Convert Time to Decimal in Excel

Spreadsheet formulas to turn clock times into decimal hours and back, with the number formats that keep totals honest.

Multiply the time value by 24, then format the cell as Number or General, not Time.

=A2*24

Example: cell A2 contains 7:45 as a time value. =A2*24 returns 7.75 decimal hours when the result cell uses a number format.

How these examples were checked

The result column in the table below is computed by this site’s conversion engine (exact integer math, rounded once at display). The formulas follow Microsoft and Google documentation linked in Sources. They were not run in every Excel build, locale, or date system. If something looks wrong in your sheet, contact us.

Formulas at a glance

Excel formulas for time and decimal hour conversions with example results
Goal	Formula	Example input	Result
Time value → decimal hours	`=A2*24`	7:45	7.75
Time value → decimal hours (CONVERT, same as ×24)	`=CONVERT(A2,"day","hr")`	7:45	7.75
Decimal hours → time value	`=A2/24`	7.75	7:45 (time format)
Minutes → decimal hours	`=A2/60`	465	7.75
Time value → minutes	`=A2*1440`	7:45	465
Text time → decimal hours (after TIMEVALUE)	`=TIMEVALUE(A2)*24`	7:45	7.75
Hour and minute parts (under 24 h)	`=HOUR(A2)+MINUTE(A2)/60`	7:45	7.75
Hour, minute, and second parts (under 24 h)	`=HOUR(A2)+MINUTE(A2)/60+SECOND(A2)/3600`	7:45:30	7.7583
Round to 2 decimal places	`=ROUND(A2*24,2)`	7:20	7.33

Results prefixed with ≈ are repeating decimals rounded to the digits shown. Use ROUND(..., n) in the sheet if the stored value should match that rounding too.

=CONVERT(A2,"day","hr") is an alternative to multiplying by 24; see Microsoft Support: Convert times.

Why the cell still shows a time

Excel stores dates and times as serial numbers. Only the number format controls whether you see a clock or a decimal (Microsoft Support: Format numbers as dates or times). Choose General or Number on the formula cell when you want decimal hours.

=ISNUMBER(A2) returns TRUE when the cell holds a numeric time (Microsoft Support: IS functions). Plain text that looks like a time is not the same until Excel parses it or you use TIMEVALUE.

Totals over 24 hours need [h]:mm

Standard h:mm shows hours from 0 to 23. For elapsed time where the hour count can pass 24 (for example 37:30), use a custom format such as [h]:mm (Microsoft Support: Format numbers as dates or times). The square brackets on h mean elapsed hours, not time-of-day.

To convert that total to decimal hours for payroll, multiply the underlying serial by 24. The same rounding rules apply if you round each row first.

Why HOUR and MINUTE fail past 24 hours

HOUR returns an integer from 0 through 23 (Microsoft Support: HOUR function). MINUTE returns 0 through 59 (Microsoft Support: MINUTE function). Adding them works for a single clock time under 24 hours, but not for elapsed durations stored above one day. Use =A2*24 for total decimal hours instead.

Decimal back to time

Divide decimal hours by 24 to get a time serial, then apply a time format: =A2/24 with h:mm or [h]:mm when hours can exceed 23. See the Decimal to Time converter for the same math without a formula.

Common problems

Result looks like a time, not a decimal. Format the formula cell as Number or General (Microsoft Support: Format numbers as dates or times).
#VALUE! on text. TIMEVALUE expects a text string, not a number or a cell that already contains a real time value (Microsoft Support: Correct a #VALUE! error in the TIMEVALUE function). See also Microsoft Support: TIMEVALUE function.
Rounding noise. Excel stores numbers in binary floating point, so very small differences can show up in the last digits (Microsoft Learn: Floating-point arithmetic in Excel). Round at the end with =ROUND(A2*24,2) (Microsoft Support: ROUND function). This site’s Calculation Method explains half-up rounding on totals.
Date system settings. Workbooks can use different date epochs; if every time looks off by the same number of days, check the date system setting in Excel’s options and Microsoft’s documentation for your version.

Google Sheets

Google Sheets stores dates and times as decimal values: the fractional part of the serial is the time as a fraction of one day (Google for Developers: Date and number formats). Multiplying a time value by 24 or dividing decimal hours by 24 follows the same idea; elapsed-hour formats use bracketed tokens such as [hh] in custom patterns on that page.

When you do not want formulas

Paste a column into the Bulk Time Converter, or use the Time to Decimal and Decimal to Time calculators for single values. For minute totals, try Minutes to Decimal.

Sources

Questions

How do I convert 7:45 to 7.75 in Excel?

Put 7:45 in a cell as a time value, then in another cell use =A2*24. Format that result cell as Number or General so it shows 7.75, not a clock time.

Why does my result show 7:45 instead of 7.75?

The formula is probably correct, but the cell is still formatted as Time. Open Format Cells, choose Number or General, and set the decimal places you need.

How do I convert decimal hours back to hh:mm?

Divide the decimal hours by 24 with =A2/24 and format the cell as a time (for example h:mm). One hour equals 1/24 of a day in the serial number.

How do I convert minutes to decimal hours in Excel?

Divide the minute count by 60: =A2/60. For example, 465 minutes is =465/60, which is 7.75 decimal hours.

How do I add times that go past 24 hours?

Use a custom format such as [h]:mm on the total cell so the hour count can exceed 23. Standard h:mm formats roll hours at 24.

Can I use HOUR and MINUTE instead of *24?

For durations under 24 hours, =HOUR(A2)+MINUTE(A2)/60 matches the idea of splitting hours and minutes. HOUR returns 0–23, so it does not count past a full day. Use =A2*24 for elapsed hours over 24.

Does Google Sheets work the same way?

Sheets also stores times as decimal day fractions, so multiplying by 24 and dividing by 24 follow the same arithmetic. Locale and format codes still affect how typed text is read.

What if the time is plain text in the cell?

Formulas treat text differently from a real time value. TIMEVALUE needs a text string in your locale’s time format, not a number and not a cell that already holds a parsed time; Microsoft’s “Correct a #VALUE! error in the TIMEVALUE function” article describes that case. Re-enter the value as a time, or use TIMEVALUE only on true text. ISNUMBER returns TRUE when the value is already numeric.