Vacation Accrual Calculator
How much paid time off you earn each payday, and how much you have built up so far.
Good to know. Fifteen days a year sounds like three weeks off. Earned over 26 paydays, it is a bit over half a day each time.
How it works
In plain words
Divide the yearly allowance by the number of paydays in a year. Multiply by the paydays so far for what you have earned, and subtract what you have taken.
The formula
each payday = allowance ÷ paydays a year earned = each payday × paydays so far left = earned − taken
Worked example
15 days a year paid every two weeks is 15 ÷ 26 = 0.58 days (4.62 hours) each payday. After 10 paydays that is 5.77 days earned, 3.77 left after the 2 already taken.
Sources
No outside data or rates: this is plain arithmetic.
3 automated tests check its answers on every change.
About the vacation accrual calculator
Many employers, especially in the US, don’t hand out the year’s paid time off on 1 January. It accrues: a small amount is added with each paycheck, so you earn the time as you work. This calculator shows the amount per payday and what you have built up.
The pay schedule changes the steps, not the total. Fifteen days a year is 0.58 days on each of 26 biweekly paydays, 0.63 days on 24 semimonthly ones, or 1.25 days a month. Employers that track time off in hours multiply by the hours in a working day: 4.62 hours each payday for an 8-hour day.
Rules vary by employer and by place. Some cap how much you can carry over or build up, some let unused time roll into next year, and some pay it out when you leave; a few US states require that payout. Your pay stub or HR system usually shows the official balance, so use this to check it or to plan a trip.
In the UK and the EU, leave is a legal minimum by the year rather than a perk; for UK entitlement use the UK holiday entitlement calculator. To count working days in a holiday, use the business days calculator.
Questions people ask
How do I calculate PTO accrual per pay period?
Divide your yearly allowance by the paydays in a year. 15 days over 26 biweekly paydays is about 0.58 days, or 4.62 hours, each time.
How many hours of PTO is 15 days?
At 8 hours a day, 120 hours a year, or 4.62 hours each biweekly payday.
Can I take time off before I have earned it?
It depends on your employer. Some allow a negative balance, others only let you take what has accrued.