PAID TIME OFF · ACCRUAL · USE IT OR LOSE IT · LONG WEEKENDS

PTO & Vacation Time Planner

See how much paid time off you will have on any date. Enter your balance and how you earn PTO, add the trips you are planning, and the planner projects your balance paycheck by paycheck. It warns before you go negative, hit your accrual cap or lose hours at year end, and finds the days off that turn a few PTO days into long breaks around holidays.

Holidays follow the federal observed-date rules; pick the ones your employer gives. PTO rules vary by employer and state – check your handbook.

  1. 1Balance & accrual
  2. 2Plan your time off
  3. 3Check & find long weekends

    Your PTO balance over time

    Using PTO & Vacation Time Planner

    Plan your vacations with your real paid time off. Enter today’s balance, how you earn PTO and your employer’s cap and carryover rules, choose your paid holidays and add the time off you are planning. The planner projects your balance paycheck by paycheck, shows how many PTO days each trip really uses, warns before you go negative or lose hours, and suggests the days off that join weekends and holidays into long breaks.

    1. In Balance, enter your current PTO balance in hours, your workday length, working days and your employer’s cap and carryover limit.
    2. In Accrual, choose how you earn PTO (every paycheck, per hour worked, monthly or once a year) and your paydays.
    3. In Holidays, pick the holidays your employer gives or add company days off.
    4. In Time off, add each trip with its first and last day off; half days are allowed.
    5. Check the balance chart and calendar, add ideas from Long weekends, then save your trips to your calendar or download a PDF.

    Example

    With 62 hours on October 24 and 6.15 hours earned every two weeks, you earn about 31 hours by December 31. Taking November 23–25 off (Thanksgiving week) uses 24 hours and leaves 68.75 hours; with a 40-hour carryover limit you need to use about 29 more hours before year end or lose them.
When Christmas falls on a Friday, taking Monday to Thursday of the next week off turns 4 PTO days into 10 days away including New Year’s Day.

    Questions & answers

    How do I calculate PTO accrual per paycheck?

    Multiply the days of PTO you get per year by the hours in your workday and divide by the number of paychecks a year. For example, 20 days × 8 hours ÷ 26 biweekly paychecks = 6.15 hours per paycheck.

    What does use it or lose it mean?

    Many employers let you carry only a certain number of PTO hours into the next year. Hours above that limit are forfeited at year end. Some states, including California, do not allow employers to take away earned vacation, so check your state and handbook.

    What is a PTO accrual cap?

    A cap is the maximum balance you can hold. When you reach it you stop earning PTO until you use some. The planner shows how many hours you would miss.

    Do holidays count against my PTO?

    No. Paid holidays your employer observes are not working days, so they do not use PTO. Choose your employer’s holidays in the Holidays tab.

    How are holidays on weekends handled?

    Following the federal rule, a holiday on a Saturday is observed on the Friday before and a holiday on a Sunday on the Monday after. Your employer may use different rules; add or remove days as needed.

    How does the long weekend finder work?

    It looks for working days next to paid holidays and weekends and shows the ones that give the most days off for each PTO day, plus the best way to get a full week or more away.

    Is my PTO plan stored online?

    No. Everything stays in your browser. Use Save to keep a file or the calendar button to add your trips to your calendar.

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