Blended Overtime Calculator

When a non-exempt employee performs two or more kinds of work at different straight-time rates in the same workweek, the regular rate for that week is the weighted average of those rates — total straight-time earnings divided by total hours worked. Overtime is then based on that blended rate, not on whichever rate the employee happened to be earning during hours 41 and beyond. This is required by 29 CFR §778.115.

Because straight time for every hour worked, including the overtime hours, has already been paid at the applicable job rate and is included in straight-time earnings. Only the additional half-time premium remains owed. Paying 1.5× of the blended rate on top of the straight-time earnings would compensate the straight-time component twice.

Only under a specific exception. 29 CFR §778.415–§778.421 permit a "rate in effect" method, but it requires an agreement or understanding reached with the employee before the work is performed. Without that prior agreement, the weighted average method is mandatory. Choosing whichever method is cheaper after the fact is not permitted.

Yes. Non-discretionary bonuses — production, attendance, safety, shift differentials — must be added to total straight-time earnings before dividing by total hours, under 29 CFR §778.208–§778.210. That raises the weighted average and therefore the overtime premium owed.

Yes. If the same employer employs a worker in two roles at different rates, all hours count toward the same 40-hour workweek threshold and the weighted average applies. Hours cannot be split across the two roles to avoid overtime. Work for genuinely separate, unrelated employers is not combined.

The weighted average simply equals that rate, and the result matches the standard 1.5× calculation once you account for the straight time already paid. The blended method matters only when the rates actually differ.