How to Calculate Job Hours (Step-by-Step + Calculator)

Whether you’re tracking your hours for a paycheck, managing a freelance project, or logging time for your small business—knowing how to calculate job hours is super useful.

The good news? It’s easier than you think. This guide walks you through everything step by step, and we’ve included a free calculator to make it even simpler.

Don’t want to do the math? Just use the calculator below. You can enter your start and end times (even with AM/PM) and optional break time, and it’ll do the rest.

Use the + Add Day option for multiple days.

✨ Enter time in the 24 hour format (e.g. 5PM is 17:00)

⚙️ Job Hours Calculator

Powered by OneSDR.com

🕒 What Are Job Hours?

Job hours are the total time spent working on a job or shift. They’re used to calculate:

  • Wages and earnings
  • Project costs
  • Time tracking reports
  • Overtime eligibility
  • Productivity analysis

🧾 What You’ll Need

To calculate job hours, all you need is:

  • A start time (when you began working)
  • An end time (when you stopped working)
  • Optionally, any breaks or unpaid time during the shift

🧮 How to Calculate Job Hours

Here’s the basic formula:

Job Hours = (End Time − Start Time) − Breaks

Example:

You work from 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM, with a 30-minute unpaid break.

In the calculator above you would enter start time: 9:00 and end time 17:30

  1. Total time: 8.5 hours
  2. Break: 0.5 hour
  3. Job Hours = 8.5 − 0.5 = 8 hours

✅ You worked 8 billable hours.

💼 Why It’s Important

Tracking your job hours helps with:

  • Getting paid accurately 💵
  • Planning your week more efficiently 📅
  • Managing time across multiple clients or jobs
  • Calculating costs for project-based work

📌 Final Thoughts

Calculating your job hours doesn’t have to be complicated. Once you understand the basic formula—and use our simple calculator—you’ll always know exactly how much time you’ve put in.