A biweekly timesheet covers 14 days, but overtime is counted for each workweek on its own. 45 hours in week one and 35 in week two add up to 80 hours, and 5 of them are overtime, not zero. This biweekly timesheet calculator shows both weeks, counts the overtime in each one and downloads the timesheet as a PDF ready to sign.
How to use the calculator
- Set "Workweek starts on" under "Overtime, breaks and pay" to the day your employer's workweek begins. The 14 days start on that day. Pick the first day of your pay period in the date field, and the arrows then move one pay period back or forward.
- Enter In, Out and the unpaid lunch for each day you worked. 9:30, 930 and 9:30 PM all work. A shift that ends after midnight counts on the day it started.
- Repeat a regular schedule by filling in the first Monday and using "Copy Monday to empty weekdays". It fills the empty Monday to Friday rows of both weeks.
- Add your hourly rate to see regular pay, overtime pay and gross pay for the period.
- Check the summary. It shows the total for the two weeks in hours and minutes and in decimal hours, and lists each week with its own total and its own overtime.
- Download the timesheet as a PDF with the employee's name, every day of the period, the totals, the rules used and signature lines for the employee and the supervisor. Or download a CSV.
Worked example: 80 hours with overtime in one week
An employee paid $20 an hour, U.S. federal rule, workweek starting Monday. A busy first week, a shorter second one:
| Week | Days | In | Out | Lunch | Per day | Week total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mon to Fri | 8:00 AM | 5:30 PM | 30 min | 9:00 | 45:00 |
| 2 | Mon to Fri | 8:00 AM | 3:30 PM | 30 min | 7:00 | 35:00 |
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Pay period | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hours worked | 45:00 | 35:00 | 80:00 |
| Regular | 40:00 | 35:00 | 75:00 |
| Overtime (1.5x) | 5:00 | 0:00 | 5:00 |
| Pay | $950.00 | $700.00 | $1,650.00 |
Week 1: 40 x $20 = $800 plus 5 x $30 = $150, so $950. Week 2: 35 x $20 = $700. If the two weeks were averaged to 40 hours each, the pay would be 80 x $20 = $1,600, which is $50 short. Under the California preset the result here is the same, because each 9 hour day in week 1 has 1 hour of daily overtime, which also makes 5 hours.
Why overtime is counted per workweek
The federal overtime rule pays 1.5 times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek (29 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1)). Each workweek stands alone, and two weeks may not be averaged, even when they are paid together (29 CFR 778.104). A workweek is a fixed and recurring period of 168 hours, seven days in a row, and it can begin on any day (29 CFR 778.105).
So the pay period and the workweek are two different things. The pay period decides when you are paid; the workweek decides what counts as overtime. There are presets for California, Alaska, Nevada and Colorado, the four states that count overtime by the day in the U.S. Department of Labor state table (updated July 1, 2026). Other states can still have their own rules. The overtime calculator explains each preset with examples.
This is a calculation, not legal advice.
In the UK there is no statutory overtime premium. The UK preset counts overtime above the contract hours you enter, and shows a plus or minus balance against them.
Biweekly, semimonthly and weekly pay
| Pay schedule | Paychecks a year | Lines up with workweeks? |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly | 52 | Yes, one workweek each |
| Biweekly | 26 (occasionally 27) | Yes, two workweeks each |
| Semimonthly (twice a month) | 24 | No, weeks are cut at the 15th and the month end |
| Monthly | 12 | No |
A year is 52 weeks plus one or two days, so every so often a biweekly schedule has a 27th payday. The calculator has Day, Week, 2 weeks and Month periods but no half month, so for monthly pay switch the period to Month. Workweeks cut off by the edge of the month are marked "part", and weekly overtime only sees the days inside the period, so for a week that runs into the next month, switch to Week to see its full overtime.
Keeping the timesheet
The PDF is meant to be printed or emailed and signed: the employee's name at the top, In, Out, break and hours for every day, decimal hours, regular hours, overtime, pay if you entered a rate, the rule that was used, and two signature lines. The CSV has the same days in a format any spreadsheet opens. The times you type are kept in this browser only.
If you run payroll for several people, the team plan keeps every person's timesheets in one account, with a monthly PDF per person and one payroll CSV for everyone.
FAQ
How many hours is a full time biweekly pay period?
80 hours, if the schedule is 40 hours a week. In decimal that is 80.00, and with a 40 hour threshold there is no overtime as long as each week stays at or under 40.
Is 80 hours in two weeks overtime?
It depends on how the hours fall. 40 and 40 have no overtime. 45 and 35 have 5 hours of overtime in the first week, because each workweek is counted on its own.
How do I calculate biweekly hours?
Work out each day as Out minus In minus the unpaid break, add up each week, count the overtime for each week, then add the two weeks. The calculator shows each day on the time card and each week in the summary.
Can overtime be averaged over a two week pay period?
No. Under the federal rule each workweek stands alone, so overtime in one week cannot be offset by short hours in the other.
What if my pay period starts on a Wednesday?
If your employer's workweek also starts on Wednesday, set "Workweek starts on" to Wednesday under "Overtime, breaks and pay", and the 14 days run from Wednesday to the second Tuesday. If the pay period and the workweek start on different days, set the workweek's day: overtime follows the workweek, not the pay period.
Which week does a night shift belong to?
In this calculator, the week of the day the shift started. With a Monday workweek, a shift from Sunday 10:00 PM to Monday 6:00 AM counts on Sunday, the last day of the first week.
How many biweekly pay periods are in a year?
26 in most years. Because a year is 52 weeks plus one or two days, some years have 27 biweekly paydays.
Can I print the biweekly timesheet?
Yes. Download the PDF, which has signature lines for the employee and the supervisor, or download the CSV to open it in a spreadsheet.