Working Days Calculator: Calculate Days Between Dates

Calculating the number of working days between two dates is useful for planning projects, estimating delivery times, managing employee schedules, and setting business deadlines. Instead of counting every day manually, you can use a working days calculator to get an accurate result within seconds.

This guide explains how to calculate working days, exclude weekends, account for public holidays, and avoid common date-counting mistakes.

What Are Working Days?

Working days are the days when most businesses and organizations operate. In many countries, the standard working week runs from Monday to Friday.

Saturday and Sunday are usually treated as weekends and are not included in the calculation. However, working schedules can vary depending on the country, company, and industry.

For example:

Monday to Friday are normally working days.
Saturday and Sunday are usually non-working days.
Public holidays may also be excluded.
Some businesses operate six days a week.
Certain industries use rotating or flexible work schedules.

A business days calculator helps you calculate the days that match your specific working schedule.

How to Calculate Working Days Between Two Dates

There are two common ways to calculate work days between two dates:

Count the days manually.
Use an online working days calculator.

Manual calculation may work for a short date range, but it becomes difficult when the period includes several weekends, months, or public holidays.

An online calculator provides a faster and more reliable result.

Using a Working Days Calculator

A working days calculator automatically counts weekdays between a start date and an end date. It removes weekends and may also allow you to exclude holidays.

To use the calculator:

Select the start date.
Select the end date.
Choose which days should be treated as weekends.
Add public holidays if the option is available.
Click the calculate button.
Review the total number of working days.

You can use the working days tool on Camelot Wheel to calculate date ranges without manually checking a calendar.

Example of a Working Days Calculation

Suppose a project begins on Monday, August 3, and ends on Friday, August 14.

The full period includes 12 calendar days. However, it also includes two Saturdays and two Sundays.

The calculation would be:

12 calendar days − 4 weekend days = 8 working days

Therefore, there are eight working days within this date range.

The final answer may change depending on whether the start date and end date are included.

Should the Start Date Be Included?

Whether the start date should be included depends on the purpose of the calculation.

Include the start date when:

The employee starts working on that day.
The project begins immediately.
The first day counts toward the deadline.
The delivery period starts on the order date.

Exclude the start date when:

Counting begins from the following day.
The agreement says “after” a specific date.
The first date is only a reference point.
The service period starts the next working day.

Use our date calculator to add or subtract days, weeks, months, or years from any selected date.

Calendar Days vs Working Days

Calendar days include every day within a date range.

This includes:

Weekdays
Weekends
Public holidays

Working days normally include only the days when a business is open.

For example, a period of 14 calendar days usually contains 10 working days if there are no public holidays.

Understanding this difference is important when dealing with contracts, deliveries, applications, payment terms, and project deadlines.

To count the total number of calendar days between two dates, use our Days Between Dates calculator.

Working Days vs Business Days

The terms “working days” and “business days” are often used in the same way. Both usually refer to Monday through Friday, excluding weekends and public holidays.

However, the exact meaning can depend on the organization.

A retail business may consider Saturday a normal business day, while a government office may only operate from Monday to Friday.

Before using a business days calculator, confirm which days count as working days for your situation.

How Public Holidays Affect the Result

Public holidays can reduce the number of available working days.

For example, imagine there are 10 weekdays between two dates. If one weekday is a public holiday, the result becomes nine working days.

The calculation would be:

10 weekdays − 1 public holiday = 9 working days

Public holidays vary by country and region. Some holidays also change every year.

For an accurate result, check whether your working days calculator allows you to enter custom holidays.

How to Calculate Working Days Manually

You can manually calculate working days by following these steps:

Count the total number of days between the two dates.
Count the Saturdays and Sundays in the same period.
Subtract the weekend days from the total.
Identify any public holidays that fall on weekdays.
Subtract those holidays from the remaining number.

The basic formula is:

Working Days = Total Calendar Days − Weekend Days − Public Holidays

This method is useful for short periods, but an online calculator is more practical for longer date ranges.

How to Calculate Work Days in Excel

Microsoft Excel’s NETWORKDAYS function calculates the number of working days between two dates while excluding weekends and specified holidays.

The most commonly used function is:

=NETWORKDAYS(start_date,end_date)

For example:

=NETWORKDAYS(A2,B2)

This formula counts weekdays between the dates entered in cells A2 and B2.

You can also exclude holidays by adding a holiday range:

=NETWORKDAYS(A2,B2,D2:D10)

In this example, cells D2 to D10 contain the dates of public holidays.

Excel is useful for business reports and large datasets, while an online working date calculator is more convenient for quick calculations.

Working Days Calculator UK

A working days calculator UK normally counts Monday to Friday and excludes UK bank holidays when they are added to the calculation.

Bank holidays can differ across:

England and Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland

For this reason, users should select the correct region before calculating a UK business deadline.

A working days calculator UK may be useful for:

Employment notice periods
Government applications
Invoice payment deadlines
Shipping estimates
Legal or administrative processes
Project scheduling

Always check the official bank holiday calendar when the calculation is related to an important contract or deadline.

Common Uses of a Working Days Calculator

A working days calculator can help in many personal and professional situations.

Project Planning

Project managers can calculate how many working days are available before a deadline.

Employee Scheduling

Employers can estimate working periods, leave duration, and attendance days.

Delivery Estimates

Businesses can provide more accurate delivery dates by excluding weekends and holidays.

Invoice Deadlines

Companies can calculate payment terms such as 10, 15, or 30 business days.

Application Processing

Applicants can estimate how long a government, university, or business application may take.

Legal Deadlines

Some legal and administrative deadlines are based on working days rather than calendar days.

Common Mistakes When Calculating Working Days

Date calculations can produce incorrect results when important details are overlooked.

Counting Weekends

Saturday and Sunday should normally be excluded unless they are part of the working schedule.

Ignoring Public Holidays

A public holiday that falls on a weekday may need to be removed from the final total.

Using the Wrong Country Calendar

Holiday dates differ between countries and regions.

Including the Wrong Date

The final answer changes depending on whether the start date, end date, or both dates are included.

Confusing Calendar Days With Working Days

A deadline of seven calendar days is not always the same as seven working days.

Using a business days calculator helps reduce these errors.

How to Add Working Days to a Date

Sometimes you may need to find a future date after adding a specific number of working days.

For example, if a task begins on Friday and requires three working days:

Monday is day one.
Tuesday is day two.
Wednesday is day three.

The due date would be Wednesday, assuming there are no public holidays.

A working date calculator can automatically skip weekends while adding or subtracting working days.

Why Use an Online Working Days Calculator?

Manual counting can be time-consuming and may lead to mistakes. An online working days calculator offers several advantages:

It provides quick results.
It removes weekends automatically.
It works with long date ranges.
It helps avoid manual counting errors.
It can support custom weekend settings.
It may allow users to exclude public holidays.
It can calculate both past and future dates.

For regular business planning, an automated calculator is usually more efficient than manually reviewing a calendar.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many working days are in a week?

A standard working week usually contains five working days: Monday through Friday.

Are weekends included in working days?

Weekends are normally excluded. However, they may be included if the business operates on Saturday or Sunday.

Are public holidays counted as working days?

Public holidays are usually excluded when the business or organization is closed.

Can I calculate working days without holidays?

Yes. You can count Monday through Friday and ignore public holidays, although the result may not reflect the actual number of available business days.

What is the easiest way to calculate work days?

The easiest method is to use an online working days calculator. Enter the start and end dates, select the weekend settings, and calculate the result.

Can I calculate a future date using business days?

Yes. A business days calculator can add or subtract working days while automatically skipping weekends.

Is a working days calculator accurate?

It is accurate when the correct start date, end date, weekend settings, and public holidays are entered.

Conclusion

Calculating working days is important for managing deadlines, delivery schedules, projects, payments, and employee records. Although you can count the days manually, a working days calculator provides a faster and more accurate result.

Before completing the calculation, confirm whether the start and end dates should be included. You should also check the relevant weekend schedule and public holidays.

Use the Camelot Wheel working days calculator whenever you need to quickly calculate working days, determine a business deadline, or find the number of weekdays between two dates.