Blended Overtime Rate Calculator
Weighted-average regular rate for employees paid two or more hourly rates in one workweek, with bonuses and shift differentials included the way 29 CFR 778.115 requires. Shows every step, and the wrong answers to avoid.
Calculator
What is a blended (weighted-average) overtime rate?
When a non-exempt employee works at two or more hourly rates in the same workweek — a server who also bartends, a tech who earns more on call-outs, a caregiver with different rates for different clients — the Fair Labor Standards Act does not let you simply pay overtime at “the rate of the job they were doing at the time” or at the lowest rate. The default federal rule, 29 CFR 778.115, says the regular rate for that week is the weighted average of all the rates: total straight-time pay from every job divided by total hours worked at every job. The overtime premium is then one-half of that weighted rate for each hour over 40, because the straight-time portion of those hours has already been paid.
The “regular rate” is also where non-discretionary bonuses, commissions and shift differentials must be folded in (778.208, 778.207(b)). Leaving them out underpays overtime, which is one of the most common findings in Wage and Hour Division audits.
The formula
- Straight-time earnings = Σ (hours at each rate × that rate) + non-discretionary bonus + differential pay
- Total hours = all hours actually worked in the workweek, at every rate
- Regular rate = straight-time earnings ÷ total hours (778.109, 778.115)
- Overtime hours = total hours − 40 (federal; 778.101)
- Overtime premium = 0.5 × regular rate × overtime hours (the other 1.0 was already paid as straight time)
- Total weekly pay = straight-time earnings + overtime premium
Worked example with real numbers
Maria works for a restaurant group. In the workweek of Monday to Sunday she worked 30 hours as a host at $18.00 and 15 hours as a trainer at $24.00, for 45 hours total. No bonus.
| Step | Math | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Host straight time | 30 h × $18.00 | $540.00 |
| Trainer straight time | 15 h × $24.00 | $360.00 |
| Total straight-time earnings | $540 + $360 | $900.00 |
| Regular rate | $900.00 ÷ 45 h | $20.00 / h |
| Overtime hours | 45 − 40 | 5 h |
| Overtime premium | 0.5 × $20.00 × 5 h | $50.00 |
| Total pay for the week | $900.00 + $50.00 | $950.00 |
Now suppose Maria also earned a $90 non-discretionary bonus for hitting a weekly upsell target. Straight-time earnings become $990.00, the regular rate becomes $990 ÷ 45 = $22.00, the premium is 0.5 × $22.00 × 5 = $55.00, and total pay is $1,045.00. Paying the $90 bonus “on top” without recomputing the rate would give $1,040.00 — a $5.00 underpayment for this week, and these add up over a year and across a workforce. Click Load example above to see every step reproduced by the calculator.
Common mistakes (and the wrong answers they produce)
1. Paying 1.5× the lowest rate for overtime hours
In Maria’s week this gives a premium of 0.5 × $18 × 5 = $45 and a total of $945. It is $5 short of the weighted-average answer. The FLSA requires overtime on the regular rate, which can never be lower than the weighted average unless a valid 778.419 agreement exists and the overtime hours were actually worked at the lower-rate job.
2. Paying 1.5× “the rate of the job being done” without an agreement
29 CFR 778.419 (implementing FLSA section 7(g)(2)) does allow an employer to pay overtime hours at not less than one and one-half times the bona fide rate for the type of work performed during those overtime hours — but only if the employee agreed to that method in advance of performing the work, the rates are bona fide rates actually paid for those jobs during non-overtime hours, and each rate is at least the minimum wage. Without that advance agreement, the weighted average applies. If Maria’s last 5 hours were trainer hours and a valid agreement existed, the premium would be 0.5 × $24 × 5 = $60 (total $960); if they were host hours, $45 (total $945). The calculator shows this comparison when you tell it which rate was in effect after hour 40.
3. Leaving the bonus, commission or differential out of the rate
Only truly discretionary bonuses (both the fact and the amount decided at the employer’s sole discretion near the end of the period, with no prior promise — 778.211), gifts, and a short list of statutory exclusions in section 7(e) can be left out. Attendance, production, quality, safety, retention and “hit the target” bonuses are all non-discretionary and must be included (DOL Fact Sheet #56C). When a bonus covers more than one workweek, it must be allocated back over the weeks it was earned and additional overtime paid on it (778.209).
4. Averaging hours over a pay period instead of a workweek
5. Forgetting that some states have daily overtime
This calculator uses the federal 40-hour weekly threshold. California, Alaska, Nevada and Colorado require daily overtime in some situations, and several states have their own rules about the regular rate. Use the DOL state law pages or your state labor department as a starting point. Where state and federal law differ, the employee gets whichever is more protective.
6. A regular rate below the minimum wage
Each rate used in a blended calculation must be at least the applicable minimum wage, and the resulting regular rate can never be lower than it (778.107). The calculator flags any week whose regular rate falls below the federal $7.25; most states are higher.
The regulation
“Where an employee in a single workweek works at two or more different types of work for which different nonovertime rates of pay (of not less than the applicable minimum wage) have been established, his regular rate for that week is the weighted average of such rates. That is, his total earnings (except statutory exclusions) are computed to include his compensation during the workweek from all such rates, and are then divided by the total number of hours worked at all jobs.”29 CFR § 778.115, Employees working at two or more rates — read on eCFR
“The Act takes a single workweek as its standard and does not permit averaging of hours over 2 or more weeks.”29 CFR § 778.104, Each workweek stands alone — read on eCFR
Further reading: 29 CFR Part 778 (the whole overtime-compensation part), DOL Fact Sheet #23: Overtime Pay Requirements of the FLSA, Fact Sheet #56C: Bonuses under the FLSA, and the WHD overtime page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a blended rate and a weighted average overtime rate?
They are the same thing. "Blended rate", "weighted average rate" and "regular rate for an employee working at two or more rates" all describe the calculation in 29 CFR 778.115: total straight-time earnings for the workweek divided by total hours worked at all rates.
Is the overtime premium 1.5 times or 0.5 times the blended rate?
Overtime hours must be paid at 1.5 times the regular rate in total. Because the straight-time portion (1.0) of every hour has already been paid at the job rate, only the extra half-time (0.5 × regular rate × overtime hours) remains. Both routes give the same total if done correctly; the half-time method is simply easier when hours were already paid at different rates.
Can I pay overtime at the rate of the job the employee was doing when they crossed 40 hours?
Only under 29 CFR 778.419, which requires an agreement with the employee made before the work is performed, bona fide rates for each type of work, and that the overtime rate is at least 1.5 times the rate for the work actually done during the overtime hours. Without that advance agreement, the weighted-average method in 778.115 is required. Document the agreement in writing.
Do I include a bonus or commission in the blended overtime rate?
Yes, if it is non-discretionary: anything promised or announced in advance to induce performance, attendance or retention, and all commissions. Add the bonus for the week to straight-time earnings before dividing by hours (29 CFR 778.208-778.211; DOL Fact Sheet #56C). Only genuinely discretionary bonuses, gifts and the specific statutory exclusions in FLSA section 7(e) stay out.
Does the shift differential go into the regular rate?
Yes. 29 CFR 778.207(b) states that night-shift and similar differentials, whether a cents-per-hour add-on or a percentage, must be included in the regular rate. Enter the differential hours and amount in the optional fields, or use our dedicated shift differential calculator.
My pay period is biweekly. Can I average the two weeks?
No. 29 CFR 778.104 says each workweek stands alone. Run this calculator once for each workweek in the pay period and add the results.
What about daily overtime or a state with its own regular-rate rules?
This tool is federal-only. California, Alaska, Nevada and Colorado have daily overtime; California also computes the regular rate for flat-sum bonuses differently (Alvarado v. Dart Container). Apply whichever law is more generous to the employee.
How many decimal places should the regular rate have?
The regulations do not specify. This calculator carries full precision through every step and displays the rate to four decimals. Rounding the rate to the nearest cent before multiplying is common and generally accepted when applied consistently, but it can produce pennies of difference from the figures shown here.
About the calculations
Inputs are treated as hours actually worked and bona fide hourly rates in a single workweek. Straight-time earnings = sum of hours × rate for every row, plus any differential (hours × $/hour premium) and any non-discretionary bonus entered. Regular rate = straight-time earnings ÷ total hours (29 CFR 778.109, 778.115). Overtime hours = total hours − 40. Premium = 0.5 × regular rate × overtime hours. The “lowest rate” comparison applies half-time on the smallest entered rate with the bonus ignored; the “excluded bonus” comparison recomputes the regular rate from job earnings only; the 778.419 comparison applies half-time at the selected rate to the overtime hours and adds the half-time premium on the bonus allocated evenly over all hours (778.209). No rounding is applied until display. The tool does not handle salaried non-exempt employees, fluctuating workweeks (778.114), piece rates (778.111), or tip credits; see the linked DOL resources for those.