PTO Accrual Calculator

What is a PTO accrual calculator?

A PTO accrual calculator converts your yearly paid-time-off allowance into an hourly earning rate, then shows exactly how much PTO you have banked based on the hours you have worked. Instead of guessing whether you have enough leave for a trip, you get a precise figure in both hours and days.

It answers three everyday questions: how fast do I earn PTO, how much have I accrued so far, and how many days off does that represent. This page explains the formula, walks through reproducible examples, and gives a quick reference table you can sanity-check against the tool.

How is PTO accrual calculated?

The method is straight-line, hours-based accrual — the most common system used by US employers. There are three steps:

1. Annual PTO hours = PTO days per year × 8. Each PTO day is treated as one 8-hour workday.
2. Accrual rate per hour worked = annual PTO hours ÷ full-time hours per year. Full-time hours are commonly 2080 (40 hours × 52 weeks).
3. Accrued PTO = rate × hours worked so far. To express that as days, divide by 8. Your per-week figure is rate × 40.

In one line: accrual per hour = (PTO days × 8) ÷ full-time hours per year, then accrued hours = rate × hours worked.

Terms and units: PTO days per year and full-time hours per year are your policy inputs; hours worked so far is how many paid hours you have logged this period. The rate is in PTO-hours earned per hour worked, accrued PTO is in hours, and the day figure assumes an 8-hour day.

Examples

Example 1 — the standard 15-day plan

Inputs: 15 days/year, 2080 full-time hours, 520 hours worked so far.

• Annual PTO hours = 15 × 8 = 120 hours
• Accrual rate = 120 ÷ 2080 = 0.0577 hours per hour worked
• Accrued PTO = 0.0577 × 520 = 30 hours = 30 ÷ 8 = 3.75 days
• Per 40-hour week = 0.0577 × 40 = about 2.31 hours

After 520 hours (roughly a quarter of a full-time year), you have banked 3.75 days of PTO.

Example 2 — a generous 20-day plan, half a year in

Inputs: 20 days/year, 2080 full-time hours, 1040 hours worked.

• Annual PTO hours = 20 × 8 = 160 hours
• Accrual rate = 160 ÷ 2080 = about 0.0769 hours per hour worked
• Accrued PTO = 0.0769 × 1040 = 80 hours = 80 ÷ 8 = 10 days
• Per 40-hour week = 0.0769 × 40 = about 3.08 hours

At the halfway point of the year you have earned exactly half your annual allowance — 10 of 20 days.

Example 3 — a part-time schedule

Inputs: 10 days/year, 1040 full-time hours (a 20-hour-a-week role), 200 hours worked.

• Annual PTO hours = 10 × 8 = 80 hours
• Accrual rate = 80 ÷ 1040 = about 0.0769 hours per hour worked
• Accrued PTO = 0.0769 × 200 = about 15.4 hours = 15.4 ÷ 8 = about 1.92 days
• Per 40-hour week = 0.0769 × 40 = about 3.08 hours

Because the part-time year is shorter, each hour worked earns the same rate as a 20-day, 2080-hour plan.

PTO accrual rate reference table

Each row assumes a standard 2080-hour full-time year, so the rate is (days × 8) ÷ 2080. The per-week column is rate × 40, and per bi-weekly is rate × 80.

PTO days/year	Annual hours	Rate per hour	Per 40-hr week	Per 80-hr period
10	80	0.0385	1.54 hrs	3.08 hrs
15	120	0.0577	2.31 hrs	4.62 hrs
20	160	0.0769	3.08 hrs	6.15 hrs
25	200	0.0962	3.85 hrs	7.69 hrs
30	240	0.1154	4.62 hrs	9.23 hrs

Common uses

• Planning a vacation: confirm you have earned enough hours before you request days off.
• Checking a new job offer: compare two policies by their hourly accrual rate, not just the headline day count.
• Mid-year balance check: plug in hours worked so far to see your current accrued balance.
• Pay-period budgeting: multiply the rate by 80 to see how much PTO each bi-weekly paycheck adds.
• Part-time roles: enter your own annual hours to get an accurate rate for a reduced schedule.

Tips and common mistakes

• Use the right full-time hours. 2080 is the standard, but if your full-time year is 1950 or 1872 hours, use that — the divisor changes your rate.
• Hours worked, not hours scheduled. Straight-line accrual is based on paid hours actually worked; unpaid leave does not earn PTO.
• Days assume an 8-hour day. If your workday is 7.5 or 10 hours, convert hours to days using your real shift length, not 8.
• Rounding adds up. The rate is shown to four decimals; over a full year small rounding differences can shift your balance by a fraction of an hour.
• The calendar does not earn PTO here. This model rewards hours worked, so a long stretch of unpaid time off slows accrual compared with a flat monthly grant.

Limitations and notes

This calculator models simple, straight-line accrual and does not handle every employer rule. It does not apply accrual caps (a maximum balance you can hold), rollover limits (how much carries into next year), waiting periods before new hires start accruing, or front-loaded plans that grant the full balance on day one. It also assumes an 8-hour day for the hours-to-days conversion. Treat the output as a close estimate and confirm specifics against your written PTO policy or HR system.

Related tools

If you are also calculating extra pay, the time and a half calculator works out overtime rates, and the pay raise calculator turns a percentage raise into a new salary. Browse more in the salary & work category.

Disclaimer: This tool provides general estimates only and is not legal, HR, or financial advice. PTO rules vary by employer, state, and country — always confirm your accrual, caps, and rollover terms with your official policy.