Holiday Pay Calculator

Pay for working a holiday, a paid day off, and how a holiday premium counts toward overtime

Updated 2026-10-01

Hourly rate

Hours worked on other days this week

hrs

Hours worked on the holiday

hrs

Holiday premium (your policy)

Paid holiday hours not worked

hrs

Gross pay for the week: $1,040.00
Pay for holiday hours worked: $240.00
Paid holiday not worked: $0.00
Hours worked (for overtime): 48
Overtime hours: 8
Overtime premium owed: $80.00
Covered by holiday premium: $80.00
Regular rate: $20.00

Federal law does not require holiday pay. A holiday premium of 1.5× or more stays out of the regular rate and is credited toward overtime (29 CFR 778.203); paid holidays off are not hours worked (29 CFR 778.218).

Your numbers stay on this device. The page link keeps your inputs, so a bookmark or shared link reopens these results.

Enter the hourly rate, the hours worked on other days and on the holiday, your holiday premium and any paid holiday hours for a day off. The calculator gives the pay for the week, applies the federal overtime rule and shows how much of the overtime is already covered by the holiday premium. Nothing is stored or sent.

Is holiday pay required?

Not by federal law. The Department of Labor states that the Fair Labor Standards Act "does not require payment for time not worked, such as vacations or holidays (federal or otherwise)", and premium pay for working a holiday is a matter of agreement between employer and employee (dol.gov, checked 2026-10-01). Your policy, union contract or state law may require more. Where an employer does pay it, two federal rules decide how it interacts with overtime.

Pay for a holiday not worked is not hours worked, is left out of the regular rate and cannot be credited toward overtime (29 CFR 778.218).
A premium for working a holiday of at least 1.5 × the normal rate is left out of the regular rate and may be credited toward overtime due for the week (29 CFR 778.203). A smaller premium goes into the regular rate instead.
Sources checked 2026-10-01 at law.cornell.edu.

Worked examples at $20 an hour

Worked the holiday, 40 hours in the week: 32 regular hours and 8 holiday hours at time and a half. Straight time is $800 plus an $80 holiday premium, $880. No overtime is due.

Took the holiday off with 8 hours of holiday pay and worked 32 hours: $640 + $160 = $800. The holiday hours do not count toward the 40, so no overtime.

Worked 40 other hours plus 8 on the holiday, 48 in all: straight time is $960 and the 1.5× holiday premium is $80. Overtime is owed on 8 hours, a $80 premium, but the $80 holiday premium is credited against it, so the week is $1,040, not $1,120. If the holiday premium were only 1.25×, it would go into the regular rate: ($960 + $40) ÷ 48 = $20.83, overtime premium $83.33, and the week $1,083.33.

$20 an hour, 40-hour overtime threshold
Week	Hours worked	Pay
32 regular + 8 holiday at 1.5×	40	$880.00
32 regular + 8 paid holiday off	32	$800.00
40 regular + 8 holiday at 1.5× (premium credited)	48	$1,040.00
40 regular + 8 holiday at 1.25×	48	$1,083.33

Setting a holiday pay policy

Write the policy down: which holidays, who is eligible, whether part-time staff get pro-rated holiday pay, and the premium for working one. The calculator's defaults are an example, not a requirement; change the premium to your own.

Paying 1.5× or more for holiday work keeps your regular rate simple and lets the premium count toward overtime.
Count holiday pay in labor cost for the week even though it is not hours worked; the labor cost calculator takes the loaded total.
State law and union contracts can require more than the federal rule; check them first.

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Frequently asked questions

How is holiday pay calculated?

Hourly rate × holiday hours × your premium. At $20 an hour, 8 hours at time and a half is $240: $160 of straight time and an $80 premium.

Is holiday pay required by law?

Not under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. It depends on your policy, contract and state law.

Do paid holidays count toward overtime?

No. Pay for a holiday not worked is not hours worked and cannot be credited toward overtime under 29 CFR 778.218.

Does a holiday premium count toward overtime?

If it is at least 1.5 × the normal rate, yes: 29 CFR 778.203 lets it be credited toward overtime owed that week. A 48-hour week at $20 with 8 holiday hours at 1.5× comes to $1,040.

Is this payroll or legal advice?

No. It is an estimate for planning a schedule or checking a pay stub. Your payroll provider, the Department of Labor or your state labor office has the final word.

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