Input hours, calculate, download as pdf

Free Time Card Calculator

Why Use this Time Card?

Our free time card calculator was designed to make things as easy and convenient as possible. Here’s what it offers:

  • Keyboard-friendly input
  • All the features a small team needs to track time and attendance
  • Option to download time cards as PDFs for approval and record-keeping
  • Data can be sent to your preferred tool: Google Sheets, Excel, or Zapier
  • Option to save the time card settings for convenience
  • Embed function that allows you to add the free time card calculator on any web page

Features

  • Set a custom hourly rate
  • Overtime tracking
  • Absence tracking
  • Add breaks to each day
  • Show/Hide weekend
  • 24H or 12H time format
  • Custom weekly timesheet name
  • Custom date range

How to Use Our Time Card Calculator

1. Start by adding your name in the space provided, then input the starting date of the week.

2. If you prefer to use a 24-hour time format, you can toggle the switch to the on position.

3. If you need to include breaks, toggle the “add breaks” switch to the on position.

how to fill out Free time card calculator

4. Next, click the dropdown underneath the days of the week and choose if you want to set an hourly rate.

how to set hourly rate in a time card calculator

5. If using an hourly rate, input it in the designated field and choose the currency.

Free time card calculator - set hourly rate

6. Now, set the overtime rules by choosing whether overtime applies.

how to set overtime in a time card calculator

7. If overtime is included, add the amount of pay owed for each overtime hour and set the regular number of daily working hours (or you can opt for weekly working hours). Any hours tracked over this amount will be recorded as overtime.

Free time card calculator - hourly rate

8. You’re ready to start tracking hours! 

9. Add the start and stop times in the relevant fields, and the calculator will automatically update the total hours and wages owed.

how to fill out time card calculator

10. If you’re a weekend worker, toggle the Show Weekend switch, and Saturday and Sunday will be added to the time card hours calculator.

Free time card calculator - absences

11. If there are any absences (not including breaks), add them to the time card in the relevant field and check the box to indicate whether or not it’s paid.

Free time card calculator - absences

12. As you complete the time card, the totals, including overtime, will automatically get added at the bottom.

how to save data from a time card calculator

13. When the time card is complete, you have a few options for saving and sending:

PDF Download

An appealing PDF of the time card can be downloaded and sent to your accounting department. Or your employees can do it themselves.

PDF Time Card Rerport

Send data to other tools

If you want to really crunch down on the numbers you can send the tracked data to your custom URL and than connect it to tools like Google Sheets, Excel, even Zapier.

Time Card send via URL

Embed on your website

Copy this code below and paste it into your CMS under “iframe”.

<iframe name='timecard' height='1600px' width='100%' scrolling='yes' src='https://mihas.github.io/timecard/?hourly_rate=10' marginwidth='0px' marginheight='0px' frameborder='0' id='timeCard' allowfullscreen style='border:0px none #ffffff'> </iframe>

This will embed the free time card calculator on your website.

Saved settings ready for a bookmark

The custom settings of the time clock calculator can be set straight from the URL. Below is an example and all the shortcodes needed.

Example: https://mihas.github.io/timecard/?hourly_rate=10&add_breaks=true 

  • 24h_format [true/false]
  • add_breaks [true/false]
  • show_weekend [true/false]
  • hourly_rate [decimal]
  • currency [decimal]
  • overtime_hours [decimal]
  • overtime_rate [decimal]
  • overtime_setting [day/week]
  • submit_url [text]

Time Card Guides by Industry

Contractor Time Card

Contractors must track time accurately to meet client expectations and contractual obligations. Using a time card calculator is also essential for tracking labor costs and complying with wage rules.

Contractors must record their daily start and stop times, including travel between sites, break periods, and the projects they worked on. Maintaining detailed records reduces the risk of disputes by providing a clear account of each worker’s efforts.

Best practices for contractor time cards:

  • Record start and stop times for projects.
  • Document meal and rest breaks.
  • Send data to a spreadsheet to input any necessary project details, job codes, or cost codes.

Tip: If you’re tracking hours for multiple clients, use a separate time card for each of them.

Engineer Time Card

Engineers are often required to split their time between different projects, tasks, and even funding sources. Therefore, detailed time tracking is essential for proper job costing and client billing, as well as for providing more accurate estimates for upcoming projects.

Best practices for engineer time cards:

  • Keep billable and non-billable activities separate.
  • Track regular hours vs. overtime hours.
  • Use project codes for time card entries to simplify billing and reporting (you can do this by pulling the time card data onto a spreadsheet).

Agency Time Card

Agencies usually manage multiple clients and projects simultaneously, with staff working on overlapping assignments. Time cards help track time by client, project, or deliverable, providing a clear picture for billing and project costing.

Time cards also help balance team schedules, especially during periods with tight deadlines.

Best practices for agency time cards:

  • Use project or client codes for time entries to capture billable hours in the right places.
  • Implement time card approval workflows to verify time entries before billing clients.
  • Analyze time card data to look for resource optimization opportunities.

Attorney Time Card

Most attorneys bill by the hour, so transparent time tracking is crucial for maintaining client trust and ethical standards. Legal time cards should detail the work performed and allocate the hours to specific cases or clients.

This precision allows law firms to comply with professional obligations while minimizing the risks of billing disputes.

Best practices for attorney time cards:

  • Record time in standard billing increments immediately after completing a billable task.
  • Add clear descriptions of tasks performed and which client or case they relate to.
  • Clearly indicate which tasks are billable and which are not.

Nonprofit Time Card

Nonprofits are obligated to track time for each employee and volunteer to prove that grant funds are being used appropriately and for the right projects. Granting agencies often audit time records and could halt funding if accurate records aren’t maintained.

Detailed time cards also help separate grant-funded tasks from operational ones, ensuring complete transparency throughout each work day.

Best practices for nonprofit time cards:

  • Keep tracked time for grant-funded work and operational work separate.
  • Similarly, do not mix paid time with volunteer time—use separate time cards for each.
  • Employee signatures are required on timesheets to comply with regulations.

Office Team Time Card

Office teams tend to have standard working hours, but time cards are still required to ensure that overtime is paid correctly and all breaks and time off are accounted for.

Time cards are also highly useful for spotting trends such as frequent absenteeism or excessive overtime, which could indicate problems such as burnout and excessive workloads.

Best practices for office team time cards:

  • Enforce a consistent approach to daily time entries for all employees.
  • Review overtime hours regularly to help prevent excessive workloads and payroll spikes.
  • Communicate and provide training on timekeeping policies and the importance of time cards.

Construction Time Card

Construction workers need to track hours by project, job classification, and location to ensure time is allocated in the right places, especially when multiple clients are involved.

Accurate time keeping is not only crucial for payroll, but also for meeting the recordkeeping requirements of government contracts and avoiding client disputes and issues.

Best practices for construction time cards:

  • Send time card data to a spreadsheet to enable more detailed time records.
  • Include certification or contract numbers if required by project rules.
  • Short breaks are typically compensated, so do not add these as unpaid breaks.

Consultant Time Card

Detailed and transparent time cards are required from consultants since they generally bill clients by the hour or per deliverable. Detailed records also protect against disputes over billed hours.

And besides supporting accurate invoicing, historical time cards can be analyzed to understand the profitability of each project.

Best practices for consultant time cards:

  • Add short work descriptions to support each time entry and the subsequent invoice.
  • Round time up or down according to what’s stated in each contract.
  • Retain records to back up disputes.

Hospitality Time Card

The hospitality industry is renowned for shift work, making reliable time cards essential for managing payroll for standard, split, or overtime shifts.

Also, since break times for hospitality staff tend to be irregular, a time card makes it convenient to track when each worker takes a pause and how long it lasts.

Best practices for hospitality time cards:

  • Implement a solid time card approval process to check for errors, omissions, and discrepancies.
  • Regularly audit split or double shifts to stay compliant with overtime laws.
  • Analyze time cards to prevent underpayment claims and optimize shift patterns.

Freelance Hours Calculator

Freelancers are responsible for managing their own schedules and keeping careful time logs for accurate client billing, making time cards very useful and convenient.

Clear time records also help freelancers justify their invoices and demonstrate their value to clients.

Best practices for freelancer time cards:

  • Get in the habit of completing time cards each day to avoid missing billable hours.
  • Keep billable and non-billable time separate.
  • Retain records of all time cards in case of tax reviews or client disputes.

Want to Automate Time Tracking? Try My Hours

While our online time calculator offers a basic time tracking solution, a more comprehensive tool will make the job that much easier and, most importantly, ensure compliance with labor and wage laws.

My Hours offers a user-friendly platform with fully automated time tracking. Every second, whether billable or not, can be effortlessly tracked in the right places.

Get started - it’s freeFree online timesheet app

Check out its top features:

  • An intuitive user experience and clean interface
  • One-click real-time tracking with auto-filled timesheets
  • Available on desktop, browser extension, Android, and iOS devices for flexible access
  • User roles enable automated approval workflows and restricted views
  • Individual login credentials for each employee
  • Separate work by clients, projects, and tasks 
  • Define billable rates, set budgets, and track expenses
  • Automatically invoice clients in a couple of clicks
  • Helpful alerts for overtime, budget limits, and timesheet completion
  • Transform timesheets into customized reports to show the data that matters
  • A full audit log of all changes
  • Integration with other apps for easy payroll, accounting, and more

Time Card Compliance and Best Practices FAQ

What are the legal timesheet requirements?

In the US, the legal timesheet requirements include:

  • Maintaining accurate time records of hours worked for non-exempt workers, including uncompensated overtime.
  • Including the employee’s name, job classification, and start date on each time card.
  • Completing timesheets daily, including start and end times of hours worked.
  • Tracking unpaid breaks, overtime, and other compensable time.
  • Retaining timesheet records for at least three years.
  • Gaining timesheet approval from supervisors at the end of each pay period.

The law does not insist on a specific way to track time. You can use digital, spreadsheet, or paper formats. However, whatever you use, the data must be reliable and easily accessible.

Are time cards required for payroll?

Time cards are required for payroll when an employee’s pay is based on how many hours they work. 

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), employers must keep accurate records of non-exempt workers’ hours, including any overtime, breaks, and time off.

How do I calculate regular vs. overtime hours?

According to the FLSA, regular hours are the first 40 hours worked in a work week.

Any hours beyond that count as overtime, paid at 1.5 times the employee’s regular hourly wage.

Do employees need to sign their time cards?

No, employees are not legally required to sign their time cards; however, it is considered best practice for them to do so. By having workers sign their time cards, they can confirm their time entries are accurate and complete.

What is the employer’s responsibility for verifying time card accuracy?

Employers are legally responsible for verifying accuracy and approving time cards for payroll processing. 

The responsibility is typically given to the supervisor of each team within the workplace, but overall, the employer is accountable for ensuring compliance with wage laws.

How long should I keep employee time card records?

According to federal law, you must keep employee time card records for at least two years. Payroll records must be kept for at least three years.

That said, it’s best practice to retain records for up to six or seven years to cover longer statutes of limitations for any potential audits or claims.

What happens if an employee forgets to track time?

If any employee forgets to track time or clock in or out, the employer is still legally obligated to pay them for the hours they worked.

Ultimately, it is down to the employer to maintain accurate records of hours, even if the employee fails to log hours properly.

Are breaks and meal periods required on time cards?

Short breaks under 20 minutes must be counted as paid time and should be included within the total hours worked. Longer breaks for meals (usually 30 minutes or more) are typically unpaid and should be recorded on the time card.

Can rounding time entries cause compliance issues?

To avoid compliance issues with rounding time, it must be implemented correctly:

  • Time can be rounded to the nearest 5, 6, or 15 minutes.
  • The rounding amount cannot exceed 15 minutes.
  • Rounding must always be neutral or in favor of the employee.
  • Over time, the rounding of time should average out, so workers are properly compensated. If this isn’t the case, the practice should be removed.

How do I track time for remote or off-site employees?

To effectively track time for remote or off-site employees, organizations should implement digital solutions that make time tracking convenient and transparent.

Using a dedicated time-tracking tool such as My Hours enables efficient tracking via desktop, browser, and mobile app, no matter where the employee is based.

Can I change an employee’s time card if I find an error?

Yes, it’s possible to change an employee’s time card if you spot an error, but only in specific circumstances:

  • Permissible changes include adjusting hours to accurately reflect the hours worked.
  • Changes to reduce hours worked or evade paying overtime are not allowed.

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