Time calculators

Vacation Accrual Calculator

Updated Sep 21, 2026 By Infinity Calculator
Rate Formulas

Policy Configuration

Total entitlement granted for a full accrual year.
Leave Unit
Applies to every leave input and output. Values convert automatically.
Used to convert days ↔ hours.
Lower this for part-time schedules (e.g. 37.5 or 20).
Accrual Method
How often a new slice of leave is earned.
Anchors pro-rating and the 12-month projection.
The date you want the balance calculated for.
Leave blank if the policy has no ceiling.

Per-Period Accrual Rate

Accrual Rate Per Period

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Periods Per Year

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Effective Annual Rate

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Standard Schedule

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Balance & 12-Month Projection

 

Leave Accrued

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Leave Used

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Current Balance

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Next Accrual

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12-Month Accrual & Balance Curve
12-Month Projection Table
Month Accrued This Period Cumulative Accrued Projected Balance

Projection assumes consistent working hours and no additional leave usage beyond the amount entered above. Partial accrual periods at the start of the policy year are pro-rated.

Step-by-Step Solution

Introduction

This Vacation Accrual Calculator shows how much paid time off you have earned. Enter your yearly leave allowance, how often you earn it, and the days you already used. You get your current vacation balance in both days and hours.

You can set it up to match almost any leave policy. Pick an incremental plan, where leave builds up each day, week, two weeks, month, or quarter. Or pick an upfront plan, where you get all your leave on one date each year. You can also add carry-over time from last year and a maximum accrual cap.

After you fill in the boxes, you get your accrual rate per pay period, your balance on any date you choose, and the date of your next accrual. A 12-month chart and table show how your balance will grow. A step-by-step section shows the math, so you can check every number yourself.

How to use our Vacation Accrual Calculator

Enter your vacation policy details: your yearly leave allowance, how often it builds up, your work hours, and any leave you already used. The calculator then shows your accrual rate per period, your current vacation balance, and a 12-month projection with a chart and step-by-step math.

Annual Leave Allowance: Type the total vacation you earn in one full year. You can also tap a preset button for 10, 15, 20, or 25 days.

Leave Unit: Pick Days or Hours. Every leave box and result switches to that unit, and your numbers convert on their own.

Hours Per Workday: Enter how many hours you work in one day, like 8. This turns days into hours and back.

Hours Per Workweek: Enter your weekly hours, like 40. Use a smaller number for part-time work, such as 20 or 37.5.

Accrual Method: Choose Incremental if your leave builds up bit by bit. Choose Upfront if your boss gives you the full amount once a year.

Accrual Frequency: For the incremental method, pick how often you earn leave: daily, weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly.

Annual Renewal Date: For the upfront method, pick the month and day your full leave grant lands each year.

Accrual Start Date: Enter your hire date or the first day of your policy year. This is where the 12-month projection begins.

Show Balance On: Pick the date you want your balance for. It must be on or after the start date.

Carry-Over Balance: Enter any unused leave you brought in from last year. Put 0 if you have none.

Leave Already Used: Enter the vacation you have taken so far this period. This is taken away from your balance.

Maximum Accrual Cap: Enter the most leave your policy lets you hold at one time. Leave it blank if there is no limit.

Calculate and Reset: Results update as you type, but you can press Calculate any time. Press Reset to clear everything and start over.

What Is Vacation Accrual?

Vacation accrual is the way you earn paid time off little by little as you work. Instead of getting all your vacation days at once, you build up a small amount each pay period. Over a full year, those small pieces add up to your full leave allowance.

How Vacation Accrual Works

Your employer picks a yearly leave amount, like 15 days. That number is split across the year based on how often you get paid or how often the company adds leave. For example, 15 days split over 26 bi-weekly pay periods gives about 0.577 days (around 4.6 hours) each period.

Two Main Methods

  • Incremental accrual: You earn leave in small pieces all year, either daily, weekly, bi-weekly, twice a month, monthly, or quarterly. Most hourly and salaried jobs use this.
  • Upfront (lump sum) grant: You get the whole year's leave on one date, like January 1 or your work anniversary. You can use it right away, but you may owe it back if you leave early.

Days vs. Hours

Some companies track leave in days, others in hours. To switch between them, you multiply or divide by the hours in your workday. If you work 8 hours a day, 15 days equals 120 hours. Part-time workers usually track hours, since their days are shorter.

Carry-Over and Accrual Caps

Carry-over is unused leave you bring into the new year. An accrual cap is the highest balance you are allowed to hold. Once you hit the cap, you stop earning new leave until you use some. This is sometimes called a "use it or lose it" rule or a rolling cap. Caps push workers to take time off instead of stacking up huge balances.

Pro-Rating New Hires

If you start in the middle of a pay period or year, you usually earn only part of that period's leave. This is called pro-rating. It matches your leave to the days you actually worked.

Why Your Leave Balance Matters

Your balance is simple math: leave earned, plus carry-over, minus leave already used. Knowing this number helps you plan trips, avoid going negative, and make sure your pay stub matches your real time off. Many states also require unused vacation to be paid out when you leave a job, so tracking it protects your money.

Formulas used

Accrual rate per period
R = \frac{A}{N}
Unit conversion between days and hours
H = D \times h_{\text{day}}
Pro-rated first (semi-monthly) period accrual
a_{\text{period}} = R \times \min\!\left(1, \frac{d_{\text{worked}}}{d_{\text{total}}}\right)
Cumulative accrued leave through the target date
\text{Accrued}_{\text{gross}} = \sum_{i=1}^{k} a_i = k \times R
Room remaining under the maximum accrual cap
\text{Room} = \max\left(0,\ C - \text{Carryover}\right)
Accrued leave after applying the cap
\text{Accrued} = \min\left(\text{Accrued}_{\text{gross}},\ \text{Room}\right)
Current (projected) leave balance
B = \text{Accrued} + \text{Carryover} - \text{Used}
Workdays per week from schedule hours
W = \frac{h_{\text{week}}}{h_{\text{day}}}

Frequently asked questions

How much vacation time do I earn each pay period?

Divide your yearly leave by the number of pay periods in a year.

  • Bi-weekly (26 pay periods): 80 hours a year ÷ 26 = about 3.08 hours per check
  • Semi-monthly (24 pay periods): 80 ÷ 24 = about 3.33 hours per check
  • Monthly (12 periods): 80 ÷ 12 = about 6.67 hours per month

In days, 15 days a year over 26 bi-weekly periods is about 0.58 days per period.

How many vacation hours do you earn per hour worked?

Divide your yearly vacation hours by the hours you work in a year. A full-time year is about 2,080 hours.

Example: 80 vacation hours ÷ 2,080 worked hours = 0.0385 hours of vacation for every hour you work. That is about 1 hour of vacation for every 26 hours on the clock.

For 120 hours (15 days) a year, the rate is about 0.0577 per hour worked.

How many hours is two weeks of vacation?

For a normal 40-hour week, two weeks equals 80 hours, or 10 workdays.

If you work 37.5 hours a week, two weeks is 75 hours. If you work 30 hours a week over 5 short days, two weeks is 60 hours. Always multiply your daily hours by 10 workdays.

How much vacation time is normal in the United States?

Most full-time private jobs start at about 10 paid vacation days a year. That often grows with time on the job:

  • 1 year: around 10 to 11 days
  • 5 years: around 15 days
  • 10 to 20 years: around 17 to 20 days

There is no federal law that forces employers to give paid vacation at all.

Do you get paid for unused vacation days when you quit?

It depends on your state and your company policy. Some states, like California, treat earned vacation as wages that must be paid out when you leave. Other states let the employer decide, so payout only happens if the handbook promises it.

Check your written policy and your state labor rules before you give notice.

Can an employer take away vacation time you already earned?

In many states, no. Once vacation is earned, it is treated like pay you already worked for, and it cannot be erased.

Employers can usually change the rules going forward. They can lower your future accrual rate or set a cap that stops new leave from building. They just have to tell you first.

Is a use-it-or-lose-it vacation policy legal?

It is legal in many states but banned in others, including California, Colorado, Montana and Nebraska, where earned vacation cannot expire.

Where it is banned, employers often use an accrual cap instead. You keep everything you earned, but you stop earning more until you use some.

How does vacation accrual work for part-time employees?

Part-time leave is usually pro-rated by hours, not days. If a full-time worker gets 80 hours a year at 40 hours a week, someone working 20 hours a week gets half, or 40 hours.

Many companies instead give a flat rate per hour worked, like 0.0385 hours of leave for each hour on the clock. That way leave matches the hours you really work.

Do you keep accruing vacation while you are on vacation?

Usually yes. Paid leave hours normally count as paid hours, so you keep earning at your normal rate.

Unpaid leave is different. Most policies pause accrual during unpaid time off, long unpaid medical leave, or a layoff, because there are no paid hours to accrue from.

Does overtime count toward vacation accrual?

Most policies cap accrual at 40 hours a week, so overtime hours do not add extra vacation. Some hourly plans that pay leave per hour worked do include overtime.

Read your policy. If it says accrual is based on "regular hours" or "straight time," your overtime will not build more leave.

How long do new employees have to wait before using vacation time?

Many employers use a waiting period of 30, 60 or 90 days. You still build up leave during that time, but you cannot take it until the waiting period ends.

Some upfront plans give the full year's leave on day one, and some let you go negative and pay it back later. Your handbook sets the rule.

What happens if you use more vacation than you have earned?

Your balance goes negative. You are borrowing leave you have not earned yet, and future accruals pay it back first.

If you quit or get fired with a negative balance, many employers will take the value out of your final paycheck, if state law lets them. Some states limit or ban that deduction.

What is the difference between PTO and vacation time?

Vacation time is only for time off you plan, like a trip. PTO is one bank that covers vacation, sick days and personal days together.

PTO gives you more freedom in how you use it. The trade-off is that a sick week eats into your trip time, since it all comes out of the same pile.

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