Table of Contents

Add or Subtract Time

Use the TIME function in Excel to add or subtract hours, minutes, and seconds. To add up times in Excel, simply use the SUM function.

Add Hours, Minutes, and Seconds

Remember to enter a time using the “:” (colon).

1. Enter a time into cell A1.

Time

2. To add 2 hours and 30 minutes to this time, enter the formula shown below.

Add Time in Excel

Explanation: The TIME function has 3 arguments. First, use HOUR, MINUTE, and SECOND to create the time entered in cell A1. Next, add 2 hours and 30 minutes.

To change the Time format, execute the following steps:

3. Select cell B1.

4. Right-click and then click Format Cells (or press CTRL + 1).

5. In the Category list, select Time and choose a Time format.

Change Time Format

6. Click OK.

Add Hours and Minutes

7. Enter a time into cell A1 (use 2 colons to include seconds).

Time With Seconds

8. To add 10 seconds to this time, enter the formula shown below.

Add Seconds

Note: We changed the Time format to 13:30:55 (see step 5).

Add Up Times

To add up times in Excel, simply use the SUM function. To display a total of more than 24 hours, change the Time format.

1. For example, task A requires 8 hours to complete, task B requires 4 hours and 30 minutes, etc.

Task Durations

2. To calculate the total duration, simply use the SUM function.

Total Duration

3. Change the duration of task D from 5 hours to 7 hours.

Total Exceeds 24 Hours

To display a total of more than 24 hours, execute the following steps:

4. Select cell B6.

5. Right-click and then click Format Cells (or press CTRL + 1).

6. Select the Custom category.

7. Type the following number format code: [h]:mm

Custom Time Format

8. Click OK.

Add Up Times in Excel

Note: Visit our page about Date and Time formats to learn more about this topic.

Subtract Minutes

To subtract hours, minutes, or seconds from a time, use the TIME function (and HOUR, MINUTE, and SECOND).

1. Enter a time into cell A1.

Enter Time

2. To subtract 33 minutes from this time, enter the formula shown below.

Subtract Time

Time Difference

Calculating the difference between two times in Excel can be tricky.

1. To calculate the difference between two times in the same day, simply subtract the start time from the end time.

Calculate Difference Between Two Times in Excel

Note: We changed the Time format to 13:30 (see step 5 under “Add Hours, Minutes, and Seconds“).

2. This simple formula doesn’t work if the start time is before midnight and the end time is after midnight. The Time Difference formula below always works.

Time Difference Formula

3. The formula below calculates the difference between two times in hours as a decimal value.

Time Difference in Hours as Decimal Value

Note: Visit our page about Time Difference to understand the logic behind these formulas.

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