What a business days calculator does
A business days calculator counts the working days between two dates while skipping weekends, and optionally public holidays. Most teams use it when a simple calendar-day count would be misleading, for example when payment terms say "net 30 business days" or a contract gives you ten working days to respond.
This tool runs entirely in your browser. Nothing is sent to a server, results are instant, and the math is the same logic finance, HR, and legal teams use every day.
How business days are calculated
For each day in the range, the calculator checks two things: is it a weekend, and is it a public holiday in the selected country. Days that pass both checks count as business days. Calendar days are simply the total number of days between the two dates, with the end date included or excluded based on your choice.
- Monday to Friday work week treats Saturday and Sunday as non-working.
- Monday to Saturday work week treats only Sunday as non-working.
- Holidays falling on a weekend are not double-counted.
- The end date is excluded by default, matching standard contract language.
Business days, working days, calendar days
The three terms are used interchangeably in everyday speech, but the meaning matters when a deadline is at stake. A business day is any day a typical office is open, usually Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays. A working day means the same thing in most countries, though some industries (retail, hospitality, banking in certain regions) include Saturday. A calendar day is any day on the calendar, weekend and holiday included.
| Term | Includes weekends? | Includes holidays? |
|---|---|---|
| Calendar day | Yes | Yes |
| Business day | No | No |
| Working day | Usually no | No |
Common use cases
- Project deadlines. Convert a "ten working day" milestone into a real calendar date.
- Payment terms. Find the exact due date for net 15, net 30, or net 60 business day invoices.
- Service level agreements. Verify response and resolution times stated in working days.
- HR and PTO. Count working days off without including weekends in the leave balance.
- Legal notice periods. Calculate response windows that exclude weekends and public holidays.
- Shipping ETAs. Estimate delivery dates when carriers quote business days only.
Weekends and public holidays
Weekends are handled by the work week setting. Public holidays cover 35+ countries including the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, Canada, Australia, Japan and many more. Mobile feasts (Easter, Lunar New Year, Eid) and observed shifts when a holiday falls on a weekend are computed automatically, with accurate coverage from 1970 to 2099. Regional or bank-specific observances (state, canton, school) are not included, since these vary widely. If you need precise handling for a particular region or industry, double-check the result against your local calendar.
Naming conventions differ by country. In the United Kingdom and Ireland these non-working days are called bank holidays; in the United States, federal holidays; in France and Belgium, jours fériés (with jours ouvrés for Monday-to-Friday working days and jours ouvrables for Monday-to-Saturday); in Germany, Austria and German-speaking Switzerland, Feiertage alongside Werktage; in Spain, días festivos and días laborables. They all map to the same concept in this calculator: a non-working day that should not count toward a deadline.
Worked examples
From January 1, 2026 to January 31, 2026 with the end date included, there are 31 calendar days, 9 weekend days, and 22 business days.
The same January 2026 range with United States holidays excluded removes New Year's Day and Martin Luther King Jr. Day, leaving 20 business days.
An invoice issued on March 2, 2026 with a 30 working day term, Monday to Friday, with UK bank holidays excluded, is due on April 17, 2026.
How many business days in a year or month
A non-leap year has 365 calendar days and 261 weekdays on a Monday-to-Friday schedule. After subtracting national public holidays, most countries land between 248 and 253 business days per year. The United States typically has around 250, the United Kingdom around 252, France around 228 (after eleven statutory holidays), Germany 249 to 254 depending on the federal state, and Switzerland around 250 depending on the canton.
By month, expect 19 to 23 business days on a Monday-to-Friday schedule. February is the shortest, often 19 or 20. Months with 31 days that start on a Monday or Tuesday give the highest count, up to 23. Public holidays then shave one or two days off in the months where they fall (January, May, November, December are usually the most affected).
Use the calculator above for an exact figure for your country and date range.
Frequently asked questions
Are Saturdays counted as business days?
Only when you choose the Monday to Saturday work week. By default the calculator follows a Monday to Friday week, which is the most common standard worldwide.
How are public holidays handled?
When holiday exclusion is on, the tool checks each day in the range against a built-in list of national holidays for the country you select. Holidays that fall on a weekend are already excluded as weekend days, so they are never counted twice.
Should I include the end date?
It depends on the contract. Many legal and finance contexts treat the end date as exclusive. If the rule is 'response within 10 business days from receipt', the day of receipt is usually day zero. Use the toggle in More options to match your case.
Does the calculator work across years?
Yes. You can pick any start and end date and the result will span months and years correctly. To keep the page fast, the maximum supported range is 50 years.
Why does my number differ from another calculator?
Two reasons usually explain a small difference: whether the end date is included, and which holidays are counted. Check both settings before assuming an error.
Are local or regional holidays supported?
Not yet. Only national public holidays are included for the listed countries. State, provincial, or industry-specific holidays should be checked separately.
Is the calculation accurate?
Yes. The math is deterministic and runs in your browser. There are no rounding tricks or estimates, just a day-by-day count that respects your settings.
What is the difference between business days and working days?
In most countries the two terms mean the same thing: any day that is not a weekend and not a public holiday. The wording differs by industry and contract: finance and law tend to say 'business days', HR and operations often say 'working days'. This calculator treats them as equivalent and uses your work week setting to decide whether Saturday counts.
How do I count business days from today?
Set the start date to today, then pick your target end date. The calculator returns the number of business days in between. If you instead need to find the date that is, say, 30 business days from today, pick a candidate end date and adjust it until the result matches your target. A dedicated 'add business days' mode is on the roadmap.
Are bank holidays the same as public holidays?
For this calculator, yes. 'Bank holidays' is the term used in the United Kingdom and Ireland for the national days when banks and most offices close. They are treated as non-working days exactly like public holidays in other countries.