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How to Calculate Working Days with Excel's NETWORKDAYS Function

Tap through each step to see exactly how to calculate working days with NETWORKDAYS.

  1. Enter the start and end dates

    Type the start date and end date of the period you want to measure into two separate cells.

  2. Enter the NETWORKDAYS function

    Type "=NETWORKDAYS(start_date, end_date)" and Excel automatically counts the weekdays, excluding weekends.

  3. Add holidays as a third argument

    To exclude holidays too, add a range of holiday dates as a third argument: "=NETWORKDAYS(start_date, end_date, holidays)".

  4. Use NETWORKDAYS.INTL for a different weekend pattern

    If your weekend isn't Saturday and Sunday β€” for example, only Sunday is off β€” use NETWORKDAYS.INTL to specify exactly which days count as weekend.

  5. Why this is useful

    When you need the actual number of working days for a project timeline or payroll, one function gives you the exact count without manually counting weekends and holidays.

Stop counting workdays on a calendar

Manually counting how many actual working days fall between two dates β€” while skipping weekends and holidays β€” is tedious. NETWORKDAYS does it instantly from just a start and end date.

Also worth knowing: TODAY() and NOW()

If you often need to calculate working days from today's date, combining NETWORKDAYS with the TODAY() function automatically updates your count every time the spreadsheet is opened, without needing to re-enter the date.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are the start and end dates themselves counted?

Yes. NETWORKDAYS includes both the start date and end date in its count, excluding only the weekends and any holidays you specify in between.

What if only Sunday is a day off, not Saturday too?

Use NETWORKDAYS.INTL and specify the weekend pattern number in the second argument to count only Sunday as a non-working day.