Working Days Calculator
The Working Days Calculator counts business days between any two dates, automatically excluding weekends and optionally public holidays. This is essential for project planning, deadline calculation, and leave management. Whether you need to know how many work days until a deadline, calculate the duration of a project in business days, or determine when an employee's leave ends, this tool provides instant, accurate results. The calculator supports multiple countries' holiday calendars and custom working patterns for those who don't work a standard Monday-Friday week.
planning
Category
beginner
Difficulty
1 minute
Time needed
2025-01-15
Last reviewed
Why use this calculator
Instant working day calculations
Calculate the number of working days between two dates, excluding weekends and holidays.
Automatic weekend exclusion
Calculate the number of working days between two dates, excluding weekends and holidays.
Optional public holiday exclusion
Calculate the number of working days between two dates, excluding weekends and holidays.
Multiple country calendars
Calculate the number of working days between two dates, excluding weekends and holidays.
Custom working pattern support
Calculate the number of working days between two dates, excluding weekends and holidays.
Inputs and outputs
Inputs
Start date: date - The first day of the period
End date: date - The last day of the period
Include end date in count?: radio
Working pattern: select - Select your working week pattern
Exclude public holidays?: radio
Country (for holidays): select
Outputs
Working Days: text - Number of working days in the period
Calendar Days: text - Total calendar days in the period
Weekend Days: text - Number of weekend days excluded
Public Holidays: text - Number of public holidays excluded
Complete Weeks: text - Number of complete working weeks
Holidays in Period: text - List of public holidays in the date range
Methodology
Calculation method
Counts each day between dates, excluding those that fall on non-working days (weekends) and optionally public holidays based on the selected country.
Formula: Working Days = Calendar Days - Weekend Days - Public Holidays
How it works
Enter your start and end dates
Choose whether to include the end date
Select your working pattern
Decide whether to exclude public holidays
Select country for holiday calendar
View the working day count
Compliance note
Holiday calendars are based on national public holidays. Regional or local holidays may not be included. Always verify critical dates with official sources.
Example scenarios
One Month - UK
Calculate working days in January 2025
Why it matters: January 2025 has 31 days, minus 8 weekend days and 1 holiday (New Year).
Project Duration
Business days for a 2-week project
Why it matters: 2 weeks = 10 working days (Mon-Fri schedule).
Frequently asked questions
What counts as a working day?
A working day is any day that falls within your selected working pattern (e.g., Monday-Friday) and is not a public holiday (if holiday exclusion is enabled).
Are regional holidays included?
Only national public holidays are included. For regional holidays (e.g., Scottish bank holidays), you may need to manually adjust the count.
How do I count days for part-time workers?
Select the appropriate working pattern. If someone works Mon-Wed only, count working days normally, then apply their part-time proportion.
What if a holiday falls on a weekend?
Most countries observe the holiday on the following Monday (or preceding Friday). The calculator uses standard observation rules.
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