Holiday Pay Calculator
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Informational estimate only, based on official GOV.UK guidance and assumes the person is eligible — see the eligibility notes below. Not legal or payroll advice.
Quick answer: Fixed-hours workers are paid their normal weekly pay for holiday; irregular-hours workers are paid their average pay over the last 52 paid weeks.
Written by Ruby Miller · HR & Employment Law Content Lead
How this is calculated
For workers with fixed hours and fixed pay, a week’s holiday pay is simply their normal weekly pay. For irregular-hours and zero-hours workers, holiday pay is instead based on average weekly earnings over the previous 52 paid weeks (skipping any weeks with no pay, looking back further as needed to find 52 paid weeks).
The 52-week reference period replaced an older 12-week averaging method in April 2020, specifically to smooth out seasonal spikes and dips — someone who works far more hours over the summer than the winter no longer has their holiday pay skewed by whichever 12 weeks happened to precede the leave they’re taking.
If you haven’t already worked out how many days of leave are actually owed, that’s a separate question — the Holiday Entitlement Calculator handles it. This page only answers what each of those days is worth in pay.
What counts as “pay” in the 52-week average
Not every payslip line is treated the same way when building the 52-week average. As a general guide:
| Pay element | Typically included? |
|---|---|
| Basic salary or hourly pay | Yes |
| Regular or guaranteed overtime | Yes |
| Regular commission tied to work done | Yes |
| Non-guaranteed but usually-worked overtime | Yes |
| Purely discretionary, one-off bonuses | Usually no |
| Expense reimbursements | No |
Genuinely one-off or discretionary payments generally sit outside the average, but anything that forms a regular, expected part of someone’s earnings usually needs to be included — leaving it out is one of the most common ways employers under-calculate holiday pay without realising it.
Who this applies to
We’re assuming eligibility here, not checking it. The actual conditions are:
- Worker or employee status under UK employment law.
- For the 52-week average method: at least some paid weeks in the reference period to average across.
Special cases
Zero-hours and rolled-up holiday pay
Some employers pay zero-hours and irregular-hours workers an uplift on every payslip (“rolled-up” holiday pay) instead of paying separately when leave is taken. This is subject to specific rules and restrictions that this calculator does not model — check current guidance if this applies to you.
Commission-heavy roles
If a significant part of pay is regular commission, this is generally expected to be reflected in holiday pay — make sure commission is included in the total pay figure entered for the 52-week average method.
Fewer than 52 paid weeks of history
New starters without a full 52 weeks of pay history use however many paid weeks they do have, going back further than 52 weeks if needed to find enough paid weeks — enter the actual weeks and total pay available.
Worked examples
What this calculator doesn’t cover
- Uses a simple average and does not separately itemise overtime, commission or bonus components.
- Does not apply the specific restrictions around rolled-up holiday pay for irregular-hours and part-year workers.
- Does not allow a different reference period length for unusual employment patterns.
- Does not look back beyond 104 weeks to find 52 paid weeks for someone with very sparse work history.
Why this so often gets under-paid
Holiday pay is one of the more quietly under-calculated figures in UK payroll — not usually through bad faith, just through payroll software or spreadsheets built before the 2020 reform. These are the three we see most.
- ✕Dividing by 52 instead of weeks actually paid. Unpaid weeks are meant to be skipped, not counted as zero-pay weeks in the average — including them artificially drags the average down.
- ✕Leaving out regular overtime or commission. If it’s a normal, expected part of someone’s pay, it belongs in the total — a holiday-pay figure that excludes it is usually an under-payment, not a simplification.
- ✕Assuming “fixed hours” means “fixed pay.” Someone on fixed hours but with regular guaranteed overtime on top may still need the 52-week average method rather than a flat weekly figure.
FAQs
Does overtime count towards holiday pay?
Regular or guaranteed overtime is generally included in the 52-week average method. This calculator uses a single total-pay figure, so make sure overtime is included in the total you enter.
What is rolled-up holiday pay?
Rolled-up holiday pay adds an uplift to normal pay instead of paying separately for time off. It’s subject to specific rules and restrictions that this calculator does not model — check current GOV.UK guidance if your employer uses this method.
Why did the reference period change from 12 weeks to 52 weeks?
The switch to 52 weeks took effect in April 2020, specifically to stop holiday pay being skewed by whichever 12 weeks happened to precede a booked holiday — it gives a fairer, less seasonally-distorted average for anyone whose hours or pay vary through the year.
What if I haven’t been employed for 52 weeks yet?
Use however many weeks you’ve actually been paid for. The rules allow looking back up to 104 weeks to find 52 paid weeks — if there still aren’t 52, the average is simply based on the paid weeks that do exist.
Do unpaid weeks pull the average down?
They shouldn’t — unpaid weeks are meant to be skipped and replaced by looking further back, not counted as £0 in the average. If your employer is dividing by 52 regardless of how many weeks were actually paid, that’s worth querying.
Is holiday pay the same as normal pay for salaried, fixed-hours staff?
Yes, generally — if your weekly pay doesn’t vary, a week’s holiday pay is simply that same fixed weekly amount, without needing to average anything.
Can my employer pay less than my normal week’s pay for holiday?
Not for statutory leave — the 52-week average (or fixed weekly pay) method is the statutory minimum. Paying consistently less than this calculation would fall short of the legal requirement.