Tools · PTO Payout
Iowa PTO Payout Checker (2026)
Whether Iowa makes an employer pay out accrued, unused vacation or PTO when a job ends, applied to your own hours and rate.
Iowa PTO payout checker
The accrued, unused balance on your last pay stub or in the HR portal. One vacation day is usually 8 hours.
Salaried? Divide your annual salary by 2,080 (52 weeks of 40 hours) for an hourly figure.
In Iowa, what the handbook, offer letter, or contract says about unused vacation at separation is what controls. Read it before counting on a payout, and keep a copy: a promise in writing is what makes the amount collectible.
Enter your unused hours and your rate to see the Iowa rule on your numbers.
When the final check itself is due is a separate deadline: the Iowa final paycheck checker shows it for a quit and for a firing.
Informational only, not legal advice. Sick leave, commissions, and bonuses follow different rules, and collective bargaining agreements can change the answer. For the timing rules and citations on the check itself, see the Iowa final paycheck reference; this record is cited to Iowa Code §§91A.2, 91A.4.
How the Iowa rule works
Iowa does not require a vacation payout at separation on its own. Unused vacation must be paid with final wages only when the employer's policy or an agreement makes it due. When vacation is due under an agreement or a pro rata accrual policy, the amount is proportional to the fraction of the year actually worked and is payable by the next regular payday after separation.
This checker states the rule and prices your unused hours; it is informational only and not legal advice, and it does not decide whether your employer owes you. The other half of the question, when the final check itself must arrive, is covered by the Iowa final paycheck checker and the Iowa final paycheck reference.
PTO payout checkers for other states
Same tool, each with its own rule.