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Night Shift Hours Calculator (Overnight Hours)
Choose the start and end time using the time picker.
Enter a start time at night and an end time the next morning. The calculator counts the hours across midnight, takes off the unpaid break and can add a night differential. A shift from 10:00 PM to 6:30 AM is 8 hours 30 minutes on the clock. After a 30-minute unpaid meal, 8 hours are paid.
Quick answer: Take the start time away from the end time. If the result is negative, add 24 hours, because the shift ended the next day. Then take off any unpaid break. A shift from 11:00 PM to 7:30 AM is 8 hours 30 minutes on the clock, and 8 paid hours after a 30-minute meal.
An end time earlier than the start time is read as the next morning. The same start and end gives 0 hours. Differential pay is the base rate times the hours times one plus the percent. Some employers pay the premium only for set hours, such as 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM. For that case, pick "Only hours inside a time window". The premium then covers only the paid minutes inside that window. Any unpaid break is split between the time inside and outside it.
Worked example: a third-shift night with a differential
Picture a warehouse worker on third shift. He clocks in at 11:00 PM and clocks out at 7:30 AM the next morning. He takes a 30-minute unpaid meal around 3:00 AM. His base rate is $20.00 an hour, and nights carry a 15% differential.
The clock runs for 8 hours 30 minutes. Once the meal comes off, 8 paid hours are left. At the base rate that is $160.00. The differential adds $3.00 to each hour, so the night pays $184.00, or $24.00 more than a day shift of the same length.
Result: 8.00 paid hours; $184.00 estimated gross with the 15% differential.
Overnight shift reference table
| Start | End | Unpaid break | On the clock | Paid | Decimal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10:00 PM | 6:00 AM (next day) | 30 min | 8:00 | 7:30 | 7.50 |
| 10:00 PM | 6:30 AM (next day) | 30 min | 8:30 | 8:00 | 8.00 |
| 10:00 PM | 7:00 AM (next day) | 60 min | 9:00 | 8:00 | 8.00 |
| 10:30 PM | 7:00 AM (next day) | 30 min | 8:30 | 8:00 | 8.00 |
| 11:00 PM | 7:00 AM (next day) | 30 min | 8:00 | 7:30 | 7.50 |
| 11:00 PM | 7:30 AM (next day) | 30 min | 8:30 | 8:00 | 8.00 |
| 11:00 PM | 8:00 AM (next day) | 60 min | 9:00 | 8:00 | 8.00 |
| 9:00 PM | 5:30 AM (next day) | 30 min | 8:30 | 8:00 | 8.00 |
| 12:00 AM | 8:30 AM | 30 min | 8:30 | 8:00 | 8.00 |
| 6:00 PM | 6:30 AM (next day) | 30 min | 12:30 | 12:00 | 12.00 |
| 7:00 PM | 7:00 AM (next day) | 30 min | 12:00 | 11:30 | 11.50 |
| 7:00 PM | 7:30 AM (next day) | 30 min | 12:30 | 12:00 | 12.00 |
| 8:00 PM | 8:00 AM (next day) | 45 min | 12:00 | 11:15 | 11.25 |
Graveyard shift hours and third shift
Graveyard shift and third shift are two names for the same kind of work. The shift usually runs through the small hours, such as midnight to 8:00 AM or 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM. First shift is then the day shift, and second shift covers the evening. Employers set their own times, so check your schedule for the real start and end.
A night shift that starts at midnight has no midnight problem at all. A start of 12:00 AM and an end of 8:30 AM is a plain 8 hours 30 minutes. The trouble only comes when the shift starts on one date and ends on the next. That is the case this calculator is built for.
For a whole week of overnight punches with overtime, use the time card calculator. It also reads an out time earlier than the in time as the next day. Twelve-hour nights, such as 7:00 PM to 7:00 AM, have their own 12 hour shift calculator with weekly totals.
Night shift hours in Excel or Google Sheets
Put the start time in B2, the end time in C2 and the unpaid break minutes in D2. The MOD function handles shifts that pass midnight, so no extra date column is needed.
| What you want | Formula |
|---|---|
| Hours on the clock, overnight | =MOD(C2-B2,1)*24 |
| Paid hours after the break | =MOD(C2-B2,1)*24-D2/60 |
| Paid time as h:mm | =TEXT(MOD(C2-B2,1)-D2/1440,"h:mm") |
| Hours after midnight | =IF(C2<B2,C2*24,0) |
| Pay with differential, paid hours in E2, rate in G1, percent in H1 | =E2*G1*(1+H1) |
Type the percent in H1 as 10% or as 0.1. A plain 10 would multiply the pay by eleven.
Common mistakes
- Mixing up 12:00 AM and 12:00 PM. A shift that starts at midnight starts at 12:00 AM. Typing 12:00 PM turns an 8-hour night into a 20-hour shift.
- Forgetting daylight saving time. On the night clocks spring forward, 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM is 7 hours really worked. On the night they fall back it is 9. Clock math shows 8 either way, so adjust by one hour.
- Leaving the differential out of overtime. Under the FLSA, a night differential is part of the regular rate. So overtime for nonexempt workers is 1.5 times the rate including the differential.
The differential trips people up as well. A hospital might pay its night premium only from 11:00 PM onward, and the window option above handles that. Federal law does not require a premium at all. It comes from employer policy or a contract, so use the rate in your offer letter.
Night shift and overnight hours questions
How do you calculate hours past midnight?
Count the end time as part of the next day. A shift from 22:00 to 06:30 runs for 8 hours 30 minutes, and any unpaid break comes off after that.
How long is a typical night shift?
Most run 8, 10 or 12 hours. Hospitals often staff nights from 7:00 PM to 7:00 AM, while warehouses and call centers often use 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM. Your own roster sets the real times.
7 PM to 7 AM is how many hours?
That night lasts 12 hours. Take off a 30-minute unpaid break and you are paid for 11.5 of them.
What does 10 PM to 6:30 AM come to after a 45-minute break?
The clock shows 8.50 hours and the break removes 0.75, so 7.75 hours are paid. On a time card that reads 7:45.
What are graveyard shift hours?
People use the name for work in the small hours, often from midnight to 8:00 AM or from 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM. Third shift and overnight shift mean the same thing.
How do I calculate overnight hours in Excel?
Put the start time in B2 and the end time in C2, then use =MOD(C2-B2,1)*24. MOD adds a day whenever the end is earlier than the start. For break minutes in D2, add -D2/60 to the end.
Is night shift differential required by law?
The federal FLSA does not require it. Whether nights pay extra is settled between the employer and the worker, or their union.
Is shift differential included in overtime pay?
It is. Under the FLSA a night differential is part of the regular rate, so a nonexempt worker's overtime rate is built on top of it.
How does daylight saving time affect a night shift?
US clocks change at 2:00 AM. On the spring night, a 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM shift is really 7 hours long. On the fall night it lasts 9. The clock sum shows 8 both times, so move the result by an hour.
Sources
- The U.S. Department of Labor page on night work and shift work confirms that the FLSA does not require extra pay for night work.
- The rule that night differentials belong in the regular rate is in 29 CFR 778.207.
- Overtime after 40 hours in a workweek is explained on the Department of Labor overtime pay page.
Cite this page
APA: ClockTotals. (2026, October 17). Night Shift Hours Calculator (Overnight Hours). https://clocktotals.com/night-shift-hours-calculator/
MLA: “Night Shift Hours Calculator (Overnight Hours).” ClockTotals, 17 Oct. 2026, clocktotals.com/night-shift-hours-calculator/.
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