How this calculator works
A series runtime is one multiplication: episode length times episodes per season times seasons. Because the four quantities are linked by that single equation, knowing any three fixes the fourth, so the calculator changes which field it fills in rather than asking you for all four. The reverse directions divide the known total by the product of the other two fields. Dividing the total by your daily viewing time and rounding up gives the number of viewing days, because a partial evening still uses a day.
Formula
Total runtime = episode length x episodes per season x seasons. Seasons = total runtime / (episode length x episodes per season). Episodes per season = total runtime / (episode length x seasons). Episode length = total runtime / (episodes per season x seasons). Viewing days = total runtime / watching time per day, rounded up.
Worked example
A show with ten 45 minute episodes over two seasons runs 10 x 2 x 45 = 900 minutes, or 15 hours. At two hours a day that is eight viewing days, because 7.5 hours of viewing spreads across eight evenings. Working backwards, 15 hours over two seasons of ten episodes works out to 45 minutes an episode.
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Frequently asked questions
Why does the viewing days result sometimes round up to the next whole number?
A finish date counts whole days. If the total needs seven and a half evenings at your daily rate, the eighth evening finishes the remaining half, so the calculator reports eight viewing days.
Do rewatches or skipped episodes count?
Set the episode count to what you actually plan to watch. A rewatch of the same number of episodes takes the same runtime; skipping a season reduces the season count and the total proportionally.
Can I use this for an audiobook or a podcast?
The arithmetic is the same for any fixed set of episodes, but this page is framed for television. The audiobooks and podcasts calculators handle those media with their own inputs and assumptions.
What if the solved number of seasons is not whole?
It is shown to two decimal places, so 2.4 seasons means the total covers two full seasons and part of a third. That is useful for sizing a target runtime, since a real schedule cannot stop part way through a season.