How to Include Weekends in Microsoft Project: 1-Min Guide

How to Include Weekends in Microsoft Project

Updated on:

May 13, 2026

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Use this interactive demo to learn how to schedule weekend working time in Microsoft Project.

Quick summary

By default, Microsoft Project excludes weekends from project schedules, but you can enable weekend working time by creating a custom calendar through the Change Working Time dialog. This step-by-step process lets project managers accurately reflect 7-day work schedules in their project plans.

Steps

Go to the Project tab in the Microsoft Project ribbon.
Select Change Working Time from the Project tab menu.
In the dialog box, click Create a New Calendar.
Enter a name for your calendar and click OK to save.
Go to the Work Weeks tab within the calendar settings.
Select Set day(s) to these specific working times for Saturday and Sunday.
Enter the start and finish time for the weekend working hours.
Click OK to save all changes and apply the weekend schedule.

📌 Why this matters

By default, Microsoft Project treats weekends as non-working days, which can cause inaccurate timelines for teams that operate on a 7-day schedule. Knowing how to include weekends in Microsoft Project using a custom working calendar ensures your project plan reflects real working patterns. This is especially critical for construction, healthcare, event management, and other industries where weekend work is standard. Configuring weekend working time correctly prevents scheduling gaps and keeps task durations, resource assignments, and deadlines aligned with actual availability.

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