Federal overtime (FLSA) looks at hours over 40 in one workweek. California Labor Code § 510(a) also looks at each day: time and a half after 8 hours, double time after 12, plus seventh-day rules. A 48-hour week can pay two different gross amounts depending on how the hours sat on the timesheet.
At $20/hour, four 12-hour days:
- California: 32 straight + 16 at 1.5× = $1,120
- FLSA weekly-40 only: 40 straight + 8 at 1.5× = $1,040
That $80 gap is the daily-overtime statute. It is not a tax.
California overtime calculator → · Federal FLSA calculator →
Both tools stop at weekly gross. They do not withhold FIT or FICA. Overtime dollars are still wages. Employee FICA (6.2% up to the $184,500 2026 Social Security wage base, plus 1.45% Medicare) applies the same way as on straight time (Topic 751).
The two formulas
overtime hours = max(0, hours in the workweek − 40)
weekly total = (straight hours × rate) + (OT hours × 1.5 × rate)
Each day: first 8 hours at 1×, hours 8–12 at 1.5×, hours over 12 at 2×.
Weekly 40: hours over 40 in the workweek at 1.5× if they were not already daily OT.
Seventh consecutive day: first 8 hours that day at 1.5×, hours over 8 that day at 2×.
The engine does not stack two overtime premiums on the same hour.
Federal law has no daily overtime and no double time. A 12-hour Tuesday creates zero FLSA overtime if the week still ends at 40. The federal explainer is FLSA overtime.
Weeks at $20/hour
| Days (hours) | Straight | 1.5× hours | 2× hours | CA weekly | FLSA on the same hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 × 8 | 40 | 0 | 0 | $800 | $800 |
| 5 × 10 | 40 | 10 | 0 | $1,100 | $1,100 |
| 4 × 12 | 32 | 16 | 0 | $1,120 | $1,040 |
| 6 × 7 | 40 | 2 | 0 | $860 | $860 |
| 13 + 8 + 8 + 8 | 32 | 4 | 1 | $800 | $740 |
Five 10-hour days are 50 hours. Both statutes pay 40 × $20 + 10 × $30 = $1,100. The split does matter on compressed weeks (four twelves) and on a day that crosses 12.
The 13-hour day plus three 8-hour days is 37 hours. California: 8 × $20 + 4 × $30 + 1 × $40 on Monday, then 24 straight hours = $800. FLSA sees a week under 40, so 37 × $20 = $740. Same timesheet, $60 more under § 510 because one hour is double time.
Six 7-hour days are 42 hours and never hit daily overtime (7 is under 8). Both engines pay 40 × $20 + 2 × $30 = $860. Daily OT is not “every extra hour.” It is hours past 8 in that day.
Seventh consecutive day
If the seventh day in the workweek is the seventh consecutive day worked, § 510 pays the first 8 hours that day at 1.5× and hours over 8 that day at 2×. The calculator asks which day index is the seventh day.
At $20/hour, after six 8-hour days:
| 7th-day hours | CA weekly | FLSA on the same 56 or 58 hours | |---|---|---| | 8 | $1,280 | $1,280 (56 h: 40 × $20 + 16 × $30) | | 10 | $1,360 | $1,340 (58 h: 40 × $20 + 18 × $30) |
The 10-hour seventh day is the clean double-time gap: California puts 2 hours at 2× ($80) where FLSA still pays 1.5× ($60). Difference: $20.
Do not stack a daily 1.5× and a weekly 1.5× on the same hour. The engine keeps one premium per hour, matching the “no stacked overtime rates on one hour” reading of the saved § 510 extract.
What neither calculator is
- Not an alternative workweek (IWC orders / employee election) model.
- Not agricultural AB 1066 phase-in.
- Not a 50-state matrix. Other states have their own daily rules. This page is California § 510 vs federal weekly 40.
- Not exemption advice. Some salaried roles are exempt from one or both statutes. A job title of “manager” is not enough. After the 2024 federal salary-threshold rule was vacated, the federal EAP salary level used with those exemptions returned to $684/week ($35,568/year). Confirm current WHD and DLSE guidance.
Tipped California shifts still have to clear the state minimum before tips in many cases. Federal tip credit ($2.13 cash + tips to $7.25) is a different statute. See federal tip credit.
Overtime pay is wages. Estimate FICA on the gross week with the FICA calculator. Federal income-tax withholding still follows the W-4: federal withholding.
Yes, if you are nonexempt under § 510. Hours 9 and 10 that day are 1.5× even when the week is only 40 hours. Four 10-hour days are 40 hours with 8 hours of daily OT. At $20 that is 32 × $20 + 8 × $30 = $880, not $800. FLSA on a 40-hour week is $800.
That week is 50 hours. Daily OT is 2 hours × 5 days = 10 hours at 1.5×. Weekly FLSA OT is also 10 hours at 1.5×. Same dollars. Compressed 4 × 12 or a 13th hour is where the statutes diverge.
No. FLSA’s floor is 1.5× after 40 in the workweek. Double time in this tool is California (after 12 in a day, or after 8 on a qualifying seventh day).
No. Weekly gross only. Use the paycheck calculator for federal FIT + FICA on a dollar amount. State PIT and SDI are not in that federal tool either.