Working Days Calculator
Count the number of working days (business days) between two dates. Excludes weekends and optional holidays. Useful for project deadlines, contract periods, payroll, and delivery estimates.
What Are Working Days?
Working days (also called business days) are the days on which businesses typically operate — usually Monday to Friday in most countries. Weekends and public holidays are excluded. Working days are the basis for most contracts, delivery terms, payment deadlines, and payroll calculations.
Different countries have different weekend conventions. In the US, UK, and most of Europe, the weekend is Saturday and Sunday. In the Gulf region (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait), the weekend is Friday and Saturday. Some countries use Friday only, Sunday only, or other combinations. This calculator lets you choose the weekend pattern that applies to your context.
Working Days Formula
There is no simple formula — counting working days requires iterating through each date in the range and checking whether it is a weekend or holiday. The logic:
- Start at the start date
- For each day up to the end date:
- Check if it is a weekend (Saturday/Sunday, Friday/Saturday, etc.)
- Check if it is in the holiday list
- If it is neither, count it as a working day
- The total working days is the count
Worked Example
Start: January 1, 2026 (Thursday)
End: December 31, 2026 (Thursday)
Weekend: Saturday & Sunday
Holidays: None
Total calendar days = 365
Saturdays and Sundays in 2026 = 104
Holidays = 0
Working days = 365 − 104 − 0 = 261
(The exact count depends on which day of the week January 1 falls on.)
Working days % = 261 ÷ 365 = 71.5%
Working weeks = 261 ÷ 5 = 52.2
Weekend Patterns by Country
- Saturday & Sunday — US, UK, most of Europe, most of Asia, Australia, New Zealand, most of Latin America
- Friday & Saturday — Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Egypt, Israel (with some nuance)
- Friday only — Iran, some parts of India
- Sunday only — Parts of the Middle East (some sectors), some industries in the Gulf
- Flexible/shift work — Many industries (healthcare, hospitality, retail, manufacturing) do not have a fixed weekend at all
In the Gulf region, the weekend was historically Thursday–Friday, but the UAE moved to Saturday–Sunday in 2022 to align with global business. Saudi Arabia moved to Friday–Saturday. If you work across multiple countries, check the specific weekend for each.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are working days the same as business days?
Yes — "working days" and "business days" mean the same thing: days when normal business operations occur. In legal contracts, "business days" is the more common term. In payroll, "working days" is more common. Both exclude weekends and public holidays unless explicitly stated otherwise. Some contracts define business days to exclude specific holidays (e.g., "business days excluding federal holidays").
How do I enter holidays?
Enter holiday dates in the format YYYY-MM-DD, separated by commas. For example: 2026-01-01, 2026-12-25, 2026-03-20. The calculator will exclude any date in this list from the working day count. You can enter as many holidays as needed. Common holidays include New Year's Day, Christmas, national days, Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha, and local religious holidays.
What if a holiday falls on a weekend?
If a holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, it is already excluded from the working day count — so listing it as a holiday makes no difference. Some jurisdictions "observe" the holiday on the nearest weekday (e.g., if July 4 is a Saturday, the observed holiday is Friday July 3). If you need to account for observed holidays, enter the observed date as the holiday.
What is the difference between "include start/end" and "count between dates"?
"Count between dates" excludes the start date — so January 1 to January 2 gives 1 day. "Include both" counts both endpoints — so January 1 to January 2 gives 2 days. Use "between" for most calculations (including DATEDIF-style). Use "include both" when a contract says "within 10 days of the invoice date" and you want to include both the invoice date and the deadline date.
Why does the working days count sometimes differ from my manual count?
Common causes: (1) a holiday falls on a weekend and is counted twice — this calculator handles that correctly; (2) you counted the start date but this calculator excludes it by default; (3) your region has a different weekend pattern (e.g., Friday–Saturday in the Gulf); (4) the year has 52 or 53 weeks depending on how the calendar falls, giving 260 or 261 working days for a full year. Always verify the weekend pattern and whether the start date should be included.
How do I calculate working days in Excel?
Excel has a function called NETWORKDAYS that does exactly this. Syntax: =NETWORKDAYS(start_date, end_date, [holidays]). It counts working days (Monday–Friday) between two dates, excluding the listed holidays. For a custom weekend (e.g., Friday–Saturday), use NETWORKDAYS.INTL with a weekend argument (e.g., 7 for Friday-Saturday). This calculator gives the same results without needing Excel.