PTO Accrual Calculator
Use this calculator to estimate your accrued Paid Time Off (PTO) balance based on your company's policy.
Fixed Per Period
Per Hour Worked
Per Week
Per Bi-Weekly Pay Period
Per Semi-Monthly Pay Period
Per Month
Per Year
Understanding PTO Accrual
Paid Time Off (PTO) is a common employee benefit that combines vacation, sick leave, and personal days into a single bank of hours. Understanding how your PTO accrues is crucial for planning your time off and managing your work-life balance.
How PTO Accrual Works
Companies typically use one of two main methods for PTO accrual:
- Fixed Per Period: You earn a set number of PTO hours or days for each pay period (e.g., 4 hours per bi-weekly pay period, 10 days per year). This is a predictable method where your PTO balance grows steadily over time.
- Per Hour Worked: You earn a fraction of an hour of PTO for every hour you work (e.g., 0.05 hours of PTO for every hour worked). This method is common for hourly employees and means your PTO accrual directly correlates with the hours you put in.
Many companies also implement an Accrual Cap, which is a maximum limit on the total PTO hours you can accumulate. Once you hit this cap, you stop accruing new PTO until you use some of your existing balance.
Using the PTO Accrual Calculator
Our calculator helps you estimate your current or future PTO balance. Here's how to use each input:
- Starting PTO Balance (Hours): Enter any PTO hours you currently have or carried over from a previous period. If you're a new employee, this will likely be 0.
- Accrual Rate (Hours): This is the number of PTO hours you earn. For example, if you earn 4 hours every two weeks, enter '4'. If you earn 0.05 hours per hour worked, enter '0.05'.
- Accrual Type: Select whether your PTO accrues at a fixed rate per period or based on hours worked.
- Accrual Period (if 'Fixed Per Period'): Choose how often your fixed accrual rate is applied (e.g., Per Week, Per Month).
- Number of Accrual Periods Passed (if 'Fixed Per Period'): Enter how many of these periods have passed since your last PTO calculation or since you started accruing. For example, if you accrue bi-weekly and 4 pay periods have passed, enter '4'.
- Total Hours Worked (if 'Per Hour Worked'): If your PTO accrues per hour worked, enter the total number of hours you have worked since your last PTO calculation or since you started accruing.
- PTO Taken (Hours): Enter the total number of PTO hours you have used since your last calculation.
- Maximum Accrual Cap (Hours, optional): If your company has a maximum limit on PTO, enter it here. The calculator will ensure your balance doesn't exceed this cap.
Example Calculation
Let's say you started with 20 hours of PTO. Your company policy states you accrue 4 hours of PTO every bi-weekly pay period. You've had 3 pay periods pass, and you've taken 8 hours of PTO. Your company has a maximum accrual cap of 120 hours.
- Starting PTO Balance: 20 hours
- Accrual Rate: 4 hours
- Accrual Type: Fixed Per Period
- Accrual Period: Per Bi-Weekly Pay Period
- Number of Accrual Periods Passed: 3
- PTO Taken: 8 hours
- Maximum Accrual Cap: 120 hours
Calculation:
Accrued PTO = 4 hours/period * 3 periods = 12 hours
Total PTO = Starting Balance + Accrued PTO – PTO Taken
Total PTO = 20 + 12 – 8 = 24 hours
Since 24 hours is less than the 120-hour cap, your current estimated PTO balance is 24 hours.