How to use the fte calculator
- Enter the number of hours per week that count as one full-time equivalent. Many employers use 40.
- Add a row for each group of employees with the same schedule: the number of people, the hours per week each works and the months they are employed this year.
- Use 12 months for people who work all year and fewer for seasonal staff.
- Read the total FTE, the headcount and a table of the FTE for each group.
Formula
FTE of a group = people x hours per week x (months employed / 12) / hours for 1 FTE
Total FTE = sum of the groups
Average FTE per person = total FTE / headcount
Dividing the months by 12 gives the share of the year each person works, so seasonal staff count for a fraction.
Worked example
A team has 8 full time staff at 40 hours, 6 part time staff at 20 hours and 4 seasonal staff at 35 hours for 3 months. With 40 hours as one FTE, full time counts as 8, part time as 6 x 20 / 40 = 3 and seasonal as 4 x 35 x (3 / 12) / 40 = 0.875.
The total is 11.875 FTE, shown as 11.88, for 18 people. If you use 30 hours as one FTE, 20 people at 30 hours is exactly 20 FTE.
What FTE is for
Full-time equivalent turns many different schedules into one number, as if everyone worked a standard full-time load. Employers use it for staffing and budgets, schools and agencies use it for funding and reporting, and researchers use it to count effort. It is a way to compare workloads and not a count of people.
Different definitions
There is no single FTE rule. One employer may count 40 hours as full time and another 37.5 hours, and some laws and programs set their own definitions of a full-time employee and their own way of counting part-time hours. Set the hours that apply to the purpose you have, and check the instructions of any filing or program before you rely on the result.
Related tools
Estimate what a team costs with the labor cost calculator, add up hours with the hours calculator and work out pay from hours with the gross pay calculator. The meeting cost calculator shows what a group's time is worth.
Assumptions and limits
- The hours for one FTE is a number you choose, and it should match the rule you must follow.
- Each group has the same hours for every person in it.
- Months employed are counted as a share of the year, not by exact days.
- Overtime is counted at the hours you enter. Paid leave is counted as hours worked only if you include it.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate FTE?
Divide the total weekly hours worked by the hours that count as one full-time week. Adjust for part-year workers by months employed over 12.
How many hours is 1 FTE?
It depends on the definition. 40 hours a week is common, but some organizations and rules use a different number.
Does one part-time employee equal one FTE?
No. A person working 20 hours a week counts as half an FTE when 40 hours is full time.
Why does FTE matter?
It is used in staffing plans, budgets, funding formulas and some reports, because it compares workloads across different schedules.