How to find the first clock-in time for each day in Excel
Formula (Excel and Google Sheets)
=MINIFS($A$2:$A$10,$A$2:$A$10,">="&C2,$A$2:$A$10,"<"&C2+1)Use MINIFS with a one-day window: =MINIFS(punches,punches,">="&C2,punches,"<"&C2+1).
- Result on the example
- one result per row in
D2, filled down toD4 - Works in
- Excel 2021, 2024 and Microsoft 365
- Google Sheets
- Same formula
See it work
The formula is already in D2, filled down to D4. Change any input and the result updates, or edit the formula to experiment.
How it works
A day runs from midnight up to, but not including, the next midnight, so the two conditions keep the punches on C2's date. MINIFS returns the earliest of them, and the cell's time format shows only the clock time.
=MINIFS($A$2:$A$10,$A$2:$A$10,">="&C2,$A$2:$A$10,"<"&C2+1)Result46083.33194
$A$2:$A$109 rows × 1 col: 3/2/2026 7:58, 3/2/2026 12:01, 3/2/2026 12:29, 3/2/2026 16:34, …A range: 9 cells in one column.
C23/2/2026The value in C2.
">="&C2">=46083"The & operator joins as text.
C2+146084The + operator adds.
"<"&C2+1"<46084"The & operator joins as text.
MINIFS($A$2:$A$10,$A$2:$A$10,">="&C2,$A$2:$A$10,"<"&C2+1)46083.33194MINIFS: Smallest value that meets every condition.- min_range
$A$2:$A$109 rows × 1 col: 3/2/2026 7:58, 3/2/2026 12:01, 3/2/2026 12:29, 3/2/2026 16:34, … - criteria_range1
$A$2:$A$109 rows × 1 col: 3/2/2026 7:58, 3/2/2026 12:01, 3/2/2026 12:29, 3/2/2026 16:34, … - criteria1
">="&C2">=46083" - criteria_range2
$A$2:$A$109 rows × 1 col: 3/2/2026 7:58, 3/2/2026 12:01, 3/2/2026 12:29, 3/2/2026 16:34, … - criteria2
"<"&C2+1"<46084"
- min_range
In Google Sheets
The same formula works in Google Sheets: =MINIFS($A$2:$A$10,$A$2:$A$10,">="&C2,$A$2:$A$10,"<"&C2+1). We ran it in Google Sheets mode on the same data and it returns the same results.
Other ways to do it
Each one was run on the same example sheet.
| Formula | Result | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| =MIN(FILTER($A$2:$A$10,INT($A$2:$A$10)=C2)) | 7:58 AM, 8:12 AM, 7:49 AM | Keeps the punches whose date part is C2, then takes the earliest. Excel 365 and Google Sheets. |
Common mistakes
- A night shift that starts before midnight and ends after it spans two dates. Group those by shift, not by calendar day.
- MINIFS returns 0, shown as 12:00 AM, for a day with no punches. Wrap it:
=IF(COUNTIFS(…),MINIFS(…),"").
Try it yourself
Same data, empty answer cell. Your formula is graded instantly, then re-checked on changed data, so a typed-in number won't pass.
Find the first clock-in time for each day
D2, return the earliest punch on the date in C2, and fill down to D4.Questions
How do I get the last clock-out?
Use MAXIFS with the same conditions: =MAXIFS($A$2:$A$10,$A$2:$A$10,">="&C2,$A$2:$A$10,"<"&C2+1).
How do I get the hours between the first and last punch?
=(MAXIFS(…)-MINIFS(…))*24.
Checked by running on 2026-10-30: every formula and result on this page was calculated by the Spreadsheet Practice formula engine, in both Excel and Google Sheets modes.