PTO accrual calculator
See how much paid time off you've earned, what you can book now, and your projected year-end balance — free, instant, no signup.
Available to book now
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Estimate only. Real policies vary — waiting periods, rounding, and accrual timing differ by employer. Orvella computes every employee's balance exactly, on an auditable ledger.
How PTO accrual works
Accrued PTO is paid time off you've earned so far, rather than your full annual allowance. Instead of granting all your days on January 1, many employers let you earn them gradually — a fraction each month, pay period, or week. So at any point in the year you've accrued part of your allowance, and that accrued amount (minus what you've already taken) is what you can actually book.
The accrual formula
Accrual per period = annual allowance ÷ number of periods in a year. For example, 15 days a year accrued monthly is 15 ÷ 12 = 1.25 days per month. After 4 completed months you'd have accrued 5 days. Subtract any time you've already taken to get your available balance. This calculator does that math for you across monthly, semi-monthly, bi-weekly, weekly, and annual schedules.
Days vs. hours, and carryover
Some companies track PTO in hours rather than days — toggle the unit and set your hours per work day to convert. If your policy lets unused time roll into next year up to a limit, enter a carryover cap to see how much you'd keep. Remember these are estimates: real policies add details like waiting periods for new hires, rounding rules, and exact accrual dates.
Stop calculating this by hand
Doing this in a spreadsheet for one person is fine; doing it for a whole team — with different start dates, schedules, carryover caps, and public holidays — is where errors creep in. Orvella runs this exact math automatically for every employee on an auditable ledger, so balances are always accurate and explainable, and nobody has to recompute a spreadsheet at month-end.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate my PTO accrual?
Divide your annual PTO allowance by the number of accrual periods in a year to get your per-period accrual, then multiply by the number of periods that have passed. For example, 20 days a year accrued monthly is 1.67 days per month; after 6 months you've accrued about 10 days. Subtract any time already taken for your available balance. This calculator does it automatically.
What does PTO accrual mean?
PTO accrual means you earn paid time off gradually over the year rather than receiving it all at once. Each pay period or month adds a small amount to your balance, so your accrued PTO grows as the year goes on.
How much PTO do I accrue per pay period?
It's your annual allowance divided by the number of pay periods. With 15 days a year and bi-weekly pay (26 periods), you accrue about 0.58 days — roughly 4.6 hours — per pay period. Switch the accrual frequency in the calculator to match your employer's schedule.
Is this PTO calculator accurate for my company?
It gives a close estimate using the standard accrual formula, but employers add rules it can't know — waiting periods for new hires, rounding, exact accrual dates, and how public holidays are handled. For exact, per-employee balances, Orvella computes accruals automatically on an auditable ledger.
Does PTO carry over to the next year?
It depends on your policy. Some employers let unused PTO roll over up to a cap; others use 'use it or lose it.' Enter a carryover cap in the calculator to see how much you'd keep. Orvella enforces carryover caps and expiry automatically.