Texas Overtime Calculator: the complete guide
Texas has no overtime statute of its own; the Texas Payday Law governs how and when wages must be paid but does not add any overtime requirement on top of federal law. As a result, overtime for a Texas employee is governed entirely by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA, 29 U.S.C. Sec. 207): 1.5x the regular rate for hours worked over 40 in a workweek, with no daily-overtime trigger and no double-time tier at all, regardless of how long a single shift runs.
Because Texas also uses the federal minimum wage floor ($7.25/hr, unchanged since 2009) rather than setting its own higher rate, this page focuses on getting the federal weekly calculation exactly right and flagging the exemption and tip-credit rules most likely to trip up Texas employers and employees alike.
How overtime works in Texas
Every hour a non-exempt Texas employee works over 40 in a single workweek is owed at 1.5x their regular rate. There is no Texas equivalent of California's daily-overtime rule: an employee can legally work a single 12-hour shift in Texas with zero overtime owed for that day, as long as the workweek total does not exceed 40 hours.
An employee earning $18.00/hr works 45 hours in one workweek. The first 40 hours are straight time: 40 x $18.00 = $720.00. The remaining 5 hours are overtime at 1.5x: 5 x $27.00 = $135.00. Total pay for the week: $720.00 + $135.00 = $855.00.
Texas's minimum wage and tip credit
Texas's minimum wage is $7.25/hr, the federal floor, unchanged since 2009 and set to track the federal rate under Tex. Labor Code Sec. 62.051, which simply adopts the FLSA figure rather than setting an independent state number. Texas allows a tip credit: tipped employees can be paid a direct cash wage as low as $2.13/hr, with the employer claiming up to a $5.12/hr tip credit toward the rest of the $7.25/hr floor, as long as tips actually bring the employee's total pay up to at least $7.25/hr for every hour worked.
Unlike California, Nevada, Washington, and Alaska, Texas places no local floor above the state minimum wage; there is no Texas equivalent of Denver's or Seattle's higher city ordinance, so the $7.25/hr figure (or the tipped combination) is the actual floor everywhere in the state.
Exemptions and independent contractors
Texas relies entirely on the federal FLSA's exemption categories: executive, administrative, and professional employees paid a true salary of at least $684/week ($35,568/year) who also meet the relevant duties test, plus outside salespeople and certain computer professionals. Texas has not layered any additional state-specific overtime exemptions on top of the federal list.
Independent contractor misclassification is a common issue in Texas industries like oilfield services, construction, and trucking, where workers are sometimes labeled contractors despite being closely supervised, using employer-provided equipment, and working exclusively for one company — factors that, under the FLSA's economic-realities test, generally point toward employee status and overtime eligibility.
The regular rate and bonuses
As under any FLSA-governed calculation, a nondiscretionary bonus (one promised in advance for hitting a production or attendance target) must be folded into the regular rate before the 1.5x multiplier is applied. A Texas employer that simply multiplies a base hourly rate by 1.5x while ignoring an earned bonus is very likely underpaying overtime for that week; use the Advanced Options panel above to run the adjusted calculation.
Working two roles at different pay rates for the same employer
Texas oilfield-services and hospitality employers commonly schedule the same worker into two different roles in one workweek, each with its own hourly rate — a field-support role and an equipment-operator role, for instance. Federal law, which governs this calculation in Texas since there is no state overtime statute, does not allow 1.5x to be applied to whichever single rate happened to be in effect during the overtime hours. Instead, both rates are blended into one weighted-average regular rate for the week, and overtime is calculated from that blended figure.
As an alternative to the weighted-average method, federal regulations (29 CFR Sec. 778.419) allow an employer and employee to agree in advance, before the work is performed, that overtime hours will be paid at 1.5x the specific rate for whichever job the employee was actually doing during those overtime hours, rather than the blended average. This pre-agreement method is not automatic; without a genuine advance agreement meeting the regulation's requirements, the weighted-average method is the default, and an employer cannot retroactively pick whichever method produces a lower bill after the fact.
An employee works 30 hours at $20.00/hr in one role and 20 hours at $15.00/hr in a second role for the same employer, 50 hours total for the week. Straight-time earnings: (30 x $20.00) + (20 x $15.00) = $600.00 + $300.00 = $900.00. The weighted-average regular rate is $900.00 / 50 = $18.00/hr. Since straight-time pay already covers the base rate for every hour, only an extra 0.5x the regular rate is owed for the 10 overtime hours: 10 x ($18.00 x 0.5) = $90.00. Total pay for the week: $900.00 + $90.00 = $990.00.
Recordkeeping and your rights
Keep your pay stubs, any written schedule, and your own log of daily hours worked in each role, since a multi-role regular-rate dispute, or a missed bonus adjustment, is resolved almost entirely on that documentation. Because Texas has no state overtime statute of its own, an unpaid-overtime claim runs primarily through the federal Wage and Hour Division, which generally allows two years to bring a claim (three years for a willful violation), so don't wait to raise a suspected shortfall.
Common mistakes
Assuming a long single shift triggers overtime in Texas. Paying overtime for a single 12-hour day when the workweek total stays at or under 40 hours isn't required (though not illegal to do); the FLSA's weekly-only rule means daily length alone never triggers overtime in Texas the way it would in California.
Treating the $2.13/hr tipped cash wage as a complete paycheck. Stopping at $2.13/hr x hours worked without adding tips, and without checking whether the total reaches $7.25/hr for every hour, can leave a tipped worker's actual pay below the legal floor without the employer realizing it.
Classifying a supervised worker as an independent contractor to avoid overtime. Labeling a closely supervised, company-equipment-using worker a "contractor" does not remove FLSA overtime protection if the underlying work relationship looks like employment; misclassified workers can recover unpaid overtime going back as far as the statute of limitations allows.
Ignoring a nondiscretionary bonus when calculating the overtime rate. Applying 1.5x to a bare hourly rate while a production or attendance bonus goes unaccounted for understates the true regular rate and every overtime hour paid that week.
Texas overtime quick reference
| Item | Texas figure |
|---|---|
| Overtime trigger | Hours over 40/week (federal FLSA only) |
| Daily overtime | None |
| Minimum wage | $7.25/hr (federal floor) |
| Tipped cash wage / tip credit | $2.13/hr cash + $5.12/hr credit = $7.25/hr |
| Filing agency | Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) |
How to file a claim
If your Texas paycheck doesn't reflect the correct weekly overtime calculation, raise it first with your employer or payroll department, since a missed bonus adjustment or a tip-credit shortfall are common and often correctable errors. If that doesn't resolve it, you can file a wage claim with the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), which handles Texas Payday Law claims, or with the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division for FLSA overtime violations specifically, both at no cost. Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
Frequently asked questions
- Does Texas have its own overtime law?
- No. Texas has no state overtime statute; overtime for Texas employees is governed entirely by the federal FLSA, which requires 1.5x pay for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. The Texas Payday Law regulates how and when wages must be paid but does not add any overtime requirement of its own.
- Is there daily overtime in Texas?
- No. Texas has no daily-overtime rule of any kind; a Texas employee can work a 10-, 12-, or even 16-hour single shift with no overtime owed for that day alone, as long as the workweek total stays at or under 40 hours. Only the federal 40-hour weekly threshold matters.
- What is the minimum wage in Texas?
- Texas's minimum wage is $7.25/hr, the federal floor, and it has not changed since 2009 because Texas law simply adopts whatever the federal FLSA rate is rather than setting an independent state figure. Tipped employees can be paid as little as $2.13/hr in cash as long as tips bring their total pay up to at least $7.25/hr for every hour worked.
- Do any Texas cities set a higher minimum wage or overtime rule?
- No. Unlike California, Washington, or Colorado, Texas has no city or county minimum wage ordinances above the state figure, and state law preempts local governments from setting their own; the $7.25/hr federal floor applies uniformly across the entire state.
- Are oilfield and construction workers often misclassified in Texas?
- Yes, worker misclassification as independent contractors is a well-documented issue in Texas's oilfield services, construction, and trucking industries, where workers are sometimes labeled contractors despite being closely directed, using employer-supplied equipment, and working exclusively for one company. Those factors generally point toward employee status under the FLSA's economic-realities test, meaning overtime is still owed regardless of the contractor label.
- How does a bonus affect Texas overtime pay?
- A nondiscretionary bonus (one promised in advance for hitting a specific goal) must be folded into the employee's regular rate before the 1.5x overtime multiplier is applied, exactly as under any FLSA-governed calculation nationwide. Skipping this step and applying 1.5x to the bare hourly rate understates every overtime hour paid in a week where such a bonus was earned.
- Who is exempt from overtime in Texas?
- Texas relies entirely on the federal FLSA's exemption categories, most commonly executive, administrative, and professional employees paid a true salary of at least $684/week who also meet a duties test, plus outside salespeople and certain computer professionals. Texas has not added any state-specific overtime exemptions beyond the federal list.
- Where do I file an unpaid overtime claim in Texas?
- You can file a wage claim with the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) for Texas Payday Law issues, or a complaint directly with the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division for federal FLSA overtime violations, both free of charge and without requiring an attorney. Keep your pay stubs and your own record of hours worked, since that documentation is usually what resolves a disputed claim.