1. Rules
The numbers behind the preset (edit any of them)
The federal preset summarises 29 U.S.C. 207 and 29 CFR part 778. Many states set stricter overtime rules (daily overtime, longer limitation periods, higher damages), and exemptions apply to some employees. Check the numbers for your state.
2. Payroll rows
Paste payroll rows, then click Audit.
Result
By employee and week
| Employee | Week | Hours | Base rate | Regular rate | OT hours | Owed | Paid | Back pay |
|---|
By employee
| Employee | Weeks | OT weeks | Owed | Paid | Back pay |
|---|
How it works
Regular rate: straight-time pay (hours x rate) plus bonuses and other included pay, divided by total hours in the workweek. Excluded pay is shown but never changes the rate.
Premium owed: the premium factor (0.5) x regular rate x hours over the threshold (40). This is the extra due when straight time was already paid for every hour.
Paid and back pay: back pay is owed minus paid, never below zero. A blank paid column assumes the premium was figured on the base rate, so the shortfall is 0.5 x (regular rate - base rate) x overtime hours. The page labels assumed figures.
Exposure: average back pay per distinct week in your paste, times 52 weeks, times the lookback years (and the damages multiplier). It is a projection from the sample you pasted, not a count of weeks.
Not modelled: state overtime and daily overtime, exemptions, the fluctuating workweek and other special pay plans, bonuses attributable to longer periods that must be reallocated to the weeks earned, tips and tip credits, and pay for non-hour measures such as piece rates. Hours are taken as you paste them.
Related tools: the overtime pay calculator for one employee's overtime pay, and the California meal and rest break premium checker.
Checked: the test suite recomputes hand-worked cases, including 50 hours at 15 dollars with a 100 dollar bonus (regular rate 17.00, premium 85.00), and the exact boundary at 40 versus 40.5 hours.
Common questions
What is the regular rate of pay under the FLSA?
The regular rate is the hourly rate an employee is actually paid for a workweek: all remuneration for employment, including nondiscretionary bonuses, shift differentials and commissions, divided by the total hours worked in that week. Overtime for hours over 40 is based on this rate, not on the base hourly wage alone.
How do I calculate overtime when an employee gets a bonus?
Add the bonus to the week's straight-time pay and divide by total hours to get the regular rate. If the employee is paid by the hour and already received straight time for every hour, the extra owed is half the regular rate for each hour over 40. Example: 50 hours at 15 dollars plus a 100 dollar bonus gives a regular rate of 17.00 and an overtime premium of 0.5 x 17.00 x 10 = 85.00.
Which pay is left out of the regular rate?
Some payments are excluded by the statute, such as truly discretionary bonuses, gifts, reimbursed expenses, premium pay for hours over the daily or weekly standard, and certain benefit-plan contributions. Whether a bonus is discretionary depends on whether the employer fixed the amount and the decision at its sole discretion, and a promised or announced bonus is generally not. Enter excluded amounts in the excluded column and they will not change the rate.
How far back can an employee claim unpaid overtime?
The FLSA limitation period is two years, extended to three for a willful violation, counted from each paycheck. A court may also award an equal amount in liquidated damages unless the employer shows good faith. Some states allow longer periods. The lookback years and a damages multiplier are editable on this page, and the exposure figure is a projection, not a finding.
Is my payroll data uploaded anywhere?
No. Everything is calculated in your browser, nothing is sent to a server, and there are no accounts. Employee names stay on your device.