Estimates for personal planning — not tax, legal, or payroll advice. Every number above is gross pay unless a line says otherwise; the formula, its boundaries, and its test cases are published below.
How it works
decimal = 7 + 45 ÷ 60 = 7 + 0.75 = 7.75
pay = 7.75 × $18.00 = $139.50
Minutes to decimal chart (:01–:59)
| Min | Dec | Min | Dec | Min | Dec | Min | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| :01 | 0.02 | :16 | 0.27 | :31 | 0.52 | :46 | 0.77 |
| :02 | 0.03 | :17 | 0.28 | :32 | 0.53 | :47 | 0.78 |
| :03 | 0.05 | :18 | 0.30 | :33 | 0.55 | :48 | 0.80 |
| :04 | 0.07 | :19 | 0.32 | :34 | 0.57 | :49 | 0.82 |
| :05 | 0.08 | :20 | 0.33 | :35 | 0.58 | :50 | 0.83 |
| :06 | 0.10 | :21 | 0.35 | :36 | 0.60 | :51 | 0.85 |
| :07 | 0.12 | :22 | 0.37 | :37 | 0.62 | :52 | 0.87 |
| :08 | 0.13 | :23 | 0.38 | :38 | 0.63 | :53 | 0.88 |
| :09 | 0.15 | :24 | 0.40 | :39 | 0.65 | :54 | 0.90 |
| :10 | 0.17 | :25 | 0.42 | :40 | 0.67 | :55 | 0.92 |
| :11 | 0.18 | :26 | 0.43 | :41 | 0.68 | :56 | 0.93 |
| :12 | 0.20 | :27 | 0.45 | :42 | 0.70 | :57 | 0.95 |
| :13 | 0.22 | :28 | 0.47 | :43 | 0.72 | :58 | 0.97 |
| :14 | 0.23 | :29 | 0.48 | :44 | 0.73 | :59 | 0.98 |
| :15 | 0.25 | :30 | 0.50 | :45 | 0.75 | :60 | 1.00 |
The 7-minute rounding rule
Employers may round punch times to the nearest quarter hour: the first 7 minutes of a quarter round down, the last 7 round up — 8:07 becomes 8:00, 8:08 becomes 8:15. That practice is legal only if it averages out and doesn't systematically shortchange you (29 CFR §785.48(b)). This converter never rounds your input — it converts exactly what you type.
Why payroll uses decimal hours
Wages multiply. 7 hours 45 minutes at $18 is not “7.45 × 18” — that error underpays you $5.40. Payroll systems convert minutes to hundredths of an hour first (45 ÷ 60 = 0.75), then multiply. Two decimals is the industry convention; the 4-decimal row is here for audits.
A full week, converted
The conversion matters most in aggregate. A week of 8:10, 7:55, 8:20, 8:05, and 7:50 punches is 8.17 + 7.92 + 8.33 + 8.08 + 7.83 = 40.33 hours — over the 40-hour line, so the last 0.33 h is overtime. Read as “8.10 + 7.55 + …” it would total 39.80 and appear to owe none. Same timesheet, opposite conclusion.
Decimal hours vs industrial minutes
Some timekeeping systems display industrial minutes — hundredths of an hour rather than sixtieths. In that system “7.75” and “7:45” are the same duration, which is exactly what this converter produces. If your system shows a value between 0 and 100 for the minutes portion, it is already in industrial minutes and needs no conversion.
From the public test suite
assert timeToDecimal(7:20).decimal == 7.33 ✓
assert timeToDecimal(8:07, $25).pay == 202.92 // no input rounding ✓
// 36 cases · 96 assertions · runs on every deploy — see all
Sources
Built and maintained by Ethan Chen, independent developer. No credential is claimed that we don't have — what this page offers instead is a published formula and a public test suite.