When entering hours and minutes I am confused. If someone works 1 hour and 30 minutes do I enter 1:50 or 1:30?

Greetings, @jcostin50.

Let me be the first to welcome you to the Community. I’m here to share some information about entering hours and minutes in QuickBooks Online.

The right format for entering time is 1:30. This is applicable to fields that require hours such as timesheets and paychecks. 

For invoices, QuickBooks will convert the time to decimals since Quantity is the only available column. Instead of 1:30, the system will change it to 1.50.

I added screenshots for your reference:

That should answer your question for today. Reach out to me if you need anything else. I’ll be here to help. Thanks for dropping by and take care!

Hi, @Anonymous.

Thanks for the call out. I updated my answer above. 

KhimG

It did not change on my invoice, can you please let me know how to make the system to charge it to decimal on invoices? I entered hours using QBO weekly time sheet.

Thank you,

[email address removed]

QBO will automatically convert the numbers in the invoice so there's no actual company settings to change, Shirleycai.

Let me give you some troubleshooting that can resolve unusual behaviors similar to what you're having. 

First, start an incognito or private browsing session. Then, log back in to your QBO account.

• CTRL + Shift + N for Chrome
• CTRL + SHIFT + P for Mozilla
• Go to File, then click New Private Window if you're using Safari.

Second, delete the time sheet entry and invoice that you've made. Then, re-enter the hours and create the invoice afterwards.

If it's converting automatically, it means a possible browser problem is causing the issue. Switch back to the original or regular browsing session.

You'll need to delete the temporary saved files and stored cache in your browser. This article article will guide you through it: Delete or disable cache and temporary internet files in your web browser.

Another option is to switch to any of these supported browsers to further isolate the issue:

• Google Chrome.
• Mozilla Firefox. 
• Microsoft Edge.
• Safari 11 or newer (Mac only).

Please add another reply below if you have other questions or if you need more help with this. We'll make sure the hours numbers are converting successfully. 

When I enter hours into Intuit Payroll Online I do not have the option to enter as 1:30, i can only enter as a decimal (1.3) does the software now know that it needs to convert that or that we mean minutes or do have to manually figure out the conversion outside of the system and only enter the decimal? In this example 1.5.

Thanks

Hi there, luitree.

When we enter the time it automatically converts into a decimal time format. We'll also be prompted to enter hours as a decimal number, such as 10.25 for 10 hours and 15 minutes.We can use the Memo field of the paycheck to enter the actual time format the client worked for. 

We can pull up the Payroll Details report to view the summary of paychecks we've made and if hours are entered correctly. We can also view it in Excel. 

1. Go to the Reports tab. 
2. select Payroll Details under Employee Reports. 
3. We can customize the date Range.
4. Click the View in Excel link at the upper-right. 

I'll be here if you need anything else. Thanks!

When entering 1 hour and 20 minutes do we just put 1.20? Doesn’t it change it automatically? 

Hello there, @Hopkinscountyedc.

Let me share some information about entering hours and minutes in QuickBooks Online.

The right format for entering time is in an hour format. This applies to fields that require hours, such as timesheets and paychecks. 

For invoices, QuickBooks will convert the time to decimals since Quantity is the only available column. For example, instead of 1:30, the system will change it to 1.50.

Also, I’m adding this article you can check about setting up employee’s time off in QuickBooks Online: Set up and track time off in payroll.

I'll be here if you need anything else. Thanks!

When I enter 1:50 it doesn't switch it to 1:30. Is that correct?

Thank you for joining in, @nikkid20. 

Based on the example my colleague shared, instead of 1:30, the system will change it to 1.50 and not the other way around.

I know how crucial it is to enter the accurate tracked time when making invoices for billable hours. For the time being, it isn't possible to alter the time format. 

I'll share your ideas with our engineers for future consideration. 

I'm adding an article to help you learn more about time tracking in QuickBooks: Timesheet setup: QuickBooks Online.

Keep in touch if you have more concerns. We'll respond as soon as we can.

The time format issue has been a huge problem for years. The problem is QB reconverts the time to hours and minutes on the actual invoice even when you enter it in decimal form. Using the example above, time entry is 1.5. QB converts that under the entry to 1:30 (1 hour and 30 minutes). When the invoice is created for the client the invoice keeps the hour:minute format under Quantity when the client really wants to see the 1.5. That's what professional services clients expect. Why can't this be changed?

Thank you for joining the thread, @db77.

Upon replicating this concern on my end there’s no problem with converting the time activity to an invoice in QuickBooks Online (QBO).

Time should be entered using the 1:30 format. This applies to categories that ask for hours, including timesheets and paychecks. Being the only available column for invoicing, QuickBooks will covert time to decimal places. Thus, the system will convert it to 1.50 instead of 1:30.

To fix this kind of issue, you can perform some troubleshooting steps as this concern could be a browser-related issue. A stored cache can cause unexpected behavior while using the application.

Here are the keyboard shortcuts to open a private browser:

• Google Chrome: press Ctrl + Shift + N
• Mozilla Firefox: press Ctrl + Shift + P
• Microsoft Edge: press Ctrl + Shift + P
• Safari: press Command + Shift +N

If it works, kindly proceed with clearing your cache. This helps improve the performance of the application. Then, if the issue persists, you can refer to this article for other supported browsers while using QBO.

Let me know in the comment if you need further assistance with time activity. I’m just one post away from assisting you. Stay safe!

Just tried this again using your instructions and cleared the intuit cache then restarted the browser. Entered time in hours:min format. At create invoice level QB showed the time on the invoice in decimal form as desired. When invoice was printed out it reconverted to back to hours:mins. This shouldn't be that complicated. One should be able to enter time in decimal form  and have that stay constant throughout the process.

I appreciate you trying out the troubleshooting steps shared by my colleague above, @db77. I’ll share further information about formatting time in QuickBooks Online.

I can see how the option to enter and print time according to your client’s desire format would benefit your business and to the program. However, this is currently unavailable in QuickBooks Online. 

I want you to know that your opinion is important to us and we value it. With this, I’d suggest sending feedback request to our product development team. They will evaluate these and pick some of them to include in future updates. This way, we can help you with your business needs. 

Here’s how:

1. Go to the Gear icon.
2. Under the Profile column, click on Feedback.
3. Share your feedback. Then, click Next.

You'll want to track your suggestion through this website. You can also visit our blog to keep up with all of our recent events and developments.

See these articles to learn more about time tracking in QuickBooks Online: 

• Turn on and set up time tracking
• How to use basic time tracking

Please don't hesitate to Reply in this thread if you have any additional questions about QuickBooks. I’ll be here to answer them for you. Take care.

I have been making this suggestion for years. Nothing is ever changed on this issue. It will take more than my suggestions apparently. Maybe an employee like yourself can press the issue more convincingly. I'm sure I'm not the only one that needs this option.

The article you sent me to confirms the option I need is not available:

Time Details

Based on the rates you specify and whether or not the time is billable, time detail will automatically appear on customer invoices. You can include:

• Employee or contractor's name
• Hourly rate charged
• Number of hours billed — This appears as a decimal number on your invoice and as time on the printed or emailed version. For example, an hour and fifteen minutes will show as 1.25 when entered on an invoice and 1:15 when it is sent to your customer.