Time Card to Gross Pay Calculator (Bi-Weekly)
Convert two weeks of time-card hours and an hourly rate into bi-weekly gross pay, computing overtime per week (over 40 hours). Runs in your browser.
Time-and-a-half = 1.5; OT applies over 40/week.
Overtime is figured per week, not on the two-week total — so 42 + 38 hours yields 2 OT hours (from week 1), not zero. Each week: hours over 40 are paid at the multiplier, the rest at the base rate; the two weeks are summed for the bi-weekly gross. This is gross pay before taxes, benefits, and other deductions. Educational; everything runs in your browser.
About this tool
Turning a bi-weekly time card into gross pay seems like simple multiplication, but there's a catch that trips up many calculations: overtime must be figured separately for each workweek, not on the two-week total. This calculator handles that correctly. You enter the hours for week one and week two, your hourly rate, and the overtime multiplier; for each week it pays hours up to 40 at the base rate and any hours beyond 40 at the overtime rate (time-and-a-half by default), then sums the two weeks into the bi-weekly gross. The per-week distinction matters in real money: someone who works 42 hours in week one and 38 in week two has worked 80 hours total — the same as two even 40-hour weeks — but they are owed 2 hours of overtime from week one, because the Fair Labor Standards Act requires overtime on hours over 40 in each individual workweek and explicitly prohibits averaging across two weeks of a pay period. Calculating overtime on the 80-hour total would wrongly show zero overtime and underpay the worker. The tool breaks the result into regular pay and overtime pay so you can see exactly how it's built. A few notes: this assumes the standard federal weekly overtime rule, so it doesn't apply daily-overtime rules that exist in some states (like California's over-8-hours-per-day provision); it uses a single rate (enter a blended regular rate if you have differentials or bonuses, since overtime is technically based on the 'regular rate of pay'); and the figure is gross pay, before taxes, benefits, and other deductions. Use it to verify a paycheck against your time card or to project earnings. Everything runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
How to use it
- Enter the hours worked in week one and week two of the pay period.
- Enter your hourly rate and the overtime multiplier (1.5 for time-and-a-half).
- The tool computes overtime separately per week (hours over 40).
- Read the bi-weekly gross pay, split into regular and overtime.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I convert a time card to gross pay?
- For each week, pay hours up to 40 at your rate and hours over 40 at the overtime rate, then sum the weeks. Gross = regular hours × rate + overtime hours × rate × multiplier.
- Why is overtime calculated per week, not per pay period?
- US law (FLSA) requires overtime on hours over 40 in each individual workweek and forbids averaging two weeks together. So 42 + 38 hours owes 2 overtime hours from week one — calculating on the 80-hour total would wrongly show none.
- Does this handle daily overtime?
- No. It uses the standard federal weekly rule (over 40/week). Some states (e.g. California) require overtime after 8 hours in a day; for those, a weekly-only calculation may understate overtime.
- What rate should I enter if I have bonuses or differentials?
- Overtime is legally based on the "regular rate of pay," which blends in non-discretionary bonuses, commissions, and shift differentials. Enter that blended hourly figure rather than just the base wage for an accurate result.
- Is the result gross or net pay?
- Gross — before income tax, payroll taxes, benefits, and other deductions. Your take-home (net) pay will be lower.
- Is anything uploaded?
- No. All calculations run entirely in your browser.