Business Days Calculator
Count working days between dates or find a date after N business days. Excludes weekends automatically.
📅 What is a Business Days Calculator?
A business days calculator counts the number of working days (Monday through Friday) between two dates, or adds a specified number of working days to a start date to find the resulting date. Unlike calendar day calculators, it automatically excludes Saturdays and Sundays, giving you the count that matters for scheduling, contracts, and financial deadlines.
Business days drive timelines in virtually every professional context. Employment contracts specify notice periods of 30 or 60 working days. Banks define transaction settlement as T+2 business days. E-commerce platforms quote delivery as "3–5 business days." Legal filings have deadlines in "10 business days." Court rules, SLA agreements, regulatory submissions, and payroll cycles all operate on working days, not calendar days - because weekends are not business days for the parties involved.
A common confusion is treating "5 business days" and "5 calendar days" as equivalent. If your 5-business-day deadline starts on a Thursday, it ends the following Thursday (Thu + Fri = 2 days week 1; Mon + Tue + Wed = 3 days week 2). In calendar terms, that is 8 days. Miscounting this can cause missed legal deadlines, late deliveries, or contract breaches.
This calculator handles two scenarios: counting the business days between any two dates, and finding the date that is exactly N business days from a start date. Both modes exclude weekends; public holidays, which vary by country and region, can be noted separately based on your locale.
📐 How Business Days Are Counted
Business Days = Total Days − Saturdays − Sundays
Total Days = end date − start date (calendar days)
Saturdays = floor(Total Days ÷ 7) + adjustment for partial week
Sundays = similarly adjusted for partial week
Example: Mon Jan 6 to Fri Jan 17 = 12 calendar days − 4 weekend days = 8 business days
Add N Business Days: step forward N weekdays from start date
Algorithm: Advance one day at a time, skipping Saturdays and Sundays, until N weekdays have been counted
Negative N: step backward N weekdays (subtract business days)
Example: Add 10 business days to Thu Mar 6 → result: Thu Mar 20 (skipping Sat 8, Sun 9, Sat 15, Sun 16)
📖 How to Use This Calculator
Steps
1
Select a mode - "Count Business Days" to find the number of working days between two dates, or "Add Business Days" to find what date falls N working days from today.
2
Enter your dates - for counting, pick start and end dates; for adding, pick a start date and enter how many business days to add (negative to subtract).
3
Read the result - see the business day count or resulting date, plus calendar days and weekends excluded for reference.
💡 Example Calculations
Example 1 — Project Deadline (14 Business Days)
A project starts on Monday, May 5, 2026. When is the deadline 14 business days later?
1
Week 1: Mon 5, Tue 6, Wed 7, Thu 8, Fri 9 = 5 days. (Skip Sat 10, Sun 11.)
2
Week 2: Mon 12, Tue 13, Wed 14, Thu 15, Fri 16 = 5 more days. (Skip Sat 17, Sun 18.) Total: 10.
3
Week 3: Mon 19, Tue 20, Wed 21, Thu 22 = 4 more days. Total: 14.
Deadline: Thursday, May 22, 2026 (19 calendar days elapsed)
Try this example →Example 2 — Counting Days Between Dates
How many business days are between March 1, 2026 (Sunday) and March 31, 2026 (Tuesday)?
1
Total calendar days: March 1 to March 31 = 30 days.
2
Weekends in March: 4 Saturdays (7, 14, 21, 28) + 5 Sundays (1, 8, 15, 22, 29) = 9 weekend days (but Mar 1 start is excluded from count).
3
Business days Mon 2 → Tue 31: 22 business days.
Business days: 22 working days in March 2026
Try this example →Example 3 — T+2 Stock Settlement
You buy a stock on Thursday, May 7, 2026. When does T+2 settlement occur?
1
Trade date (T) = Thursday, May 7.
2
T+1 = Friday, May 8.
3
T+2 = Monday, May 11 (skip Saturday and Sunday).
Settlement date: Monday, May 11, 2026
Try this example →❓ Frequently Asked Questions
How do I count business days between two dates?
Count Monday through Friday only, skipping every Saturday and Sunday within the range. For spans of a week or more: count complete weeks × 5, then add the weekday count for the partial remaining days. For example, Monday Jan 6 to Friday Jan 17 = 1 complete week (5 days) + 5 days in the second week = 10 business days, with weekends Jan 11–12 excluded.
What are business days vs. calendar days?
Calendar days count all 7 days (Mon–Sun). Business days count only Mon–Fri. A 5-calendar-day window starting Thursday ends Monday; a 5-business-day window starting Thursday ends the following Wednesday (Thu + Fri + Mon + Tue + Wed). The difference grows with weekends crossed - a 20-business-day period spans 28 calendar days (4 complete weeks).
How do I add 10 business days to a date?
Start counting forward Monday–Friday from (but not including) your start date. Skip every Saturday and Sunday. Count until you reach 10 weekdays. For example, adding 10 business days to Monday March 2: Mon 3, Tue 4, Wed 5, Thu 6, Fri 7 (skip Sat 8, Sun 9), Mon 10, Tue 11, Wed 12, Thu 13, Fri 14 - result is Friday March 14.
Are public holidays counted as business days?
This calculator excludes only weekends by default. Public holidays vary by country, state, and employer, so they are not auto-excluded. To account for holidays, subtract them from the business day count manually. For example, if there is one public holiday within your date range, subtract 1 from the result. Many contracts specify exactly which holidays are excluded - always check the applicable rules.
What is T+2 settlement in stock markets?
T+2 means trade date plus 2 business days. If you buy shares on Monday, funds and shares settle on Wednesday. If you trade Thursday, settlement is Monday (skipping Sat–Sun). The US moved from T+3 to T+2 in 2017; many markets are moving to T+1. This matters for short sellers (who must deliver shares) and investors who need funds available for other trades.
How many business days are in a month?
Typically 20–23 business days per month, depending on the month and how weekends align. A month with 31 days and 5 full weekends has 21 business days; one with the first weekday on Monday can have 23. Payroll and HR commonly use 22 working days as a standard month for simplicity, though the actual count varies. Use this calculator to get the exact count for any specific month.
How many business days are in a year?
A typical year has 261 business days: 365 days minus 104 weekend days (52 Saturdays + 52 Sundays). After subtracting public holidays (typically 10–12), the working year is about 249–251 days. A leap year has 262 business days before holidays. These numbers shift slightly when January 1 falls on different days of the week, which changes whether a year has 52 or 53 Saturdays/Sundays.
If a deadline falls on a weekend, when is it due?
In most legal and business contexts, a deadline that falls on a Saturday or Sunday automatically moves to the next Monday. If Monday is a public holiday, it may move to Tuesday. This convention is codified in many legal systems and contract laws. Always verify the specific rule in your contract or jurisdiction - some agreements specify "on or before" the date, which could mean the preceding Friday.
How does shipping use business days?
"3–5 business days" shipping means 3–5 weekdays after the order is processed (often the next day if ordered after a cut-off time). If you order on Wednesday afternoon (processing Thursday), 3 business days = the following Tuesday. Some express couriers operate 7 days and their "business days" may include Saturday delivery - always check the carrier's definition, especially around holidays when warehouses may be closed.
Can I subtract business days to find an earlier date?
Yes - use the "Add Business Days" mode and enter a negative number for days to add (e.g., −10 to go back 10 business days). This is useful for finding when work must start to meet a deadline: if a report is due in 15 business days and you need 5 days to write it, you must start in 10 business days (or go back from the deadline by 5 business days).