Blended Overtime Rate Calculator
Worked at two different rates for the same employer this week? This computes the FLSA weighted-average regular rate and your correct overtime pay.
Uses the FLSA weighted-average method: straight time already covers all hours, so overtime adds a half-rate premium.
How the weighted-average (blended) method works
When you work two jobs or two rates for the same employer in one workweek, FLSA overtime isn’t computed on either rate alone. All hours combine into one workweek, and the “regular rate” becomes the weighted average:
The premium is 0.5×, not 1.5×, because your straight-time earnings already paid 1.0× for every hour — including the overtime hours. Adding the half makes those hours worth 1.5× total.
Worked example
25 hours as a server at $18 + 20 hours as a trainer at $22 = 45 hours.
Straight time: 25 × 18 + 20 × 22 = $890.00
Blended rate: 890 ÷ 45 = $19.78
OT premium: 5 h × $19.78 × 0.5 = $49.44
Week’s total: $939.44
The mistake payrolls make
The classic error is paying overtime at 1.5× whichever rate happened to apply after hour 40 — usually the lower rate. In the example, 1.5 × $18 × 5 = $135 as “overtime pay” replacing straight time sounds fine but computes the week at $925 instead of $939.44. Small weekly gaps compound into real back-pay claims; the Department of Labor recovers these routinely.
The legal alternative: the “rate in effect” method
FLSA §7(g)(2) lets employer and employee agree in advance to pay overtime at 1.5× the rate in effect when the overtime is worked, instead of the weighted average. It’s valid if the agreement predates the work and the rates are bona fide. Without such an agreement, the weighted-average method above is the default — and what this calculator computes.
When hours do NOT combine
- Genuinely separate employers — two unrelated companies each track their own 40 hours (joint employers, however, must combine).
- Note: bonuses and shift differentials also fold into the regular rate — if your two-rate week includes those, the true blended rate is slightly higher still.
Frequently asked questions
Which rate is my overtime based on if I have two rates?
By default under the FLSA: the weighted average of all your straight-time earnings for the week, not either individual rate. Only a prior agreement under §7(g)(2) allows using the “rate in effect” during the overtime hours instead.
Why is the premium 0.5× instead of 1.5×?
Because straight time already paid 1.0× for every hour worked, including hours past 40. Adding 0.5× brings overtime hours to the required 1.5× total. If a calculator pays 1.5× on top of full straight time, it double-counts.
Do my two jobs at different companies combine for overtime?
No — separate, unrelated employers each apply their own 40-hour threshold. But related entities acting as “joint employers” (shared control, scheduling, one staffing arrangement) must combine hours, a frequent issue in staffing-agency and franchise settings.
My payslip shows overtime at my lower rate — what should I do?
Recompute your week with this calculator, then ask payroll which method they use. If there’s no §7(g)(2) agreement on file and they aren’t using the weighted average, you may be owed back pay — the FLSA allows recovery for two years (three if willful).
Last reviewed: 2026-08-20 · Report an issue