Time & General
Business Days Calculator
Find how many Mon–Fri days fall in a range, or project a deadline from a start date.
Business days vs calendar days
Weekends vanish from delivery promises, contractor timelines and statutory response windows — counting them on fingers invites off-by-one errors. This calculator counts business days between two dates, treating Saturday and Sunday as non-working by default. Use it for ‘dispatch within three business days’, freelance delivery pledges, or rough lead-time planning. Public holidays are not auto-excluded unless you adjust dates yourself; UK bank holidays differ by nation and year. Related scheduling cost: meeting cost when delays burn salaried time, and automation ROI when chasing status emails is the real waste. Inclusive versus exclusive end dates change the total by one — agree the convention in the contract wording. Planning aid only — not legal advice on statutory deadlines. International teams should state whose calendar and time zone define the business day, especially around Thursday US Thanksgiving versus UK midweeks.
Worked example
From Monday 3 March to Friday 7 March inclusive is five business days. From Monday 3 March to Monday 10 March exclusive of the end date is five business days (3–7). A span that includes a weekend, such as Thursday 6 March to Tuesday 11 March inclusive, is four business days (6, 7, 10, 11).
Limits and assumptions
Ignores public holidays, half-days and company shutdowns unless you edit dates. Does not handle multi-timezone cut-offs or working-time regulations.
Frequently asked questions
Are weekends excluded?
Yes by default — Saturday and Sunday do not count as business days.
What about UK bank holidays?
Exclude them manually or shift the end date; this tool does not load a holiday calendar.
Inclusive or exclusive end date?
Match your contract language. Inclusive counts both start and end if they are weekdays.
Can I count only a service desk’s working week?
If you work Monday–Thursday, adjust by hand — the default is a five-day week.
Does time of day matter?
Date-only counting ignores hour cut-offs; same-day dispatch rules need a separate clock policy.