Nurse Overtime Pay Calculator
Calculate your true overtime rate with night, weekend, and charge differentials included — the way the FLSA requires
36 is typical for 3×12s
At 1.5× multiplier
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Quick summary
Enter your base rate, hours, and differentials (night, weekend, charge) to see your total weekly pay and your true overtime rate. Under the FLSA, overtime must be calculated on your blended regular rate — which includes shift differentials — not your base rate alone. This calculator shows exactly how much that difference is worth.
Reviewed by Simple Calculators TeamLast reviewed
For planning only — not financial or tax advice. Results are estimates based on your inputs and the stated assumptions. Confirm important decisions with a qualified professional.
How to use this calculator
- Enter the inputs requested by the calculator.
- Choose the units or options that match your situation and review the assumptions.
- Run or update the calculation to see the result.
- Review the result, breakdown, and formulas shown on the page.
- Check the inputs, units, dates, and limitations before saving or sharing the result.
Nurse Overtime Formulas
FLSA Blended Regular Rate
- Base Pay
- Base hourly rate × straight-time hours
- Differential Pay
- Night, weekend, and charge premiums earned
- Straight-Time Hours
- Regular (non-overtime) hours worked
Worked example
36 hrs at $40/hr with $120 night and $36 weekend differentials
- Given
- Base Pay = $1,440Differential Pay = $156Straight-Time Hours = 36
- Calculation
- Result
- Blended Rate = $44.33/hr
True Overtime Rate
- Blended Rate
- FLSA regular rate including differentials
Worked example
Overtime rate on a $44.33 blended rate
- Given
- Blended Rate = $44.33
- Calculation
- Result
- OT Rate = $66.50/hr
Frequently asked questions
Should my overtime rate include my shift differential?
Yes. Under the FLSA, non-discretionary premiums like night, weekend, and charge differentials must be included in the "regular rate of pay" used to calculate overtime. If you earn $40/hr base with differentials averaging $4/hr, your overtime should be 1.5 × $44, not 1.5 × $40.
How does overtime work for nurses on 3×12 schedules?
Working three 12-hour shifts is 36 hours — under federal law, overtime starts after 40 hours in the workweek, so a fourth shift typically includes 4 regular and 8 overtime hours. Hospitals using the 8/80 rule instead pay overtime after 8 hours in a day or 80 hours in a 14-day period, whichever is greater.
What is the 8/80 rule?
The 8/80 rule is an FLSA alternative available only to hospitals and residential care facilities. With employee agreement, the employer pays overtime for hours beyond 8 in any workday or beyond 80 in a 14-day period, instead of the standard 40-hour week. It can help or hurt depending on your schedule pattern.
Do differentials count toward overtime in every state?
The FLSA blended-rate requirement is federal, so it applies in every state. Some states add stricter rules — California, for example, requires daily overtime after 8 hours and double time after 12 hours in a day.
What should I do if my employer pays overtime on base rate only?
First verify with your pay stubs — compare your OT rate against 1.5× your blended rate from this calculator. If it is consistently short, raise it with payroll or HR; systematic exclusion of differentials from overtime is one of the most common FLSA violations in healthcare and can be recovered as back pay.
Key terms
- Regular Rate of Pay
- The FLSA rate overtime is based on — total straight-time compensation (including differentials) divided by straight-time hours.
- Shift Differential
- An hourly premium for working less desirable shifts — typically $2–$8/hr for nights and $2–$5/hr for weekends.
- 8/80 Rule
- A hospital-specific FLSA option paying overtime after 8 hours/day or 80 hours per 14-day period instead of 40 hours/week.
- Charge Nurse Premium
- Extra hourly pay for assuming charge or preceptor duties during a shift — also part of the FLSA regular rate.
Methodology, sources & limitations
This page shows the formula, assumptions, and limitations used for this estimate. Rates, thresholds, and other time-sensitive inputs can change, so verify them against the relevant official source before relying on a result.
For our review approach and the primary sources we consult, see the methodology and source policy. If you spot an outdated figure or formula, please contact us with a correction.
The Complete Guide to Nurse Overtime Pay
Nurse pay is more complicated than most professions: shift differentials, weekend premiums, charge pay, 12-hour schedules, and a special hospital overtime rule all interact. This guide walks through how the pieces fit together — and how to check that your paycheck is right.
Why your overtime rate is higher than base × 1.5
The FLSA requires overtime at 1.5× your “regular rate of pay” — and the Department of Labor defines the regular rate to include all non-discretionary compensation, not just your base wage. Night differentials, weekend premiums, and charge or preceptor pay all count. The regular rate is computed by dividing your total straight-time compensation for the week by your straight-time hours.
Concretely: a nurse earning $40/hour base for 36 hours, plus a $5/hour night differential on 24 of those hours ($120) and a $3/hour weekend differential on 12 hours ($36), has straight-time earnings of $1,596 over 36 hours — a blended regular rate of $44.33, not $40. Overtime hours must be paid at $66.50, not $60. On four overtime hours, the difference is $26/week — over $1,300/year.
Paying overtime on base rate alone is one of the most common FLSA violations in healthcare. Hospital systems have paid multi-million-dollar settlements for systematically excluding differentials from the regular rate, and back pay can typically be recovered for two years (three if the violation is willful).
Typical differential ranges
Differentials vary by region, facility type, and union contract, but these ranges cover most US hospitals. Enter your actual rates in the calculator — they're on your pay stub or in your facility's compensation policy.
| Premium | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Evening shift (3–11pm) | $1.50 – $4.00/hr | Often lower than nights |
| Night shift (11pm–7am) | $3.00 – $8.00/hr | Highest at large urban systems |
| Weekend | $2.00 – $5.00/hr | Some facilities pay % of base instead |
| Charge nurse | $1.50 – $3.00/hr | Only for hours actually in charge |
| Preceptor | $1.00 – $2.50/hr | While orienting a new nurse |
| On-call (not worked) | $2.00 – $7.00/hr | Generally excluded from the regular rate if truly restrictive conditions aren't met |
The 8/80 rule: the hospital exception to the 40-hour week
Hospitals and residential care facilities may adopt an alternative FLSA schedule with employee agreement: overtime after 8 hours in any workday or 80 hours in a 14-day period, whichever produces more overtime. Everyone else in the economy gets overtime only after 40 hours in a week.
For nurses on 12-hour shifts, 8/80 changes everything: every 12-hour shift includes 4 daily overtime hours under 8/80, but zero weekly overtime unless you exceed 40 hours. Under the standard 40-hour rule, three 12s (36 hours) generate no overtime at all, and a fourth shift is mostly overtime. Which system pays more depends entirely on your schedule pattern — under 8/80, a standard six-12s-per-pay-period schedule generates 24 hours of daily overtime; under 40-hour weeks it generates none if scheduled as 36/36.
Your facility must designate which system it uses in advance and apply it consistently — it cannot switch retroactively to whichever costs less. Ask HR which rule governs your unit if your pay stub doesn't make it obvious.
How to audit your own paycheck in five minutes
- Find your straight-time total: base pay plus every differential and premium for the period, excluding overtime premium itself.
- Divide by your straight-time hours to get your blended regular rate — this calculator does this step for you.
- Multiply by 1.5 and compare against the overtime rate printed on your stub.
- If your stub shows overtime at exactly base × 1.5 and you earned any differentials that week, the rate is likely wrong.
- Raise discrepancies with payroll in writing; if unresolved, your state labor department or the DOL Wage and Hour Division handles FLSA complaints, and retaliation for wage complaints is illegal.
Mandatory overtime: know your state's limits
Roughly a third of states restrict mandatory overtime for nurses — including California, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, and Washington — generally prohibiting facilities from requiring hours beyond your scheduled shift except in genuine emergencies. Voluntary overtime is always allowed; the restrictions target being forced.
California goes further than the FLSA on daily overtime for all workers: 1.5× after 8 hours in a day and 2× after 12 — plus 2× beyond 8 hours on the seventh consecutive workday. If you work in California, the double-time field in this calculator is not hypothetical.
Travel nurses: what counts in your regular rate
Travel contracts split compensation between a taxable hourly rate and tax-free stipends for housing and meals. Bona fide per-diem stipends paid under accountable-plan rules are generally excluded from the FLSA regular rate — which is why agencies keep taxable rates low. But if a “stipend” varies with hours worked, the DOL and courts have treated it as disguised wages that belong in the overtime calculation. If your stipend prorates when you miss a shift hour-for-hour, it's worth a closer look.
For overtime purposes, run this calculator with your taxable hourly rate plus any hourly premiums; your stipends don't multiply on overtime hours under a compliant plan.