Backlog budget plan calculator
See which games in your backlog you can actually finish within a weekly time budget, shortest first.
This doesn't look up any game's length automatically — enter your own estimate for each game, from HowLongToBeat, memory, or a guess.
The shortest-first ordering isn't adjustable — it's the strategy that fits the most games into a fixed budget. A single game longer than your whole budget goes straight into the "won't fit" list rather than being split across weeks.
Just want the total hours and weeks, not a specific plan? Try the backlog time calculator.
Report an issue with this calculationWorked example
Say your backlog is a 60-hour RPG, a 20-hour shooter, and an 8-hour indie game, and you budget 5 hours a week for 5 weeks — 25 hours total. Sorted shortest first: the 8-hour indie game fits (8 of 25 hours used), but adding the 20-hour shooter would push the total to 28, over budget — so it's left for next time, along with the 60-hour RPG.
Only the shortest game actually gets finished in this plan, even though the total budget (25 hours) is more than half the shooter's length — that's the trade-off of fitting whole games into a fixed budget rather than splitting hours evenly across all of them.
FAQ
How does it decide which games fit?
It sorts your list shortest-first, then adds games one by one until the next one would exceed your total budget (hours per week × number of weeks).
Why shortest first?
It maximises how many games you actually finish within the budget, rather than sinking the whole budget into one long game.
Where do the hour estimates come from?
You enter them yourself — from HowLongToBeat, memory, or a guess. This doesn't look up any game's length automatically.
What if a single game is longer than my whole budget?
It's left in the "won't fit" list — this calculator doesn't split a game across a plan.
Can I reorder the priority myself instead of shortest-first?
No — the ordering is fixed to shortest-first. If you want a different order, try different games or a different budget.
What happens if I enter a negative number of hours?
That's rejected as invalid for that entry — every game needs a non-negative number of hours.
Does this connect to my Steam library or wishlist?
No — there's no account integration. You list the games and hours yourself.
Can two games have the same name?
Yes, technically — but for a clear result, use distinct names or add a note to tell them apart.
What if my whole list fits in the budget?
It'll show every game as finishable and an empty "won't fit" list.
Is there a limit to how many games I can list?
No fixed limit — list as many as you like, one per line.