What is a night shift?
Hours, names, and how to track it.

What is it?

Night shift hours and when it runs

What is a night shift? A night shift is the overnight work shift, usually between 10 pm and 6 am or similar hours. If you searched for graveyard shift, overnight shift, or third shift, you are usually looking for this same overnight block.

A night shift is the overnight working period — the stretch between late evening and early morning when most of the world is asleep. It typically begins between 10 pm and midnight and ends between 6 am and 8 am.

In a three-shift system, night is the third shift. In a two-shift day/night pattern, it is the second. On a 12-hour rotating pattern, night shifts commonly run 7 pm – 7 am or 8 pm – 8 am. Repeating blocks like these are exactly what a shift scheduling app automates — see how rotating shift schedules work, or follow a step-by-step setup guide for your pattern.

Night shift's effect on sleep is well studied — a US CDC/NIOSH national study found night-shift workers report roughly double the rate of insomnia and poor sleep quality compared with daytime workers.

Typical hours by shift length

Shift length	Typical start	Typical end	Notes
8 hours	10:00 pm	6:00 am	Most common in healthcare and manufacturing
8 hours	11:00 pm	7:00 am	Common in US / CA operations
10 hours	10:00 pm	8:00 am	Used in some emergency services rotas
12 hours	7:00 pm	7:00 am	NHS, security, FIFO — fills full overnight
12 hours	8:00 pm	8:00 am	Variant used in some factory patterns

If your rota rotates through back shifts, late shifts, and nights, ShiftFlowr keeps those names separate while still building one continuous pattern calendar.

What's it called where you are?

Night shift names by region

The same overnight shift has different names depending on where you live and what industry you work in. ShiftFlowr auto-detects your region and uses the terminology your workplace actually uses.

Region	Common names
🇬🇧 UK	Night, Nights, Night Duty, Night Shift
🇺🇸 US	Graveyard Shift, Third Shift, Night, Overnight
🇨🇦 Canada	Night, Nights, Night Shift, Overnight
🇦🇺 Australia	Night, Night Shift, Nights
🇳🇿 New Zealand	Night, Night Duty, Night Shift

The term graveyard shift originated in the US and refers to the eerie quiet of working through the early hours of the morning. It is rarely used outside North America.

For Google terms like graveyard shift hours, overnight shift meaning, and third shift, this page is the definition hub. The hours vary slightly by employer, but they all point to the overnight shift.

Who works nights?

Industries that run night shifts

How ShiftFlowr helps

Track nights without re-entering them every month

Common questions

Night shift FAQ

What is a night shift?

A night shift is the overnight work shift, usually starting between 10 pm and midnight and ending between 6 am and 8 am. Common examples are 10 pm to 6 am, 11 pm to 7 am, or 7 pm to 7 am on 12-hour patterns.

What time does a night shift start and end?

A typical night shift starts between 10 pm and midnight and ends between 6 am and 8 am. Common patterns are 10 pm – 6 am (8-hour) or 7 pm – 7 am (12-hour). Exact times vary by employer and industry.

How many hours are in a night shift?

Most night shifts are 8 or 12 hours long. An 8-hour night shift typically runs 10 pm – 6 am or 11 pm – 7 am; a 12-hour night shift usually runs 7 pm – 7 am or 8 pm – 8 am. Rotating patterns like 4-on-4-off or Panama commonly use 12-hour nights to cover a full 24-hour cycle with fewer handovers.

What is an overnight shift?

An overnight shift is another name for a night shift — the working period covering late evening through early morning, typically 10 pm to 6 am or similar hours. It's the term most commonly used in the UK and Canada alongside "night shift" and "nights."

What is the difference between night shift and graveyard shift?

They are the same shift — the overnight working period. "Night shift" or "Nights" is the standard term in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. "Graveyard shift" is the common American name for the same hours (typically midnight to 8 am or 11 pm to 7 am).

What are graveyard shift hours?

Graveyard shift hours usually run from around midnight to 8 am, though some employers use 11 pm – 7 am. "Graveyard shift" is the American name for the overnight night shift — the quietest hours, when most people are asleep. Graveyard shifts are most common in healthcare, manufacturing, and security.

What is the third shift?

Third shift is the American term for the overnight shift — the third of three rotating crews covering a 24-hour operation. It typically runs 11 pm – 7 am or midnight – 8 am, after the first shift (morning) and second shift (afternoon/swing).

Do night shift workers get paid more?

Many contracts include a night-shift enhancement or unsocial hours uplift. ShiftFlowr's salary calculator applies your night uplift rate automatically so you can see your real take-home before payday.

Can ShiftFlowr track my night shifts?

Yes. ShiftFlowr lets you set your night shift start and end times and applies them across your rotating pattern automatically. On Android, its wake-up alarm is especially useful before a night shift.

Will ShiftFlowr's alarm wake me up before a night shift?

Yes. On Android, ShiftFlowr's work alarm plays at full volume and is designed so rotating shift workers do not sleep through an early or night shift start. It works the same way before every shift type, not only nights. iPhone support is currently on the waitlist.

Other shift types

Every shift type explained

Or explore ShiftFlowr's full shift pattern library — 11 ready-made rotas, rosters, and schedules for rotating shift workers.