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Employee Schedule Template (Excel)

Last updated June 2026

Pick a shift code like 9–5 from a drop-down and the rota fills itself in: the Schedule sheet covers Monday through Sunday for up to 10 staff, while a Shifts sheet defines each code and its hours. A VLOOKUP-driven Hours column totals every person's week without manual adding. Two sheets, one free .xlsx, ready for small teams and rotating rosters.

Employee Schedule Template (Excel)

employee-schedule.xlsx · free · no signup

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Works in Excel, LibreOffice Calc, and Google Sheets (File → Import).

SHA-256: 55f146d8cc6f2d167bf632adfbbdb1be2c9f4067b59dd6d2eabae0c32fd674bf

I5=IFERROR(VLOOKUP(B5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(C5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(D5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(E5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(F5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(G5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(H5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)
ABCDEFGHI
EmployeeMonTueWedThuFriSatSunHours
Avery Johnson9–59–59–59–59–5OFFOFF40.0
Maria Gonzalez6–26–2OFF6–26–26–2OFF40.0
Daniel Kim2–102–102–10OFFOFF2–102–1040.0
Priya PatelOFFHALF9–59–59–5OFFHALF32.0
Employee rows from the Schedule sheet. The Hours cell looks up each day's shift code in the Shifts sheet and adds the hours together — `OFF` days count as zero.

What's inside

Sheets

  • ScheduleThe weekly grid: a Week of: date in B2, then 10 employee rows across Mon–Sun, with each day a drop-down and an automatic Hours total in column I.
  • ShiftsThe six shift codes and their hours (OFF 0, 6–2 8, 9–5 8, 2–10 8, 10–6 8, HALF 4) that feed both the drop-downs and the Hours formula. Edit it and everything updates.

Columns

  • EmployeeOne name per row, rows 5 through 14 — overwrite the four sample staff.
  • Mon–SunSeven daily columns (B through H). Each cell is a drop-down fed by Shifts!$A$2:$A$7, so you only ever type a real code.
  • HoursColumn I. Adds the hours for that employee's seven shift codes automatically, formatted to one decimal. OFF and blank days contribute zero.

Formulas that do the work

=IFERROR(VLOOKUP(B5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(C5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(D5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(E5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(F5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(G5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)+IFERROR(VLOOKUP(H5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0),0)

Each Hours cell (I5 down to I14) looks up all seven daily codes in the Shifts table and sums the hours. IFERROR(…,0) makes blank or OFF days count as zero instead of erroring.

=SUM(I5:I14)

Cell I15, the Total scheduled hours row, adds every employee's weekly hours — a quick read on total labor for the week.

=VLOOKUP(B5,Shifts!$A$2:$B$7,2,0)

The core lookup inside each Hours cell: it finds the day's code (here B5) in column A of the Shifts sheet and returns the matching hours from column B. The 0 forces an exact match.

How to use it

  1. Set the week

    In the Schedule sheet, type the week's start date into B2 next to Week of:. The sample shows 7/6/2026; replace it with your own Monday.

  2. List your staff

    Type one employee name per row in column A, rows 5 through 14. Overwrite the four sample names; leave unused rows blank and their Hours total stays at 0.0.

  3. Assign shifts from the drop-downs

    Click any cell from Mon to Sun and pick a code from the drop-down — 9–5, 6–2, 2–10, 10–6, HALF, or OFF. The Hours total in column I updates the instant you choose.

  4. Read the weekly totals

    Column I shows each person's scheduled hours, and Total scheduled hours in I15 sums them all. Use it to balance coverage and catch anyone scheduled over their limit.

  5. Match the codes to your business

    Open the Shifts sheet and edit the codes and hours in A2:B7 — rename 9–5 to your own shift label or change HALF from 4 hours to whatever you use. The drop-downs and Hours formulas follow automatically.

Compatibility

  • Microsoft Excel. Excel for Microsoft 365, Excel 2016 and later (Windows and Mac).
  • LibreOffice Calc. Opens directly — formulas, validation lists, and formatting carry over.
  • Google Sheets. Upload via File → Import → Upload, or drag the file into Drive and open with Sheets.

The shift drop-downs and the OFF-days-go-gray formatting survive Google Sheets import. After importing, click any day cell to confirm the drop-down arrow appears.

Frequently asked questions

How does the template add up each employee's hours?
Column I uses VLOOKUP to find each day's shift code in the Shifts sheet and add up the matching hours. OFF maps to 0, so off days count as nothing.
How do I change the shift codes and their hours?
Edit the Shifts sheet directly. Codes live in column A and hours in column B, rows 2 to 7. Both the drop-downs and the Hours totals update from those cells automatically.
Can I schedule more than 10 employees?
Yes. Right-click row 14 (the last staff row) and choose Insert, then copy the Hours formula from I14 down into the new row so it totals correctly. Adjust I15's =SUM range to include it.
Why do off days show in gray?
A conditional-formatting rule on B5:H14 turns any cell equal to OFF gray, so days off recede visually and the shifts that need coverage stand out at a glance.
Can my team edit this schedule in Google Sheets?
Yes — importing the file through File → Import → Upload preserves the VLOOKUP hour totals, the shift drop-downs, and the gray OFF shading, and Sheets adds live multi-user editing on top, handy when several managers fill one rota.

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