Work, pay & shifts
How to Calculate Weekend Premium Pay
Weekend premiums come in three forms: a percentage of the base rate, a flat amount per hour, or both together. The calculation is the same idea each time — work out the extra per hour, multiply by the weekend hours, and keep it separate from the pay you would have earned anyway. This guide works through each form, then adds the rest of the week so you can see a full week’s pay and average rate.
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A percentage premium
$17.35 an hour, 16 weekend hours, 15% weekend premium:
- Premium per hour: $17.35 × 15 ÷ 100 = $2.6025.
- Weekend premium: $2.6025 × 16 = $41.64.
- Normal earnings for those hours: $17.35 × 16 = $277.60.
- Total for the weekend hours: $277.60 + $41.64 = $319.24.
A flat premium per hour
$20.00 an hour, 12 weekend hours, $2.00 an hour extra: the premium is $2.00 × 12 = $24.00, normal earnings are $240.00, and the weekend hours pay $264.00 — $22.00 an hour.
A percentage plus a flat amount
$20.00 an hour, 16 weekend hours, 10% plus $1.00 an hour: the premium per hour is $2.00 + $1.00 = $3.00, the weekend premium is $48.00, and the weekend hours pay $368.00.
Adding the rest of the week
Weekday hours are paid at the base rate, so they add to normal earnings but not to the premium. Continuing the last example with 24 weekday hours:
- Normal earnings: $20.00 × 40 hours = $800.00.
- Weekend premium: $48.00.
- Total: $848.00, an average of $848.00 ÷ 40 = $21.20 an hour.
Which hours are weekend hours?
Your employer’s policy decides. Some count from midnight Friday to midnight Sunday; others use a window such as 11 p.m. Friday to 11 p.m. Sunday, or count a whole shift by the day it starts. A Friday night shift that runs past midnight may be partly weekend hours, fully weekend hours, or not at all, depending on the rule. Count the hours that your policy counts, then use those in the calculation.
Calculating Weekend Premium Pay FAQ
- How do I calculate a 15% weekend premium?
- Multiply your base rate by 0.15 to get the extra per hour, then multiply by your weekend hours. At $17.35 and 16 hours, that is $41.64.
- What are normal earnings on a weekend shift?
- What the hours would pay at your base rate without the premium: base rate × weekend hours.
- How do I combine a percentage and a flat weekend premium?
- Add the two per-hour amounts. 10% of $20.00 is $2.00; plus $1.00 makes $3.00 an hour extra.
- Do weekday hours change the weekend premium?
- No. They add to normal earnings and lower the average hourly rate, but the premium comes only from the weekend hours.
- Is weekend work always paid at a premium?
- No. Whether weekend hours earn extra, and how much, depends on the employer, any agreement, and local rules. The math here uses whatever premium applies to you.
Related guides
- Multipliers vs. PremiumsConvert pay multipliers such as 1.5× and 2× into premium percentages and back, and read pay stubs that split the premium onto its own line.
- Different Saturday and Sunday PremiumsCalculate weekend pay when each day has its own premium, why a simple average of the percentages can be wrong, and how to mix flat and percentage rates.
Open the tool
Jump into Weekend Pay Premium Calculator when you are ready to process your files.
