Unlimited PTO
Also known as: unlimited paid time off, open holiday
Unlimited PTO is a policy that lets employees take as much paid time off as they want, subject to approval, with no fixed annual allowance.
Unlimited PTO is a policy with no set cap on paid time off. Employees take leave as needed, provided their work is covered and managers approve, rather than drawing down a fixed balance.
It can boost trust and remove the year-end use-it-or-lose-it rush, and it eliminates accrued-leave payout liability. The risk is that, without a baseline, some employees take less leave than before, so good policies pair it with a minimum expectation and active encouragement to take time off.
See it in Absenca
Even on an unlimited policy, Absenca tracks time off, approvals, and who hasn't taken a break — free for up to 15 people.
Frequently asked questions
- Does unlimited PTO mean employees take more holiday?
- Not always. Studies and anecdotes suggest some people take less under unlimited PTO because there's no defined entitlement to 'use up'. Setting a minimum and tracking who hasn't taken leave helps counter this.
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.