PTO (Paid Time Off)
Also known as: paid time off, PTO bank
PTO (paid time off) is a pooled bank of paid days employees can use for any reason — holiday, sick, or personal — without separate categories.
PTO, or paid time off, is a bank of paid leave that employees can use for any purpose: vacation, illness, appointments, or personal matters. Instead of separate allowances for holiday and sick leave, a PTO policy combines them into a single pool the employee draws down.
PTO is common in the United States. The advantage is flexibility and simplicity; the trade-off is that employees may come to work sick to preserve days for holidays, and unused balances can become a payroll liability.
PTO vs. traditional leave
A traditional model splits entitlement into named types — annual leave, sick leave, personal days — each with its own rules. A PTO model pools them. Many teams run a hybrid: a flexible PTO bank for holidays and personal time, plus separate, often uncapped, sick leave.
See it in Absenca
Absenca's PTO tracker keeps every balance accurate in real time as days are booked and approved — free for up to 15 people, then $0.75/user a month.
Related terms
Stop calculating this by hand
Absenca handles accrual, carry-over, pro-rata, and public holidays automatically — so every balance is right without a spreadsheet. Free for up to 15 people.