How do you convert minutes to decimal hours?
Divide the minutes by 60. There are 60 minutes in an hour, so 30 minutes is 30 ÷ 60 = 0.50 of an hour and 45 minutes is 45 ÷ 60 = 0.75. A decimal hour is just the hours written in tenths and hundredths instead of minutes, which is the form payroll uses because it can be multiplied by a pay rate.
To convert a clock time such as 7:45, keep the whole hours and convert only the minutes: 7 hours + 0.75 = 7.75 hours. 8 hours 20 minutes is 8 + 0.33 = 8.33 hours, and 37 hours 40 minutes is 37 + 0.67 = 37.67 hours. Going the other way, multiply the decimal part by 60: 0.4 hours is 0.4 × 60 = 24 minutes and 0.35 hours is 21 minutes.
Timesheet calculatorEnter in and out times and see each day in hours and minutes and in decimal hours.Minutes to decimal hours chart, 0 to 59 minutes
Find the minutes in a row and read the decimal hours beside them. Add the whole hours to the figure. 5 hours 12 minutes is 5.20 hours. Values are rounded to two decimal places.
| Minutes | Decimal hours | Minutes | Decimal hours | Minutes | Decimal hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0.00 | 20 | 0.33 | 40 | 0.67 |
| 1 | 0.02 | 21 | 0.35 | 41 | 0.68 |
| 2 | 0.03 | 22 | 0.37 | 42 | 0.70 |
| 3 | 0.05 | 23 | 0.38 | 43 | 0.72 |
| 4 | 0.07 | 24 | 0.40 | 44 | 0.73 |
| 5 | 0.08 | 25 | 0.42 | 45 | 0.75 |
| 6 | 0.10 | 26 | 0.43 | 46 | 0.77 |
| 7 | 0.12 | 27 | 0.45 | 47 | 0.78 |
| 8 | 0.13 | 28 | 0.47 | 48 | 0.80 |
| 9 | 0.15 | 29 | 0.48 | 49 | 0.82 |
| 10 | 0.17 | 30 | 0.50 | 50 | 0.83 |
| 11 | 0.18 | 31 | 0.52 | 51 | 0.85 |
| 12 | 0.20 | 32 | 0.53 | 52 | 0.87 |
| 13 | 0.22 | 33 | 0.55 | 53 | 0.88 |
| 14 | 0.23 | 34 | 0.57 | 54 | 0.90 |
| 15 | 0.25 | 35 | 0.58 | 55 | 0.92 |
| 16 | 0.27 | 36 | 0.60 | 56 | 0.93 |
| 17 | 0.28 | 37 | 0.62 | 57 | 0.95 |
| 18 | 0.30 | 38 | 0.63 | 58 | 0.97 |
| 19 | 0.32 | 39 | 0.65 | 59 | 0.98 |
Print this page if you want the chart at a desk. The most used values are 15 minutes (0.25), 30 minutes (0.50) and 45 minutes (0.75).
What is the quarter-hour and 6-minute rounding chart?
Some employers round punch times to a fixed step instead of using exact minutes. The federal rule at 29 CFR 785.48(b) accepts rounding to the nearest 5 minutes, one-tenth of an hour or quarter of an hour, as long as it averages out and does not consistently cost employees time they worked. The two charts below show which minutes round to which value when the step is a quarter hour (15 minutes) or a tenth of an hour (6 minutes). The quarter-hour chart is the familiar 7-minute rule.
| Minutes past the hour | Rounds to (hours) |
|---|---|
| 0 to 7 | 0.00 |
| 8 to 22 | 0.25 |
| 23 to 37 | 0.50 |
| 38 to 52 | 0.75 |
| 53 to 59 | 1.00 |
| Minutes past the hour | Rounds to (hours) |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 | 0.00 |
| 3 to 8 | 0.10 |
| 9 to 14 | 0.20 |
| 15 to 20 | 0.30 |
| 21 to 26 | 0.40 |
| 27 to 32 | 0.50 |
| 33 to 38 | 0.60 |
| 39 to 44 | 0.70 |
| 45 to 50 | 0.80 |
| 51 to 56 | 0.90 |
| 57 to 59 | 1.00 |
Rounding is a policy choice, not a conversion. It only complies if it works both ways over time. Rounding every punch in the employer’s favor is not allowed.
How do you add up a time card in decimal hours?
Add the hours and minutes first, then convert the total once. Five days of 7 hours 50 minutes add up to 39:10, which is 39.17 hours. If you convert each day first, 7:50 becomes 7.83 hours and five of them make 39.15, which is 0.02 hours less than the true total.
At $18 an hour the true pay for 39:10 is (39:10 ÷ 60) × $18 = $705.00. Converting each day to two decimals first pays 7.83 × 5 × $18 = $704.70, which is $0.30 short. The gap is small for one employee, and it adds up across a payroll and a year. Convert the weekly total once.
- Write each day as hours and minutes.
- Add all the hours, then add all the minutes.
- Turn every full 60 minutes into one more hour.
- Convert the remaining minutes to a decimal with the chart.
- Multiply the decimal hours by the pay rate.
How do you convert minutes to decimal hours in Excel or Google Sheets?
| You have | Formula | Result for 7:45 |
|---|---|---|
| A time in cell A1 (formatted as time) | =A1*24 | 7.75 |
| Hours in A1 and minutes in B1 | =A1+B1/60 | 7.75 |
| Minutes only in A1 | =A1/60 | 465 minutes gives 7.75 |
| Decimal hours in A1, back to minutes | =A1*60 | 7.75 gives 465 |
| Round to two places | =ROUND(A1*24,2) | 7.75 |
Format the result cell as a number, not as a time, or the spreadsheet will show it as a clock time. A total over 24 hours needs the custom format [h]:mm, otherwise it wraps around.
Why does payroll use decimal hours?
Pay is a rate per hour times the hours worked, and that is easier to multiply with a decimal. Overtime is counted in hours over 40 in a workweek, so the weekly total needs to be exact before the 40-hour line is applied. 40 hours 15 minutes is 40.25 hours, which includes 0.25 hours of overtime. The Department of Labor requires employers to keep records of hours worked each workday and each workweek, and it does not prescribe the form, so a decimal or an hours-and-minutes record both work.
Overtime calculatorWork out overtime pay from weekly hours, with federal and California rules.Common minutes to decimal mistakes
The usual mistake is reading minutes as the decimal part of an hour.
- Writing 7 hours 30 minutes as 7.30. It is 7.50.
- Writing 8 hours 15 minutes as 8.15. It is 8.25.
- Converting each day to hundredths and then adding, instead of adding first and converting once.
- Rounding every punch up, which the rounding rule does not allow when it costs employees time.
- Typing 0.5 hours as 5 minutes. It is 30.
- Showing a total over 24 hours in a spreadsheet time format that wraps.
Common questions
How do I convert minutes to decimal hours?
What is 15 minutes in decimal hours?
How do I convert 7 hours 30 minutes to decimal?
How do I convert decimal hours back to minutes?
What is the 7-minute rule?
Should I convert each day or the weekly total?
Sources
Reviewed on 31 Oct 2026 against the published sources below. Laws and prices change, so check the current position before you rely on a figure.
- 29 CFR 785.48(b): rounding practice for starting and stopping time (nearest 5 minutes, one-tenth or quarter of an hour)
- U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division: Fact Sheet #21, Recordkeeping Requirements under the FLSA
Every figure on this page is calculated, not typed. A decimal hour is the minutes divided by 60 and rounded to hundredths. The quarter-hour and 6-minute bands use the nearest-step rule the site's timesheet calculator uses, where a time exactly halfway rounds up. The rounding rule quoted from the Department of Labor is the one in 29 CFR 785.48(b).
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Results are estimates, not legal, tax, payroll or financial advice. This guide is general information, and figures are worked out from the sources above and may differ from what applies to you. See the disclaimer. Found a mistake? Tell us.