how many percent overtime pay is. The extra half, called the premium, is $11.25 at $22.50 an hour. To express any premium or raise as a percentage, the percent change guide shows the formula.

How Do You Figure Overtime Pay Step by Step?

Total one workweek of hours, subtract 40, multiply the leftover hours by 1.5 times your regular rate, then add your straight-time pay. Here is the same $22.50 worker with 46 hours.

1. Add up the hours for one workweek only. Convert minutes to decimals first, so 7 hours 45 minutes becomes 7.75.
2. Subtract 40. The remainder is your overtime hours, so 46 hours leaves 6.
3. Find your regular rate. For a plain hourly wage, that is $22.50. Bonuses and shift differentials change it, as covered below.
4. Multiply the regular rate by 1.5 to get the overtime rate: $22.50 × 1.5 = $33.75.
5. Multiply the overtime rate by the overtime hours: $33.75 × 6 = $202.50.
6. Add straight-time pay for 40 hours ($900) to reach gross pay of $1,102.50.

Converting minutes to decimal hours

Fifteen minutes is 0.25 of an hour, 30 minutes is 0.5 and 45 minutes is 0.75. A shift of 8 hours 30 minutes counts as 8.5.

How Do You Calculate Time and a Half, and How Much Is It Per Hour?

Time and a half is your hourly rate multiplied by 1.5. A $20 wage becomes $30 an hour, so six overtime hours add $180.

You can also work backward. Divide a time and a half rate by 1.5 to recover the base: $36 ÷ 1.5 = $24.

How Do You Calculate Double Time Pay and Double Time and a Half?

Double time pays 2 times your regular rate, so $20 becomes $40 an hour. Double time and a half pays 2.5 times, so the same worker earns $50. Federal law requires neither.

The Fair Labor Standards Act sets the floor at 1.5. Double time comes from state law, union contracts or employer policy. California, for example, requires time and a half after 8 hours in a day and double time after 12. At $30 an hour, a 13-hour day pays $240 for the first 8 hours, $180 for the next 4 and $60 for the last hour, or $480 in all.

The phrase double time and a half is slippery. Most employers mean 2.5 times the base rate, but some mean double time plus a separate premium.

How to Calculate Overtime Pay for Salaried Employees (Monthly, Biweekly and Semi Monthly)

Salaried employees receive overtime only when they are non-exempt. To calculate it, convert salary to an hourly rate, then pay 1.5 times that rate for hours past 40. Most executive, administrative and professional employees are exempt only if they earn at least $684 a week and pass a duties test, a threshold the Department of Labor restored in May 2026.

Take a $52,000 salary. That is $1,000 a week, or $25 an hour on a 40-hour basis. Six extra hours pay 6 × $37.50 = $225, so the week totals $1,225. For a monthly salary, multiply by 12, divide by 52, then divide by 40. A $4,333.33 monthly salary also lands at $25 an hour.

Some employers use the fluctuating workweek method instead. The salary covers every hour, so the regular rate is $1,000 ÷ 46 = $21.74, and each overtime hour earns only the extra half: 6 × $10.87 = $65.22. The week pays $1,065.22, which is $159.78 less than the first method. Some states, including California, do not allow it.

Biweekly and semi monthly payroll change when you get paid, not how overtime is counted. Each workweek stands alone. State and local government workers may receive compensatory time, 1.5 hours off per overtime hour, instead of cash.

How Do You Calculate Overtime With Different Pay Rates, Shift Differentials or Bonuses?

Overtime uses your regular rate, which is total pay for the week divided by total hours worked, not simply your base wage. Nondiscretionary bonuses, shift differentials and commissions all go into that total.

Marcus earns $18 an hour and worked 45 hours with a $180 production bonus. His regular rate is ($810 + $180) ÷ 45 = $22.00. Five overtime hours earn an extra half of that rate, 5 × $11 = $55, so the week pays $1,045. Using the $18 base alone would pay $1,035, a $10 shortfall.

Two pay rates work the same way. Add earnings from both jobs, divide by all hours and use that blended, or weighted, rate. Truly discretionary bonuses stay out of the calculation.

Tipped employees follow a special rule: time and a half applies to the full minimum wage, less the tip credit. The tip calculator guide covers the tip math itself.

How Is Holiday Pay Calculated With Overtime, Including Saturday and Sunday Work?

Federal law does not require extra pay for holidays, Saturdays or Sundays, only for hours beyond 40 in a workweek. Any holiday premium comes from your employer, your contract or state law.

Say your employer pays time and a half for working a holiday. At $20 an hour, an 8-hour shift pays $240 instead of $160. If that same week also passes 40 hours, ask payroll how the holiday premium and the overtime combine. The answer depends on your written policy.

Other countries stack premiums. In the Philippines, Article 87 of the Labor Code and DOLE Department Order 178 (2017) multiply the day rate by the overtime premium, so overtime on a regular holiday pays 200 percent × 130 percent = 260 percent of the hourly rate.

How Much Is Overtime Taxed, and What Is the Overtime Tax Rate?

Overtime is taxed as ordinary income, not at a special rate. Employers often withhold federal income tax on it at a flat 22 percent, according to IRS Publication 15 (2026), but your real rate depends on your total income and bracket.

Take Maria’s $202.50 of overtime. Flat withholding takes $44.55, Social Security and Medicare take $15.49, and $142.46 remains before state tax. Withholding is a prepayment. Your return settles the actual bill.

There is also a new break. IRS Fact Sheet FS-2026-01 says tax years 2025 through 2028 allow a deduction for qualified overtime, capped at $12,500 per return or $25,000 for joint filers, and it phases out above $150,000 and $300,000 of modified adjusted gross income. Only the extra half of FLSA-required time and a half qualifies. For Maria that is $11.25 × 6 = $67.50 a week, or $2,700 over 40 such weeks. In the 12 percent bracket, that trims about $324 of federal tax.

Overtime Pay Examples With Real Numbers

Three realistic weeks show how the formula behaves with different inputs.

Maria’s stub matched to the cent. Marcus found his bonus missing from the overtime rate and asked payroll to rerun two months. Priya learned her salary did not make her exempt.

Annual math works the same way. If Maria averages 6 overtime hours every week for 52 weeks, she adds 6 × 52 × $33.75 = $10,530 to a $46,800 base, for $57,330 a year.

Common Overtime Calculation Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Most overtime errors come from applying the multiplier to the wrong hours or the wrong rate. Five show up again and again.

Multiplying every hour by 1.5. Only hours past 40 earn the premium. My own first attempt overshot by $450.

Using the base wage instead of the regular rate. Marcus lost $10 a week that way.

Averaging across a pay period. Fifty hours one week and 30 the next at $20 pays $1,700, not the $1,600 you get from 40-hour averages.

Expecting weekends and holidays to pay extra. They do only when your employer, contract or state requires it.

Assuming a salary means no overtime. A salary below $684 a week, or a job that fails the duties test, can still be non-exempt.

Why Knowing Your Overtime Rate Matters

Knowing the math lets you catch underpayment, plan your income and decide whether extra shifts are worth taking.

• Catching errors early. Under 29 U.S.C. § 255, FLSA back-wage claims generally must be filed within two years, or three for willful violations. A $10 weekly error like Marcus’s adds up to $520 a year.
• Planning income. Overtime raises your gross pay, which feeds your debt-to-income ratio. Our guide to calculating debt-to-income ratio shows how lenders read it, and a loan calculator guide helps you decide where extra pay should go.
• Judging the real payoff. After 22 percent withholding and 7.65 percent FICA, a $33.75 overtime hour keeps about $23.74 before state tax.

Time and a Half vs Double Time vs Double Time and a Half: Which Rate Applies?

Federal law sets the floor at time and a half. Double time and double time and a half come from state law, contracts or employer policy.

Frequently Asked Questions About Calculating Overtime Pay

How do you calculate overtime pay for an hourly employee?

Multiply your regular hourly rate by 1.5, then multiply that by your hours beyond 40 in the workweek. Add straight-time pay for the first 40 hours. At $22.50 an hour and 46 hours, the week is $900 plus $202.50, or $1,102.50 gross. The U.S. Department of Labor sets the 40-hour weekly trigger under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

How is time and a half calculated?

Time and a half is your regular hourly rate multiplied by 1.5. A $30 regular rate becomes $45 an hour, so four overtime hours pay $180. The extra half, $15 here, is the overtime premium. Federal law requires this rate for non-exempt employees after 40 hours in a workweek.

How much is double time and a half?

Double time and a half usually means 2.5 times your regular rate, so $20 an hour becomes $50. Six hours at that rate pay $300. Federal law does not require it, and employers use the phrase loosely, so confirm the multiplier in your policy or union contract.

How is overtime calculated for salaried employees?

Salaried non-exempt employees get overtime based on an hourly rate found by dividing weekly salary by the hours it covers, usually 40. A $1,000 weekly salary gives $25 an hour, so 6 extra hours pay $225. Employees who meet the duties test and earn at least $684 a week are generally exempt.

How do you calculate overtime with holiday pay?

Work out the holiday premium and the weekly overtime separately, then check your policy for how they combine. Federal law requires extra pay only for hours beyond 40 in a workweek. If your employer pays time and a half on an 8-hour holiday shift at $20, that shift pays $240 instead of $160.

How much is overtime taxed?

Overtime is taxed as ordinary income. Employers often withhold federal income tax at a flat 22 percent on separately paid overtime, plus 7.65 percent for Social Security and Medicare, according to IRS Publication 15 (2026). Your final rate depends on your bracket. Tax years 2025 through 2028 also allow a deduction of up to $12,500 for qualified overtime.

How do you calculate overtime pay on a biweekly or semi monthly payroll?

Count overtime one workweek at a time, then combine the weeks on the check. A 50-hour week and a 30-hour week at $20 pay $1,700, because the first week owes 10 overtime hours. Averaging 40 hours a week across the period would pay only $1,600.

How do you calculate overtime percentage in Excel?

Divide overtime hours by total hours and format the cell as a percentage. With total hours in B2 and overtime hours in C2, enter =C2/B2, which returns 13.0 percent for 6 overtime hours in a 46-hour week. For pay, use =MAX(0,B2-40)*A2*1.5 with the hourly rate in A2.

Does overtime start after 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week?

Federal law starts overtime after 40 hours in a workweek, not after 8 hours in a day. Some states add daily rules. California requires time and a half after 8 hours in a day and double time after 12. Check your state labor agency, because the rule that favors the employee applies.

How do you calculate overtime pay with two pay rates?

Add total earnings from both rates, divide by total hours to find the blended regular rate, then pay half that rate for each overtime hour on top of straight-time earnings. With 30 hours at $18 and 16 hours at $24, the blended rate is $20.09 and the week pays $984.26.

The Bottom Line on Overtime Pay

Count hours by workweek, find your regular rate, multiply by 1.5 for hours past 40 and add straight-time pay. Double time and holiday premiums sit on top of that base, and the 2025 to 2028 deduction softens the tax bite for eligible workers.

This guide cannot see your state’s daily overtime rules, your union contract or your job’s exempt status, and it cannot settle a dispute with your employer. For those, the Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division and your state labor agency are the places to ask.