Time difference calculator
Find the hours and minutes between two times, even when a shift runs past midnight. Take off any breaks and get the answer in minutes, hours and minutes, and decimal hours for your timesheet. There's a minutes to decimal hours converter below it too.
Use the 24-hour clock (17:30, 1730 or 17.30) or am and pm (5:30pm). If the end time is earlier than the start, it's taken as the next day. Breaks can be minutes, 0:45, several added with +, or a time range.
Updates as you type. Runs in your browser. Nothing you enter is stored or sent.
Minutes, hours and decimal hours converter
Type in any box and the other two update. 105 minutes is 1:45, which is 1.75 hours.
How this calculator works
Both times are turned into minutes after midnight. For example, 09:00 is 540 and 17:30 is 1,050. The difference is the end minus the start, so 1,050 − 540 = 510 minutes. Breaks are then taken off: 510 − 30 = 480 minutes.
If the end time is earlier than the start time, the shift is taken to run past midnight, so a day (1,440 minutes) is added to the end. A night shift from 22:00 to 06:30 is (390 + 1,440) − 1,320 = 510 minutes, or 8h 30m. If the two times are the same the answer is 0; for a full 24 hours, use 24:00 as the end time.
The result is shown three ways:
- Minutes, for timesheets that log by the minute.
- Hours and minutes (h:mm), where 7:45 means 7 hours 45 minutes.
- Decimal hours, which is minutes ÷ 60, rounded to 2 places. Payroll and invoicing often use these: 7h 45m is 7.75 hours, not 7.45.
The converter works the same way in reverse: h:mm becomes hours × 60 + minutes, and decimal hours become hours × 60, rounded to the nearest minute.
Minutes to decimal hours
To turn minutes into a decimal part of an hour, divide by 60. These are the ones that come up most:
| Minutes | Decimal hours | Minutes | Decimal hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 0.08 | 35 | 0.58 |
| 10 | 0.17 | 40 | 0.67 |
| 15 | 0.25 | 45 | 0.75 |
| 20 | 0.33 | 50 | 0.83 |
| 25 | 0.42 | 55 | 0.92 |
| 30 | 0.50 | 60 | 1.00 |
Tips for working out hours
- Don't read h:mm as a decimal. 7:30 is seven and a half hours (7.5), not 7.3. Mixing the two up is the most common timesheet mistake.
- Night shifts are fine. Just enter the start and end times. You don't need to split the shift at midnight.
- Check paid and unpaid breaks. Only take off breaks your employer doesn't pay for. Under the Working Time Regulations, most adult workers are entitled to a 20-minute rest break when they work more than 6 hours a day, but it doesn't have to be paid.
- Logging lots of small bits? The work minutes calculator keeps a running total of your day and tells you how many minutes are left to log.
- Clocks changing? On the nights the clocks go forward or back, a shift across 1am or 2am is an hour shorter or longer than the times suggest. Add or take off 60 minutes yourself.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate the time between two times?
Turn each time into minutes after midnight (hours × 60 + minutes), then take the start away from the end. 08:45 is 525 and 16:15 is 975, so the difference is 450 minutes, which is 7 hours 30 minutes.
How do I work out hours worked across midnight?
Add 24 hours to the end time before subtracting. From 21:00 to 05:00 is (5 + 24) − 21 = 8 hours. This calculator does that for you whenever the end time is earlier than the start.
How do I convert minutes to decimal hours?
Divide the minutes by 60. 45 minutes is 0.75 hours, so 7 hours 45 minutes is 7.75 hours. To go back, multiply the decimal part by 60: 0.4 hours is 24 minutes.
How many minutes are in 8 hours?
480. Multiply hours by 60: 7.5 hours is 450 minutes and 37.5 hours is 2,250 minutes.
Can I subtract more than one break?
Yes. Type them with a plus sign, like 15 + 30 + 15, or give a break as a time range, like 12:30-13:15.
Does it work with am and pm?
Yes. 9am, 9:30am and 5:30pm all work, as do 24-hour times with or without a colon.
Does it save what I type?
No. Everything is worked out in your browser, and nothing is stored or sent anywhere.