How to Calculate Business Days in Google Sheets
Learn to count working days between dates, add business days to a date, and exclude public holidays using Google Sheets formulas.
1. NETWORKDAYS — Count Business Days
The NETWORKDAYS function in Google Sheets works identically to Excel. It counts the number of working days between two dates.
=NETWORKDAYS(start_date, end_date, [holidays])Basic Example
=NETWORKDAYS("2026-01-05", "2026-01-16")With Cell References
=NETWORKDAYS(A2, B2)2. WORKDAY — Add Business Days to a Date
Use WORKDAY to find the date that is N business days from a given start date. Perfect for calculating deadlines and due dates.
=WORKDAY(start_date, num_days, [holidays])Example: 10 Business Days from Today
=WORKDAY(TODAY(), 10)Example: 5 Business Days Ago
=WORKDAY(TODAY(), -5)3. NETWORKDAYS.INTL — Custom Weekends
Some countries have different weekend days. Use NETWORKDAYS.INTL to specify which days count as the weekend.
=NETWORKDAYS.INTL(start_date, end_date, [weekend], [holidays])Weekend Type Numbers
| Number | Weekend Days | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
1 | Saturday-Sunday | Default (most countries) |
2 | Sunday-Monday | Some Middle Eastern countries |
7 | Friday-Saturday | UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar |
11 | Sunday only | Custom schedules |
12 | Monday only | Custom schedules |
Custom Weekend String
You can also use a 7-character binary string where 1 = weekend and 0 = workday (Monday through Sunday):
=NETWORKDAYS.INTL(A1, B1, "0101011")4. Excluding Public Holidays
Create a list of holiday dates and reference them to exclude from your calculations.
Step by Step
- Create a new sheet tab called "Holidays"
- List all public holiday dates in column A (e.g., A1:A11)
- Optionally add holiday names in column B for reference
- Reference this range in your formulas
=NETWORKDAYS(A1, B1, Holidays!A1:A11)=NETWORKDAYS(A1, B1, Holidays2026) 5. Practical Examples
Delivery Date Estimator
=TEXT(WORKDAY(B2, C2, Holidays2026), "MMMM D, YYYY")Project Timeline
=WORKDAY(project_start, SUM(task1_days, task2_days), holidays)Working Days Remaining This Year
=NETWORKDAYS(TODAY(), DATE(YEAR(TODAY()), 12, 31), holidays)Auto-Update Invoice Due Date
=TEXT(WORKDAY(invoice_date, 30, holidays), "MMM DD, YYYY")6. Google Sheets vs Excel
The business day functions work almost identically in both platforms:
| Feature | Google Sheets | Excel |
|---|---|---|
| NETWORKDAYS | ✅ Same | ✅ Same |
| WORKDAY | ✅ Same | ✅ Same |
| NETWORKDAYS.INTL | ✅ Same | ✅ Same |
| WORKDAY.INTL | ✅ Same | ✅ Same |
| Custom weekend string | ✅ Supported | ✅ Supported |
| Named ranges | Data → Named Ranges | Formulas → Define Name |
| TODAY() function | ✅ Same | ✅ Same |
The main difference: Sheets formulas entered in one platform can usually be copy-pasted directly into the other. See our Excel Formula Guide for Excel-specific tips.
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