How the conversion works
- Hours and minutes to decimal. decimal hours = whole hours + (minutes / 60).
- Minutes only to decimal. decimal hours = minutes / 60. 37 minutes is 37 / 60 = 0.6167, which rounds to 0.62.
- Decimal back to minutes. minutes = (decimal hours - whole hours) x 60.
- Decimal to total minutes. total minutes = decimal hours x 60. 7.25 hours is 435 minutes.
Worked examples
8 hours 45 minutes to decimal
45 / 60 = 0.75. Add the 8 whole hours: 8.75 decimal hours. At $18 an hour that is 8.75 x 18 = $157.50.
7 hours 20 minutes to decimal
20 / 60 = 0.3333. Add the 7 whole hours: 7.3333, which payroll takes as 7.33. Over a two-week pay period, that rounding is worth well under a minute a day, which is why the converter also shows four decimal places.
6.4 decimal hours back to a clock reading
0.4 x 60 = 24 minutes, so 6.4 hours is 6 hours 24 minutes, written 6:24 on a time card.
A full week
Five shifts of 8 hours 25 minutes each. 25 / 60 = 0.4167, so each shift is 8.4167 hours. Five shifts is 42.0833 hours, which payroll reads as 42.08: 40 regular hours and 2.08 hours of overtime.
Minutes to decimal chart (1 to 60)
Every minute from 1 to 60, rounded to two decimal places, the way payroll wants it. Print this page or keep the tab open while you key in a stack of paper cards.
| Min | Decimal | Min | Decimal | Min | Decimal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| 20 | 0.33 | 40 | 0.67 | 60 | 1.00 |
The quarter hour shortcut
Four values cover most hand-written time cards, so they are worth memorising: 15 minutes = 0.25, 30 minutes = 0.50, 45 minutes = 0.75, 60 minutes = 1.00. Tenths of an hour are the other common set, because each tenth is exactly 6 minutes: 6 minutes is 0.1, 18 minutes is 0.3, 42 minutes is 0.7.
A note on payroll rounding
Converting to decimal is not the same as rounding a punch. Conversion is exact arithmetic. Rounding changes the number of minutes an employee is paid for, and federal rules are specific about it.
- Rounding is allowed, in both directions. Under the federal rule at 29 CFR 785.48, an employer may round punches to a set increment (5 minutes, a tenth of an hour, or a quarter hour are the usual choices) as long as the practice averages out over time and does not consistently favor the employer.
- One-way rounding is the trap. Always rounding clock-ins forward and clock-outs backward is not neutral, and it is the fact pattern behind a lot of unpaid wage claims.
- Quarter-hour rounding means the 7 and 8 minute line. With a 15 minute increment, 1 to 7 minutes past the mark rounds down and 8 to 14 minutes rounds up.
- Some states are stricter than the federal rule. California in particular has narrowed employer rounding through the courts, especially for meal periods. If you operate there, check before you round anything.
The rounding selector in the converter is there so you can see what a policy would do to one shift before you adopt it. It is a preview, not advice.
Hours to decimal FAQ
How do I convert minutes to decimal hours?
Divide the minutes by 60. 20 minutes is 20 / 60 = 0.33 hours. 45 minutes is 45 / 60 = 0.75 hours. Add any whole hours afterwards.
What is 8 hours 30 minutes in decimal?
8.50 hours. 30 / 60 = 0.50, added to the 8 whole hours. Writing it as 8.30 shorts the employee by 12 minutes.
What is 0.75 hours in minutes?
45 minutes. Multiply the decimal by 60: 0.75 x 60 = 45. The same way, 0.25 is 15 minutes and 0.5 is 30 minutes.
Why does payroll use decimal hours instead of minutes?
Because pay is a multiplication. Hours times rate only works if the hours are a single number, and 8:45 is not a number you can multiply. 8.75 x $18 gives $157.50 in one step.
How many decimal places should I keep?
Two is the standard for a payroll import. Keep four while you are adding up a long pay period and round once at the end, so the rounding error does not repeat on every line.
Is a decimal hours chart the same as a payroll conversion chart?
Yes, the two names describe the same table: minutes down one column, the matching decimal fraction of an hour down the other. The chart above covers all 60 minutes.