Free fortnightly rota template (Excel)
Two Monday-start weeks side by side, each with its own hours total. For teams that plan a fortnight ahead but still have to answer weekly questions about working time.
Fortnightly rota
Excel format (.xlsx) • Ready to download
No signup required. Works with Excel, Google Sheets and LibreOffice.
This rota template is a planning tool, not legal or payroll advice. It does not check working time limits, rest breaks or minimum wage for you. Check GOV.UK, or take advice, before relying on a rota for compliance. It does not constitute legal, HR, or professional advice and should not be relied on as a substitute for advice specific to your business, workforce, or circumstances.
Build this rota online instead
The spreadsheet works until you are chasing availability and recalculating hours by hand. Build and share the same rota in the browser — free, no signup.
What's in this template
A fortnight that still reads week by week
Fourteen day columns
Two Monday-to-Sunday blocks, so the fortnight is two whole weeks rather than an arbitrary 14 days.
Per-week hours totals
Each week totals separately. You need the weekly figure even when you plan and pay fortnightly.
Alternating weekends
The common fortnightly shape — week one on, week two off — already laid out for a sample team.
Bank holiday codes
BH is distinguishable from AL in the grid, which matters when the two are settled differently.
Role column
Cover by role across the fortnight, not just a headcount.
The shared legend
OFF, AL, BH, SICK, TOIL and TR, identical to every template on this shelf.
Two weeks, two totals
Each week keeps its own hours total. That is not cosmetic: the 48-hour limit is an average of weekly hours and weekly rest is 24 hours in each seven-day period, so a fortnight total that averages out can still hide a week that did not comply.
| Name | W1 Mon | W1 Sat | W1 hrs | W2 Mon | W2 Sat | W2 hrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amelia Clarke | 09-17 | OFF | 37.5 | 09-17 | 10-18 | 45.0 |
| Daniel Okafor | 12-20 | 12-20 | 40.0 | AL | AL | 0.0 |
Amelia works both weekends in week two and lands at 45 hours. That is lawful — but it is the week that starts pushing a 17-week average upward, and it is invisible in a single fortnight figure.
How to build a fortnightly rota
Four steps
1. Set the first Monday
Week two fills from it, so the two blocks cannot drift apart when you copy the sheet forward.
2. Lay out the repeating pattern
If weekends alternate, set that first and fill the weekdays around it. The pattern is the constraint; the rest is flexible.
3. Total each week separately
Two SUM ranges, not one. A single fortnight total hides the week that breached.
4. Check rest between the weeks
The Sunday-to-Monday boundary is where the 11-hour daily rest gets missed, because it sits between two blocks that were planned separately.
The template has both weekly totals and a fortnight total already in place.
Who uses this template
UK teams planning two weeks at a time
Care providers
Alternating weekends are close to standard, and the fortnight is the natural planning unit.
Security and facilities
Patterns that repeat over two weeks rather than one.
Logistics
Two-weekly pay runs, where planning and paying line up on the same cycle.
Paying against these hours? The fortnightly timesheet records what was actually worked.
Or roll the pattern forward automatically
A fortnightly rota is the same sheet copied and edited, every fortnight, forever. RosterElf repeats the pattern, carries leave across it, and warns when a change breaks weekly rest.
Patterns and working time
What a fortnightly pattern has to satisfy
Shift patterns explained
4-on-4-off, continental and split shifts — how each behaves against the 48-hour average.
Read the guideRota laws in the UK
The 48-hour average, the 11-hour daily rest, and what a rota can and cannot require.
Read the guideHoliday entitlement
The 5.6-week statutory minimum, and how it accrues for irregular-hours workers.
Read the guideDefinitions worth having
Terms that come up on a fortnightly rota
Reference period
The rolling window the 48-hour average and holiday pay are measured across.
See the definitionWorking Time Regulations
The 1998 regulations behind rest breaks, daily rest and the weekly limit.
See the definitionTOIL (time off in lieu)
Banking extra hours as time rather than pay, and where that goes wrong.
See the definitionFortnightly rota FAQ
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Because the rules that bind are weekly. The 48-hour limit is an average of weekly hours, and weekly rest is 24 hours in each seven-day period. A fortnight total of 84 hours could be two comfortable 42-hour weeks or a 32 and a 52 — completely different compliance pictures, and only per-week totals distinguish them.
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The sample team is laid out with half on in week one and half in week two, which is the usual shape. Change the pattern by editing week one and copying it across — the weekly totals follow automatically.
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Use two copies rather than extending the sheet. The weekly SUM ranges are anchored to the two blocks, and adding columns to the right will not extend them.
Before you download
General information only — not legal advice
This document is a general HR template provided for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice and may not reflect the latest changes in legislation or apply to every workplace situation. RosterElf Pty Ltd and the template provider accept no liability for any loss arising from reliance on this document. Users should seek independent legal advice and customise the template to ensure it complies with all relevant laws and workplace requirements.