FTE calculator and nurse staffing calculator
Convert hours to FTEs and FTEs to hours, add up a team's FTE from headcount, or switch to nurse staffing mode to turn a census and an HPPD target into the paid FTEs a unit needs, the gap against current staff and what covering it with agency would cost.
- Hours worked (pay period)
- 1,440
- 1.0 FTE works (pay period)
- 80 hrs
- Average hours per week
- 720
- FTE
- 18.00
Estimates for planning only. FTE definitions, HPPD targets and the roles they count vary by facility, unit and, in some states, regulation. Example inputs are examples, not benchmarks.
What an FTE is and how to calculate it
FTE means full-time equivalent. It expresses hours worked as a number of full-time employees, so a part-timer, a team or a whole department can be compared on one scale. One person working full-time is 1.0 FTE. Two people each working half-time are also 1.0 FTE.
The period has to match on both sides. 1,440 hours in a two-week pay period on a 40-hour week is 1,440 ÷ 80 = 18.0 FTE. The calculator handles weekly, pay-period, monthly and annual hours, and the headcount mode adds up groups of staff working different schedules.
Why 2,080 hours is one FTE
On a 40-hour week, a full-time year is 40 × 52 = 2,080 hours. That figure is the usual denominator for annual FTE budgets and for converting an hourly rate to a salary. It counts paid hours, not worked hours: holidays, vacation and sick time are inside the 2,080, which is why a 1.0 FTE never works all of it on the floor.
How hospitals define FTE: 36 vs 40 hours
There is no single hospital definition of full-time. Some facilities use the standard 40-hour week, so a nurse working three 12-hour shifts (36 hours) is 0.9 FTE. Others define 1.0 FTE as 36 hours, or treat three 12s as full-time for benefits while budgeting on a 40-hour basis. The same nurse can be 0.9 FTE in one system and 1.0 in another, so always check which definition a budget or job posting uses. Set it in the calculator's full-time definition field.
On a 40-hour basis, common FTE values work out to:
| FTE | Hours / week | Hours / pay period | Hours / year | 12-hr shifts / week |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.00 | 40 | 80 | 2,080 | 3.3 |
| 0.90 | 36 | 72 | 1,872 | 3.0 |
| 0.80 | 32 | 64 | 1,664 | 2.7 |
| 0.75 | 30 | 60 | 1,560 | 2.5 |
| 0.60 | 24 | 48 | 1,248 | 2.0 |
| 0.50 | 20 | 40 | 1,040 | 1.7 |
Productive vs non-productive hours
Paid hours split into two kinds. Staffing plans have to cover both, or the schedule falls short every time someone takes leave.
- Productive hours
- Hours worked delivering care on the unit. HPPD targets are normally set in productive hours.
- Non-productive hours
- Hours paid but not worked on the unit: vacation and PTO, sick time, holidays, education, orientation and meetings. Your own payroll data gives the real share for each unit.
The calculator treats non-productive time as a share of paid hours. With 10% non-productive time (an example), every 9 productive hours needs 10 paid hours.
HPPD explained
Nursing hours per patient day (HPPD) measures how much nursing time a unit provides per patient per day. It is the standard way to set and track a unit's staffing level because it scales with census.
HPPD targets are set by the facility and differ by unit type, patient acuity and which roles are counted. Some states also regulate staffing through ratios or required staffing plans. We don't publish recommended HPPD values: use your unit's own target, your state's rules and your acuity data.
Turning an HPPD target into FTEs
Days cancel out, so FTEs come straight from census and HPPD:
Because this divides by days ÷ 7, a 365-day year counts as 52.14 weeks, so a 40-hour FTE is 2,086 hours rather than 2,080. Results differ slightly from dividing annual hours by 2,080.
The table applies two example HPPD targets to three census levels on a 40-hour FTE with 10% non-productive time. The inputs are examples to show the math, not recommended staffing levels.
| Census | HPPD | Productive hrs / day | Productive hrs / year | Productive FTE | Paid FTE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 8 | 160 | 58,400 | 28.0 | 31.1 |
| 24 | 8 | 192 | 70,080 | 33.6 | 37.3 |
| 30 | 8 | 240 | 87,600 | 42.0 | 46.7 |
| 20 | 10 | 200 | 73,000 | 35.0 | 38.9 |
| 24 | 10 | 240 | 87,600 | 42.0 | 46.7 |
| 30 | 10 | 300 | 109,500 | 52.5 | 58.3 |
Working backwards shows what a roster delivers. With 34 paid FTEs at a census of 24, the unit runs at 7.29 HPPD against a target of 8, a shortfall of 3.3 paid FTEs, or 6,257 worked hours a year to cover. The FTEs are for the roles your HPPD target counts, spread across every shift and day of the week.
When to fill gaps with agency or travel staff
A shortfall can be covered with overtime, per diem or float pool staff, new hires, or agency and travel clinicians. Agency fills fast and flexes with census, but costs more per hour worked. Hiring costs less per hour but takes time to recruit and orient, and you pay employees for non-productive time too. That is why the calculator compares agency on worked hours and staff on paid hours.
- Short or uncertain gaps such as leave cover, seasonal census or a new unit ramping up often suit agency or travel contracts.
- Persistent gaps that show up month after month usually point to hiring, because the agency premium repeats every period.
- Hard-to-fill specialties may need agency while you recruit, so price the contract against what the market is paying.
To see how an agency arrives at its rate, use the staffing bill rate calculator. For what clinicians take home on those contracts, read how much travel nurses make. ClinicalRate helps facilities benchmark agency bill rates and staff pay by role and market: ClinicalRate for hospitals and facilities.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate FTE?
Divide the hours worked by the hours a full-time employee works in the same period. On a 40-hour week, someone working 30 hours a week is 30 ÷ 40 = 0.75 FTE. For a team, add up everyone's hours first: 1,440 hours in a two-week pay period ÷ 80 full-time hours = 18.0 FTE.
Is 36 hours full time for nurses?
It depends on the employer. Some hospitals treat three 12-hour shifts (36 hours a week) as full-time for benefits, and some define 1.0 FTE as 36 hours. On a standard 40-hour basis, 36 hours a week is 0.9 FTE. Check your facility's policy, because definitions vary.
How many hours is 0.9 FTE?
On a 40-hour basis, 0.9 FTE is 36 hours a week, 72 hours per two-week pay period and 1,872 hours a year (0.9 × 2,080). If your facility defines 1.0 FTE as 36 hours, 0.9 FTE is 32.4 hours a week.
What is HPPD?
HPPD stands for nursing hours per patient day: the productive nursing hours worked on a unit divided by the patient days in the same period. A unit with an average census of 20 that works 160 nursing hours a day is running at 8 HPPD. Which roles count (RNs only, or RNs, LPNs and nursing assistants) depends on how the facility defines its target.
How do you calculate nursing FTEs from HPPD?
Multiply average daily census by the HPPD target to get productive hours per day, then divide by the hours one FTE works per day (40 ÷ 7 = 5.71 on a 40-hour week). That gives productive FTEs. Divide by (1 − non-productive %) to get the paid FTEs you need to budget. At a census of 24 and 8 HPPD that is 33.6 productive FTEs, or 37.3 paid FTEs with 10% non-productive time (an example rate).
How many FTEs does it take to cover one position 24/7?
A seat staffed around the clock needs 24 × 7 = 168 hours a week. On a 40-hour week that is 4.2 productive FTEs, and about 4.67 paid FTEs once 10% non-productive time (an example) is covered.