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24/72 Schedule Calendar

On a 24/72 schedule you work one 24-hour shift and then have 72 hours off, a 4-day cycle. Pick a day you start work and get your whole year.

1 Your shift pattern

Kelly days

2 A day you start a block of shifts

Your next two weeks. If they don't match your rota, move the date a day.

Mon1924Tue20offWed21offThu22offFri2324Sat24offSun25offMon26offTue2724Wed28offThu29offFri30offSat3124Sun1off

Holidays shown Crew names

Compare with your partner's shifts

Their pattern Version A day they start a block

Their shift shows as a bar under each day. Days you are both off get a green frame.

5 Your pay (optional)

Hourly rate ($) Night or evening differential ($/h)

Holidays worked A payday Paid

Overtime rule

See what you earn in the year, each month and each paycheck, before tax. Firefighters and police on a 7(k) work period: choose "No overtime" and use the 7(k) calculator. Your pay stays on this device and is not added to the share link.

Name this calendar

24/72 Schedule at a glance

Cycle: 4 days
Shift length: 24 hours
Crews for 24/7: 4
Hours a week: 42
Hours a year: 2,190
Days off per cycle: 3

What is a 24/72 schedule?

On a 24/72 schedule you work one 24-hour shift and then have 72 hours off, a 4-day cycle. It needs four platoons (A, B, C, D) and brings the average down to 42 hours a week.

One cycle, crew by crew

Standard (4 days)

Crew A

Crew B

Crew C

Crew D

Employers often shift the start or swap the order of blocks. If your rota differs, change the start date until the calendar matches a week you already know.

Printable 24/72 schedule template

24/72 Schedule template: one 4-day cycle for crews A, B, C, D, day by day — One full cycle for every crew. Download the PNG, or pick your start date in the calendar above and press Print for your own year.

Working a 24/72 schedule

On a 24/72 schedule you work 24 hours and then have 72 hours off. It needs four platoons, A to D, and brings the average week down to 42 hours, close to a normal job.

Departments move to 24/72 mainly to cut fatigue and overtime: in any 28-day period it gives exactly 7 shifts, 168 hours, below the 212-hour 7(k) threshold. The cost for the department is a fourth platoon, so it is less common than the 24/48.

Because the cycle is 4 days, your shift day moves through the week; you get each weekday off in turn and about one weekend shift in every two weekends.

Overtime on a 24/72 schedule under 7(k)

Fire departments usually pay overtime under section 7(k) of the FLSA: after 212 hours in a 28-day work period (29 CFR 553.230). In any 28 days this cycle puts 7 shifts of 24 hours, so 168 hours, which is 44 hours under the threshold, with no 7(k) overtime before Kelly days, swaps or callbacks.

Try your own work period in the 7(k) overtime calculator.

How many hours is a 24/72 schedule?

Version	Cycle	Crews	Avg hours a week	Hours a year
Standard	4 days	4	42	2,190

Hours a year = hours worked in one cycle × 365 ÷ days in the cycle. Standard: 24 h × 365 ÷ 4 = 2,190 h. These are scheduled hours; overtime, leave and swaps change your own total.

24/72 pay calculator: hours, overtime and pay a year at your hourly rate.

24/72 Schedule pros and cons

Pros

Three days off after every shift.
About 42 hours a week, close to a normal job.
Less overtime for the department to pay.

Cons

Needs a fourth platoon, so more staff.
Fewer shifts can mean lower pay if overtime was part of your income.
Still 24 hours on duty in one go.

24/72 Schedule calendar 2027

An example year with Crew A starting its cycle on Monday, January 4, 2027; the other crews follow 1 days apart. For your own dates, use the calendar at the top of the page.

Crew	Shifts in 2027	Hours	Full weekends off
A	91	2,184	26
B	91	2,184	26
C	91	2,184	26
D	92	2,208	26

Day shifts yellow, nights blue, 24-hour shifts red, US federal holidays with an orange corner.