NOC Coverage Calculator

Covering a NOC around the clock takes five people, and this calculator shows you why. A week is 168 hours and a full time week is 40, so 24/7 needs 4.2 people before anybody takes a day off. Four people cannot cover every hour, however the shifts are arranged. Five can, with one person on at a time.

Every answer says what it cannot do as well as what it covers. At five people all 168 hours are one person's attention, so a meal break leaves the desk empty and one person on leave drops a shift to nobody. The calculator names that rather than presenting a full week as a solved problem, because a rota that looks complete and is not is worse than one that shows its holes.

Each extra person buys something specific and the calculator says what. A sixth person puts a second pair of hands on weekday days and takes solo hours from 168 down to 128. It also names the point where more people stop buying coverage, which is eleven, because every hour already has two people on and a twelfth person adds depth instead.

The week is drawn for you, shift by shift and day by day, with the uncovered hours shown as the holes they are. Take it to the free NOC Schedule Planner to put your own names on it, adapt the windows, and export it to calendar, spreadsheet or print. Free, no signup, and nothing leaves your browser.

How many people do you need for 24/7 coverage? Five, as a minimum, and that is arithmetic rather than opinion. A week is 168 hours, a full time week is 40, so 168 divided by 40 is 4.2 people before anyone takes a day off or falls ill. Four people leave 24 hours a week uncovered however the shifts are arranged. Five people cover every hour with one person on at a time, which is why the Signal9 NOC Coverage Calculator opens on five.

How many people do you need for 24x5 coverage? Three. Around the clock on weekdays is 120 hours, which three people cover on eight hour shifts inside a full time week. A fourth person adds weekend daytimes, and a fifth is the first headcount that covers every hour of the week.

Is one person on shift enough? It covers the hour, and that is not the same as covering the work. One person is watching every source at once, so the thing that mattered can be the fourth thing on a list of places to check, and any break leaves the desk empty. The calculator reports solo hours separately from covered hours for that reason.

When do extra people stop adding coverage? At eleven, on a standard 40 hour week. By then every hour already has two people on, so a twelfth person adds depth rather than hours of coverage. The calculator says so plainly instead of recommending one more person at every number.

Is the NOC coverage calculator free? Yes. It needs no account, it asks for nothing, and the whole answer including the drawn week is on the page. Nothing leaves your browser.

Can I turn the answer into a real schedule? Yes. The calculator hands the generated week straight to the free NOC Schedule Planner, where you can put your own names on it, move the windows, set who works which days, and export to calendar, spreadsheet or print.