Federal law does not require a lunch break. The U.S. Department of Labor says it plainly: "Federal law does not require lunch or coffee breaks" (DOL, Breaks and Meal Periods). What federal law does decide is pay: a short break of about 5 to 20 minutes is paid work time, and a real meal period, ordinarily 30 minutes or more with no duties, can be unpaid. The requirement to give a lunch break comes from state law. The DOL's state table lists meal period rules in 21 states, most of them a 30 minute break after 5 to 8 hours of work.
Below: the federal pay rules, the state table built from the DOL's wording, how long a lunch break is, when it has to be paid, and how to take it out of a time card.
The federal rule: no break required, but it decides pay
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) has no break requirement for adults. Two regulations decide whether a break that is given counts as paid time:
- Rest breaks are paid. "Rest periods of short duration, running from 5 minutes to about 20 minutes" are customarily paid and "must be counted as hours worked" (29 CFR 785.18). Coffee breaks and snack breaks are rest periods.
- Real meal periods are not. "Bona fide meal periods are not worktime." The employee must be completely relieved from duty, and "ordinarily 30 minutes or more is long enough", although a shorter period can be enough under special conditions (29 CFR 785.19).
Two details people often get wrong:
- Eating at your desk while working is work. The regulation's examples are an office employee required to eat at the desk and a factory worker required to stay at the machine. Both are working while eating, so the time is paid.
- You do not have to be allowed to leave the building. Under 785.19(b) an unpaid meal period does not require permission to leave the premises, as long as the employee is otherwise completely freed from duties.
Because paid rest breaks count as hours worked, they also count toward the 40 hours that trigger federal overtime. Only the unpaid meal period comes off.
Lunch break laws by state (DOL table)
The table below repeats the U.S. Department of Labor's "Minimum Length of Meal Period Required under State Law for Adult Employees in Private Sector" (DOL meal period table), as read on October 9, 2026. The DOL marks it as last revised January 1, 2023, so a change after that date is not in it. Coverage and exceptions are shortened; the full row has more.
| State | Meal period in the DOL table | Who it covers (short) |
|---|---|---|
| California | 30 min if work is more than 5 hours a day (waivable by mutual consent if the day is done in 6 hours or less); second 30 min over 10 hours (waivable up to 12 hours if the first was not waived) | Labor Code § 512 and IWC orders; industry exceptions |
| Colorado | 30 min if the shift exceeds 5 consecutive hours | retail and service, food and beverage, commercial support service, health and medical |
| Connecticut | 30 min after the first 2 hours and before the last 2, for 7.5 consecutive hours or more | statute; exemptions possible |
| Delaware | 30 min after the first 2 hours and before the last 2, for 7.5 consecutive hours or more | statute; written agreements can differ |
| Illinois | at least 20 min, no later than 5 hours after the start, for 7.5 continuous hours or more | statute; hotel room attendants in counties over 3 million: 30 min in a day of 7 hours or more |
| Kentucky | reasonable off duty period, ordinarily 30 min, between the 3rd and 5th hour; not time worked | statute and regulation |
| Maine | 30 min after 6 consecutive hours, except in emergencies | not for workplaces with fewer than 3 employees on duty who get frequent paid breaks |
| Maryland | 15 min for 4 to 6 consecutive hours, 30 min over 6; at 8 or more, 30 min plus 15 min per additional 4 hours | retail employers with 50 or more retail employees |
| Massachusetts | 30 min for each 6 hours worked in a calendar day, free of all duties and free to leave | statute; some industries excluded |
| Minnesota | sufficient unpaid time for 8 consecutive hours or more | statute |
| Nebraska | 30 min, off premises, in each 8 hour shift | assembly plants, workshops, mechanical establishments |
| Nevada | 30 min if work is for 8 continuous hours | employers of two or more |
| New Hampshire | 30 min after 5 consecutive hours, unless the employee can eat while working and is allowed to | any employer |
| New York | 30 min noonday period for shifts over 6 hours that extend over the noonday meal (1 hour in factories); more for long and night shifts | statute |
| North Dakota | 30 min, if desired, on each shift over 5 hours | when two or more employees are on duty |
| Oregon | 30 min, relieved of all duty, for each work period of 6 to 8 hours | every employer except under a collective bargaining agreement |
| Rhode Island | 20 min within a 6 hour shift, 30 min within an 8 hour shift | not licensed health care facilities or fewer than 3 people on a shift |
| Tennessee | 30 min for 6 consecutive scheduled hours, not in or before the first hour | every employer, some workplaces excepted |
| Vermont | "reasonable opportunities" to eat and use toilet facilities | universal |
| Washington | 30 min if work is more than 5 consecutive hours, between the 2nd and 5th hour; another 30 min for 3 or more hours past the regular day | most employers; agriculture has its own rule |
| West Virginia | 20 min for 6 hours or more in a workday | when breaks or eating while working are not allowed |
The DOL table also lists Guam and Puerto Rico. Its footnotes add a 30 minute meal period for seasonal farm workers in Pennsylvania after 5 hours and for migrant workers in Wisconsin after 6 hours, and say that 35 jurisdictions have separate meal rules for minors.
A state that is not in the table is not proof of "no lunch law". The table covers adults in the private sector, leaves out exemptions for executive, administrative and professional employees and outside salespersons, and the DOL says individuals "should consult the relevant state labor office for official information". Rules for minors, industries and union contracts can still apply.
This is a calculation, not legal advice.
Rest break laws by state
Rest breaks are the short, paid ones. The DOL's paid rest period table (also last revised January 1, 2023) has these rows, and its footnote says "States not listed do not require paid rest periods":
| State | Paid rest period in the DOL table |
|---|---|
| California | 10 min for each 4 hours worked or major fraction; not required under 3.5 hours a day |
| Colorado | 10 min for each 4 hours of work or major fraction |
| Illinois | hotel room attendants in counties over 3 million: two 15 min breaks in a day of 7 hours or more |
| Kentucky | 10 min during each 4 hour work period, in addition to the meal period |
| Minnesota | adequate time within each 4 consecutive hours to use the nearest restroom |
| Nevada | 10 min for each 4 hours worked or major fraction; not required under 3.5 hours a day |
| Oregon | 10 min for every 4 hours worked or major portion, separate from the meal period |
| Vermont | "reasonable opportunities" to eat and use toilet facilities |
| Washington | 10 min for each 4 hour work period; no more than 3 hours without a rest period |
How long is a lunch break?
There is no single legal length. From the sources above:
- Federal: none required. If one is given and unpaid, 30 minutes or more is ordinarily long enough (29 CFR 785.19).
- Most states in the DOL table: 30 minutes, after 5, 6, 7.5 or 8 hours depending on the state.
- Shorter: Illinois at least 20 minutes, West Virginia 20 minutes, Rhode Island 20 minutes within a 6 hour shift.
- Longer: New York factories 1 hour at noon, and Maryland retail adds 15 minutes for each extra 4 hours.
- California: a second 30 minute meal period over 10 hours of work.
Many employers give 30 or 60 minutes by policy. An unpaid hour is fine under federal law as long as you are completely relieved from duty for the whole time.
How many breaks in an 8 hour shift?
It depends on the state. Two examples straight from the DOL tables:
- California: an 8 hour day is more than 5 hours, so one 30 minute meal period. Rest periods are 10 minutes for each 4 hours or major fraction, so two paid 10 minute breaks.
- Kentucky: one meal period, ordinarily 30 minutes, between the 3rd and 5th hour, plus a paid 10 minute rest period in each 4 hour work period.
In a state with no row in either table and no other rule, federal law requires none, and any 5 to 20 minute break that is given is paid.
Is a lunch break paid?
| Situation | Paid? | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Break of 5 to about 20 minutes | yes, counts as hours worked | 29 CFR 785.18 |
| Meal period of 30 minutes or more, completely relieved from duty | no | 29 CFR 785.19(a) |
| Lunch at the desk or machine while required to work | yes | 29 CFR 785.19(a) |
| Meal period on the premises but free of all duties | no | 29 CFR 785.19(b) |
| California, Colorado: on duty meal period when the work prevents relief | yes, counted as time worked | DOL meal table |
| Washington: required to stay on duty on the premises | yes, counted as worktime | DOL meal table |
| Oregon: 20 to 30 minute meal period where that is industry practice | yes, with pay | DOL meal table |
Example: a working lunch
Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, 8 hours 30 minutes at work each day, $20 an hour.
| Lunch | Paid hours a day | Hours in the week | Gross pay for the week |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 min, completely off duty | 8:00 | 40 | 40 x $20 = $800.00 |
| 30 min eaten at the desk while answering calls | 8:30 | 42.5 | 40 x $20 + 2.5 x $30 = $875.00 |
The working lunch is hours worked, so the week goes over 40 and the extra 2.5 hours are federal overtime at 1.5 x $20 = $30 an hour. Deducting 30 minutes a day that were not a real break takes 2.5 paid hours off this employee every week.
How to deduct lunch on a time card
- Open the time card calculator and enter start and end for each day.
- Type the unpaid meal break into the break field. The hint in the calculator says: "Enter only the unpaid meal break. Short rest breaks of 5 to 20 minutes count as paid work time."
- Or let the calculator do it: under "Overtime, breaks and pay", switch on "Deduct lunch automatically:" and fill in "Lunch minutes" and the length after which it applies ("min when the shift is longer than"). It is used on days where you leave the break field empty.
- Choose what happens on "Shifts just over the limit": "Deduct the whole lunch" or "Deduct only down to the limit".
With 30 minutes after 6:00 at work, the two options give:
| Time at work | Deduct the whole lunch | Deduct only down to the limit |
|---|---|---|
| 6:00 | 6:00 (not longer than 6:00, nothing deducted) | 6:00 |
| 6:15 | 5:45 | 6:00 |
| 6:30 | 6:00 | 6:00 |
| 8:30 | 8:00 | 8:00 |
For California's rule, set the lunch to 30 minutes after 5:00. The calculator compares the time at work with the limit, so it does not decide whether a waiver applies; enter the real break on those days. Totals show in hours and minutes and in decimal (8:30 = 8.5 hours, see hours to decimal). For a single shift, use the work hours calculator; for overtime after the break comes off, the overtime calculator and the California overtime law guide. If clock times are rounded, read the time clock rounding rules first.
FAQ
Are lunch breaks required by federal law?
No. The U.S. Department of Labor says federal law does not require lunch or coffee breaks. Federal law only decides whether a break that is given must be paid.
Which states require a lunch break?
The DOL meal period table (last revised January 1, 2023) lists 21 states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia, plus Guam and Puerto Rico. Several apply only to some employers or industries.
How long is a lunch break by law?
Usually 30 minutes where a state requires one. Federal law requires none, but an unpaid meal period is ordinarily 30 minutes or more. Illinois, West Virginia and Rhode Island (6 hour shift) list 20 minutes, and New York factories 1 hour.
Is a lunch break paid?
Not if it is a real meal period, usually 30 minutes or more, with no duties at all. Breaks of 5 to about 20 minutes are paid, and so is lunch eaten at the desk while you are still expected to work.
Can my employer make me stay on site during an unpaid lunch?
Under federal law, yes. 29 CFR 785.19(b) says an employee does not have to be allowed to leave the premises if otherwise completely freed from duties. Massachusetts lists meal breaks as free to leave the workplace, and Nebraska's covered workplaces as off premises.
Can I skip my lunch break and leave early?
Federal law does not stop it, since it requires no break. In California, the first meal period can be waived by mutual consent only when the workday is done in 6 hours or less. Other states in the table set their own conditions, so check your state's row and your employer's policy.
Do short breaks count toward overtime?
Yes. Rest periods of 5 to about 20 minutes are hours worked under 29 CFR 785.18, so they count toward the 40 hours in a workweek. Only unpaid meal periods are deducted.