Parenting Time Calculator

Pick a custody rotation and see exactly how many overnights each parent gets, with the true percentage split. Courts and support formulas count nights, not vibes, and the advertised label on a schedule is often off by a little.

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Count overnights per parent

Schedule

Ten common repeating rotations. Parent A and parent B are just labels; either can be either parent.

Fourteen-day rotation: parent A has 2 days, parent B has 2 days, parent A has a 3-day weekend, then the roles flip for the second week. Each parent gets 7 of every 14 overnights.

Counting period
Count overnights over

Overnight split: 50.1 percent with parent A and 49.9 percent with parent B over A full year (365 nights).

Overnight counts for each period
PeriodWith parent AWith parent B
A full year (365 nights)183 nights (50.1%)182 nights (49.9%)
A 30-night month16 nights (53.3%)14 nights (46.7%)

Each full 14-night rotation gives parent A 7 overnights and parent B 7. Partial rotations at the end of a period are counted night by night, which is why a year rarely lands on an exact round split.

Estimate only. The court or state agency calculation controls.

Counts follow the repeating pattern exactly. Real schedules shift for holidays, school breaks, illness, and makeup time, and those shifts change the totals.

How parenting time is counted

Most courts and child support worksheets measure parenting time in overnights: whoever has the child at bedtime gets credit for that night. A day visit that ends before bedtime usually counts for zero, even if it ran ten hours. That is why two schedules that feel similar can score very differently on paper.

Every schedule here is a repeating rotation. A 2-2-3 repeats every 14 nights, an every-weekend plan repeats every 7, and the long-distance template repeats every 28. Once you know the rotation, the math is fixed: count the nights assigned to each parent in one full cycle, then repeat.

The common names are shorthand, not exact math. The rotation sold as 60/40 actually gives the second parent 3 of every 7 nights, which is 42.9 percent. The 80/20 alternating-weekend plan works out to 78.6 percent against 21.4. This tool shows the real numbers so you are not negotiating from a rounded label.

A calendar year adds one more wrinkle: 365 nights is not a whole number of cycles for most rotations. The leftover nights fall to whichever parent the pattern assigns them, so a yearly count can land a night or two away from the steady-state split. The counts on this page handle those partial cycles exactly.

These ten patterns are scheduling conventions that families and mediators use because they are easy to follow. No state law requires any of them, and parents are free to build something different around work shifts, school, and distance.

Where overnight counts change child support

Overnight totals are not just calendar trivia. In several of the states we cover, the support formula itself changes once parenting time crosses a threshold. The figures below are read from the same verified data packs that power our state calculators; each linked page carries the statute, the official source, and the effective date.

Parenting time FAQs

What counts as an overnight?

The night belongs to the parent who has the child when they go to sleep. Most worksheets and orders use this rule because it is simple to verify. An evening visit that ends at 8 pm counts for zero overnights, which surprises a lot of parents the first time they see a worksheet.

Which schedule gives a true 50/50 split?

Four patterns in the library split every 14-night cycle exactly 7 and 7: 2-2-3, 3-4-4-3, 2-2-5-5, and week on/week off. They differ in exchange frequency, not in the split. A 2-2-3 has six exchanges per cycle; week on/week off has two.

Why does my yearly count not match the advertised percentage?

Two reasons. First, some labels are rounded: the 4-3 rotation marketed as 60/40 is really 57.1/42.9. Second, 365 nights is not a whole number of cycles, so the leftover nights go to whichever parent the rotation assigns them. Both effects are real nights, and this counter includes them.

Do overnight counts change child support?

In some states, yes. Several formulas shift once a parent passes a set number of overnights or a share of custody time, and the trigger point is different in each state. Texas guideline percentages, by contrast, do not move with overnights at all. The section under the calculator links each of our live state pages with its threshold.

Can I count a schedule that starts mid-year?

Yes. Switch to your own date range, enter the first day of the rotation, and set how many weeks to count, up to 104. The counter anchors the cycle to your start date and walks the calendar from there.

Is a 70/30 schedule the same as every weekend?

Not quite. The strict 70/30 template is a 10-night loop, 7 nights then 3, which drifts across weekdays over time. An every-weekend plan holds the same 5 school nights and 2 weekend nights each week, which works out to 71.4/28.6. Families often pick the weekend version for the fixed rhythm even though the label says 70/30.

Does this tool store my schedule?

No. Everything runs in your browser. Nothing you select or type is sent anywhere, saved, or shared.

About the numbers on this page

  • Overnight thresholds shown on this page come from each state data pack behind our calculators, so they update when a pack updates. The linked state page carries the statute and effective date for each figure.

How to use these counts

Choose the rotation closest to your situation and read the split for a typical year and month, or enter the actual first day of your schedule and how many weeks it runs. The counter walks your real dates, so partial cycles at the end are counted night by night instead of estimated.

Parent A and parent B are neutral slots. If your schedule mirrors a pattern with the roles flipped, just read the two columns in reverse.

If you are heading into mediation or a support calculation, count the schedule as it will actually run, then check the state pages linked below to see whether your overnight total crosses a threshold that changes support in your state.

What this estimate includes

  • Overnight counts per parent for a full year, a 30-night month, or your own date range
  • Exact percentage splits, including the partial-cycle nights a label hides
  • All 10 library rotations, each with its cycle spelled out

What it leaves out

  • Holiday, vacation, and school-break swaps, which override the base rotation
  • Daytime hours: a visit without an overnight adds nothing to these counts
  • Any child support math: overnight thresholds live on the state calculator pages
  • Legal advice about which schedule a court would approve

Official sources

Official sources last verified: .

Reviewed by SupportDecode Editorial Team Page content reviewed Sources Methodology Update log

Changelog: page first published with the 10-pattern schedule library. Material changes are dated in the update log.