Absence rate calculator
Work out how much working time your team loses to unplanned absence, how many days that is per employee and what it costs in pay.
Team and period
The people and the stretch of time you are measuring.
Average headcount over the period.
About 21 in a month, 65 in a quarter, 260 in a year.
Absence
Unplanned time off only: sickness and unauthorized absence, not booked vacation.
Added up across the whole team.
Used to convert days into hours.
Cost of absence
Spread over 260 working days.
Absence rate
2.46%
40 days lost of 1,625 days available
- Days lost per employee
- 1.6
- Per employee, a year
- 6.4
Estimated pay cost
$7,692
- Days lost
- 40
- Daily pay
- $192
- At this rate, a year
- $30,769
What is an absence rate?
An absence rate, or absenteeism rate, is the share of scheduled working time lost because employees were absent without planning it. It turns a pile of sick days into one number you can track from month to month and compare between teams.
Count unplanned absence only: sickness, injury, unauthorized absence and last-minute time off. Leave out booked vacation, public holidays, parental leave and other approved leave, since those are planned and the team can prepare for them.
How to calculate absence rate
Absence rate = days lost to absence ÷ working days available × 100
Working days available is the headcount times the working days in the period:
Working days available = employees × working days in the period
For example, a team of 20 over a quarter with 65 working days has 20 × 65 = 1,300 working days. If 39 days were lost to sickness, the absence rate is 39 ÷ 1,300 × 100 = 3%. That is 1.95 days per employee in the quarter, or about 7.8 days over a full year. The same formula works in hours, which is fairer when people work different hours.
What absence rates mean in days
Days lost over a year of 260 working days at common absence rates:
| Absence rate | Per employee | Team of 25 | Team of 100 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1% | 2.6 days | 65 days | 260 days |
| 2% | 5.2 days | 130 days | 520 days |
| 3% | 7.8 days | 195 days | 780 days |
| 4% | 10.4 days | 260 days | 1,040 days |
| 5% | 13 days | 325 days | 1,300 days |
Absence rate benchmarks
The Office for National Statistics measures sickness absence across the UK labour market. In 2025:
- 2.0% of working hours were lost to sickness or injury, the same as in 2024.
- That was an estimated 148.8 million working days, or 4.4 days per worker.
- The rate was 1.7% in the private sector and 2.9% in the public sector.
Source: ONS, Sickness absence in the UK labour market: 2025. The ONS counts sickness and injury only, so a rate that includes other unplanned absence will run a little higher.
How to reduce absence
- Record every absence. Patterns, like repeated Mondays or one team with far more sick days, only show up when absence is tracked consistently.
- Hold return-to-work conversations. A short check-in after each absence shows that absence is noticed and brings problems to light early.
- Look at frequency as well as length. The Bradford factor calculator highlights frequent short absences, which a team-wide rate can hide.
- Make planned leave easy. When booking time off is simple and fair, fewer people call in sick to get a day off.
How this calculator counts
- When you set the period by dates, working days are Monday to Friday. Take out public holidays by entering the working days yourself, or count them with the business days calculator.
- Yearly figures scale the period up to 260 working days, so a short period with an unusual month can over- or understate a full year.
- The cost is pay for the days lost, with salaries spread over 260 working days. It leaves out employer taxes, benefits, cover and lost output.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate absence rate?
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Divide the days lost to unplanned absence by the total working days available, then multiply by 100. Twenty employees over a 65-day quarter have 1,300 working days between them. If 39 of those were lost to sickness, the absence rate is 39 ÷ 1,300 × 100 = 3%.
What is a good absence rate?
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Across the UK, 2.0% of working hours were lost to sickness or injury in 2025, according to the Office for National Statistics: 1.7% in the private sector and 2.9% in the public sector. Rates vary a lot by industry and job, so your own trend over time is usually the most useful comparison.
Is vacation counted in the absence rate?
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No. The absence rate measures unplanned absence, such as sickness and unauthorized time off. Booked vacation, public holidays, parental leave and other approved leave are planned, so they are left out of both the time lost and the time available.
What is the difference between absence rate and the Bradford factor?
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The absence rate shows how much working time a whole team loses. The Bradford factor scores individual employees, weighting frequent short absences more heavily than one long absence, because they are usually more disruptive.
How much does absence cost?
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The direct cost is the pay for the days lost, which is what this calculator estimates. The full cost is higher: overtime or temporary cover, managers' time, missed deadlines and lower output from the rest of the team.
Is absenteeism rate the same as absence rate?
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Yes. Absenteeism rate, absence rate and sickness absence rate are used for the same measure, although some organizations count only sickness while others include all unplanned absence. Pick one definition and use it consistently.