PTO Accrual Calculator
Track paid time off, vacation, and sick days as they accrue throughout the year. Enter your annual allowance, start date, and PTO already taken to see your current balance, monthly accrual rate, and projected year-end total. Free, no sign-up required.
Total days of PTO granted per year (vacation + sick + personal combined).
How PTO accrues: per paycheck, monthly, or all at once at the start of the year.
When this year's PTO plan began. Most plans reset on January 1 or your hire date.
Vacation, sick, and personal days you've already used since the start date.
Used to convert days into hours for the payout calculator.
🌴 Available PTO Balance
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Accrued So Far
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Used
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Per Paycheck
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Year-End Projection
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📊 Year Progress
Plan year is 0% complete.
📝 PTO Breakdown
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Calculations assume a linear accrual rate between your start date and end of plan year.
💰 Cash Value of Your Remaining PTO
Enter your hourly rate to see the dollar value of your accrued-but-unused PTO. Useful for budgeting and for calculating your final payout when you leave a job.
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💡 What this means
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📅 Plan your time off
📅 See planners on Amazon →📝 How to use this PTO calculator
- Pick your annual allowance — most US full-time workers get 10-20 days of combined PTO per year. Choose a preset (10, 15, 20) or click Custom for an exact number.
- Select your pay schedule — biweekly (26 paychecks/year) is the most common in the US. Choose annual lump-sum if your employer grants all PTO on January 1.
- Enter the plan start date — when this year's PTO bank began (often January 1 or your hire anniversary).
- Enter days already taken — vacation, sick, and personal days you've used since the start date. Check your pay stubs for the exact YTD figure if you're not sure.
- Set hours per work day — used to convert your PTO balance to hours for the cash-value estimate.
- Click Calculate — see your current balance, accrual rate per paycheck, year-end projection, and (with an hourly rate) the cash value of unused time.
📌 5 tips for managing PTO
- ✓ Track accrual in real time. Your employer typically posts your running balance to every pay stub under "PTO available" or "Vacation balance." Reconcile it monthly against the calculator above to catch payroll errors before they compound across a year.
- ✓ Use it or lose it — plan ahead. Most "use it or lose it" policies cap carryover at 5-10 days. If you have more than that banked going into Q4, schedule 2-3 long weekends before December 31 to avoid losing the excess. The calculator's year-end projection shows whether you're on track to forfeit time.
- ✓ Stack PTO around holidays for max impact. Taking 4 PTO days bracketing 2 holidays (e.g., Thursday-Friday + Monday-Tuesday around Memorial Day) gives you 10 consecutive days off using only 4 PTO days. Same trick around Christmas and Thanksgiving can stretch 4 PTO days into 11 days off.
- ✓ Know your state's payout rules at termination. California, Colorado, and a dozen other states require payout of all accrued PTO at separation as earned wages. Texas, Florida, and most "at-will" states allow "use it or lose it" with no payout. If you're job-hunting with a large balance, consider timing your resignation in a state with mandatory payout.
- ✓ Don't sell PTO if you can avoid it. Some employers offer "PTO cash-out" once a year, often at 80-100% of your hourly rate. Turning PTO into cash loses the tax-advantaged leisure benefit and can push you into a higher tax bracket. Use the time for rest instead — it's worth more than the cash equivalent for most people.
Disclaimer: This calculator provides estimates for educational purposes only. Your actual PTO balance, accrual rate, carryover rules, and payout eligibility depend on your employer's written PTO policy, your state's labor laws, and your employment contract. Always verify your balance with HR or your payroll department before making time-off decisions. This tool is not a substitute for legal or HR advice.
Related Tools
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- 50/30/20 Budget Calculator — allocate your paycheck across needs, wants, and savings.