How does vacation accrual work is the question a manager asks the first time someone hired in March wants a week in June. Accrual means the year's vacation is earned a piece at a time, per pay period or per month, instead of all on the first of January, so the balance on any date is the rate multiplied by the periods worked, plus any carryover within the cap, minus the days used. A vacation accrual spreadsheet is that arithmetic per person with a row per period; the vacation schedule template on this site sets the year's entitlement, cover and carryover, and the subscription keeps the running balance so nobody rebuilds the sheet each month.
The rate and the period
Divide the year's entitlement by the number of pay periods and the result is what each period earns: a biweekly payroll has twenty-six periods, a semimonthly one twenty-four, a monthly one twelve. A new starter accrues from their start date, so their balance in June is the periods worked since March at that rate; a leaver is paid or not for the accrued balance as the policy and the state say, which is the accountant's question, not the sheet's.
The cap and the carryover
Most policies stop accrual at a cap, so a balance that reaches the ceiling earns nothing more until days are taken, and most set a carryover limit at year end, so days above it lapse or are handled as the policy says. The spreadsheet applies both: the accrual column stops at the cap, and the year-end row carries forward only what the policy allows. Write both numbers on the sheet where the person can see them.
The balance at any date
The balance is accrued to date plus carryover minus used, and it changes every period and every day taken, which is why a sheet kept by hand drifts. One row per period per person, the used days entered as they are approved, and the balance is a formula rather than a memory. The subscription on this site keeps that running balance and exports the sheet when the accountant asks for it.
Questions people ask about vacation accrual spreadsheet
How does vacation accrual work for a new employee?
They earn the per-period rate from their start date, so the balance at any date is periods worked times the rate; many policies also set a waiting period before accrued days can be taken.
What columns should a vacation accrual spreadsheet have?
Person, period date, accrued this period, accrued to date, carryover, used, balance; one row per period, with the cap and the carryover limit written on the sheet.
Is accrual better than front-loading the year's vacation?
Accrual matches the entitlement to the time worked and avoids a leaver taking a year's days in January; front-loading is simpler for a small, stable team. The policy chooses; the spreadsheet handles either.