Excel NETWORKDAYS Function — Count Working Days (with Examples)

Contents

What does NETWORKDAYS do?
Syntax
6 real examples
NETWORKDAYS.INTL
NETWORKDAYS vs WORKDAY
FAQ

What does NETWORKDAYS do?

NETWORKDAYS counts the number of working days between two dates, automatically excluding weekends. It includes both the start date and end date in the count. Add a list of holidays and it skips those too.

Use it for project duration tracking, SLA monitoring, notice period calculations, payment terms verification, and any situation where calendar days aren't the right measure.

Syntax

=NETWORKDAYS(start_date, end_date, [holidays])

Argument	Description
start_date required	The first date to count from. This day is included in the count if it is a working day.
end_date required	The last date to count to. This day is included if it is a working day.
holidays optional	A range of holiday dates to exclude in addition to weekends.

6 real examples

Example 1

Working days between two dates

=NETWORKDAYS(A2, B2)

Counts business days from A2 to B2, including both dates. Weekends are automatically excluded.

Example 2

Working days remaining until a deadline

=NETWORKDAYS(TODAY(), A2)

How many working days until the deadline in A2. Updates automatically every day the file is opened.

Example 3

Excluding public holidays

=NETWORKDAYS(A2, B2, $F$2:$F$15)

F2:F15 contains a list of bank holiday dates. NETWORKDAYS skips these in addition to weekends.

Example 4

Project duration in working days

=NETWORKDAYS(C2, D2) - 1

Subtract 1 if you want to exclude the start date from the count — useful when measuring elapsed duration rather than inclusive span.

Example 5

SLA breach check

=IF(NETWORKDAYS(A2, TODAY()) > 5, "SLA breached", "Within SLA")

Flag cases where more than 5 working days have passed since the case was opened.

Example 6

Notice period verification

=IF(NETWORKDAYS(A2, B2) >= 20, "Valid", "Insufficient notice")

Check whether 20 working days notice has been given between resignation date (A2) and leaving date (B2).

NETWORKDAYS.INTL — custom weekend days

Use NETWORKDAYS.INTL when your working week is not Mon–Fri.

=NETWORKDAYS.INTL(A2, B2, 7)

Code 7 sets Friday-Saturday as the weekend. Use a 7-character string like "0000011" (1=non-working) to define any custom weekend pattern.

NETWORKDAYS vs WORKDAY

Formula	Use when
NETWORKDAYS	You have two dates and need to count working days between them
WORKDAY	You have a start date and need to find what date falls N working days later

FAQ

Does NETWORKDAYS include the start and end dates?

Yes, both dates are included if they are working days. So NETWORKDAYS of a Monday to a Friday in the same week returns 5, not 4.

What if end_date is before start_date?

NETWORKDAYS returns a negative number. This can be useful for checking overdue items — a negative result means the deadline has passed.

Can NETWORKDAYS count hours instead of days?

No — NETWORKDAYS works in whole days only. For hour-level calculations, multiply the result by working hours per day or build a custom time-based formula.

Why is my holiday list not working?

Ensure your holiday dates are actual date values, not text. Also make sure they fall on weekdays — NETWORKDAYS already excludes weekends, so weekend holidays don't change the count.

Practise NETWORKDAYS in real scenarios

ExcelPro has NETWORKDAYS and WORKDAY exercises in the HR, Accounting and Small Business tracks. Free to start.

Try date exercises →

Related formulas

WORKDAY DATEDIF EOMONTH EDATE TODAY TEXT

The Excel NETWORKDAYS Functionexplained simply