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Total Float vs. Free Float in Critical

Path Method (CPM)
 4 minute read     Updated: September 06, 2017     Harwinder Singh

When I was preparing for my PMP exam, I was very confused about the difference between Total
Float and Free Float in Critical Path Method (CPM). I understood Float
Float, but not the two types. So,
I did some research and nally made-up an example to understand the concepts myself. Today
I’m sharing the example that I prepared almost 2 years ago. I hope it will help in PMP
Certi cation aspirants on their exam.

What is the difference between Total Float and Free Float?

Total Float is the amount of time that an activity can be delayed from its early start date without
delaying the project nish date. Free Float is the amount of time that an activity can be delayed
without delaying the early start date of any successor activity.

PMBOK Guide de nitions of Total Float and Free Float

Total Float:
Float The total amount of time that a schedule activity may be delayed from its early start
date without delaying the project nish date, or violating a schedule constraint. Free Float:
Float The
amount of time that a schedule activity can be delayed without delaying the early start date of
any immediately following schedule activities.

What is the formula for Total Float?

Total Float = LF - EF (or LS - ES)

where ES = Early Start, EF = Early Finish, LS = Late Start, and LF = Late Finish

What is the formula for Free Float?

Free Float = ES of next activity - EF

Quiz Time - Calculate Total Float and Free Float

Let’s understand the concepts with the help of an example. Refer to the Network Diagram in the
gure rst. I’m assuming that you know how to work with a Network Diagram and how to
calculate ES, EF, LS, and LF for activities on a Network Diagram. Click on the gure to download
the network diagram as a PDF le.

Total Float and Free Float Calculations (click to download as PDF)

(https://www.pmhangout.com/discussion/190/total- oat-vs-free- oat-in-critical-path-method-cpm)

Problem
What is the Total Float and the Free Float for Activity F and J?

Solution
The calculations are really simple.

For Activity F:


Total Float = LF of F – EF of F => 8 – 5 = 3

Free Float = ES of G – EF of F => 5 – 5 = 0

For Activity J:


Total Float = LF of J – EF of J => 8 – 3 = 5

Free Float = ES of G – EF of J => 5 – 3 = 2

Pro Tip
Free oat can only occur when two or more activities share a common successor, or in other
words, when activities converge on a Network Diagram. In our example, only activities F and J
can have Free Float.

In the next section, let’s address the question posted by Dr. PDG in the comments.

Who owns Total Float and who owns Free Float?

Total Float belongs to the project, whereas Free Float belongs to individual activities. If the
project is being done under a contract, it’s debatable whether Float belongs to the buyer or seller.

How should the Project Manager use Float on the project?

‘Float’ is a project resource. It should be used judiciously, mainly to cover the risks or other
unforeseen issues on the project.

Float is a project resource.

Hope you’ll do well if you get such a question on your exam. If you have any doubts, I’m here to
help.

While you are at it, also learn about Negative Float (http://tips.deepfriedbrainproject.com/2011/02/what-is-
negative- oat.html).

Image credit: Flickr / miguelvirkkunen

 Tags: Critical Path Method (CPM) (https://www.deepfriedbrainproject.com/tags/#critical-path-method-cpm)

PMP Formulas (https://www.deepfriedbrainproject.com/tags/#pmp-formulas)

Schedule Management (https://www.deepfriedbrainproject.com/tags/#schedule-management)

Study Notes (https://www.deepfriedbrainproject.com/tags/#study-notes)

LEAVE A COMMENT

34 COMMENTS

Dr. PDG (https://www.blogger.com/pro le/05172942276812795581)

August 03, 2009 at 11:19 PM

Now that you have done a ne job clarifying the differences between Total and Free
Float, how would or could or should a professional project manager USE free and total
oat?

Who owns total oat?

Who owns free oat?

My real complaint with the PMP exam (and PMI's approach in general) lies with the fact
that while people may know the terminology and in some cases, may actually know how
to do various calculations, they haven't a clue as to how to effectively use this
information to manage projects.

BR,
Dr. PDG, in Boston
http://www.getpmcerti ed.com
  Reply to Dr. PDG

Harwinder Singh
(https://www.blogger.com/pro le/17448550860024926123)
August 04, 2009 at 12:26 PM

Hi Dr. PDG,

Once again, you have challenged us 'mortals'.

I'll give my short answer and let you elaborate.

Total Float belongs to the project, whereas Free Float belongs to individual
activities. If the project is being done under a contract, it's debatable whether
Float belongs to the buyer or seller.

In either case, 'Float' is a project resource. It should be used judiciously,

mainly to cover the risks or other unforeseen issues on the project.

Now I pass the ball to you. Please enlighten us more on this subject.

2. Regarding your point on the PMP certi cation, I think we are on the same
page. Nobody is claiming that PMI-certi ed PMs are "Super PMs". I see it
more as an academic quali cation (similar to a school or college degree).
Again, I have had this debate so many times in various forums and really tired
of it. There's no end to it ...

Thanks once again. I appreciate all your inputs.

Dr. PDG (https://www.blogger.com/pro le/05172942276812795581)

August 04, 2009 at 01:26 PM
 Not too bad an answer, Harwinder!!! I am impressed.

From a claims (legal precedent) perspective, unless otherwise stated in the

contract, oat is generally considered to be owned 50% by the owner and 50%
by the prime contractor. However, the 50% owned by the prime contractor is
also split between his/her subs and vendors.

And although you are absolutely correct that oat is to cover or mititage risk, a
better or more complete answer would be that it shows you how much
exibility you have in terms of both time (spread between early and late date S
curve horizontally) and in terms of resources (the spread vertically between
the early data and late date S curves)

Very few people, unless they have been involved in litigation, truly understand
how to effectively use oat information to better manage their projects.

BR,
Dr. PDG, in Boston
http://www.getpmcerti ed.com

Dr. PDG (https://www.blogger.com/pro le/05172942276812795581)

August 04, 2009 at 01:33 PM

PS: For those really interested in this topic, be sure to download the many free
Recommended Practices (RP's) AACE offers. http://www.aacei.org/technical/rp.shtml .
Pay special attention to 29R-03 to learn about many of the games contractors play with
schedules.

And if you are interested in project controls/PMO as a career path, I urge you to move
beyond PMI's rather sophomoric credentials and challenge yourself to some very
di cult, albeit less well marketed credentials that AACE offers.
http://www.aacei.org/certi cation/

BR,
Dr. PDG, in Boston
http://www.getpmcerti ed.com

 Reply to Dr. PDG

Nhlosenhle zwane
(https://www.blogger.com/pro le/06929859571323159492)
May 25, 2016 at 01:48 PM
 Dear Dr PDG

My name is Nhlosenhle Zwane a current student in Project Management. I am

experiancing a challenge in the PERT systerm, CPA and the network
diagramme on an assignment we were given. Can you assist me please. I can
be contacted on the following email: nhlokoz@gmail.com.

Your Assistance will be highly appreciated

MS
December 07, 2009 at 09:55 PM

Nice explanation ...

confused OR student

 Reply to MS

Anonymous
January 16, 2010 at 09:11 PM

I have a related question, which I m slightly confused about. Each of the books Rita,
Head rst and others have 2 different ways of drawing the network diagram..e.g Activity
A starts on Day 1 and has a duration of 5 then the ES of the activity A is 1 and the EF is
6....and Activity B which proceeds activity A has a duration of 8, then Activity B, then the
ES for B is 6 or 7 considering there is no lag between A and B.

Same way while calculating LF and LS some authors subtract a day by default others
don't...which is confusing...If you can kindly help with this, with an example that will be
very helpful.

In the end for calculating oat it doesn't make any difference as adding 1 and then
subtracting it correspondingly adjusts for the same.

What is the standard practice for this, can you please clarify?

 Reply to Anonymous

Harwinder Singh
(https://www.blogger.com/pro le/17448550860024926123)
January 17, 2010 at 03:58 AM
 @ Anonymous:

That's an excellent observation. I have answered this question previously in a

forum too, but can't dig out the link right now. I'll answer it here again.

You are right. Different books follow different conventions. Whether you start
the rst activity at 0 or 1 is a matter of choice. Both methods will get you the
same answers. It doesn't make any difference when it comes to calculating
the duration of critical path, and oat values.

I prefer to follow the convention that which you nd in Rita's book, to calculate
the ES, EF, LS, LF, FF, TF.

The advantage with this convention is that you don't need to add/subtract
hours. The rst day starts at 0. If the rst activity's duration is 7 days, then its
ES = 0 and EF = ES + Duration = 0 + 7 = 7. The successor activity will have the
ES = EF of the predecessor activity (provided there's no lead or lag).

In summary, pick the convention that you are more comfortable with, practice
it, and stick to it.

Hope it answers your question. Thanks for bringing it up.

Chelluri (https://www.blogger.com/pro le/17709051727240948719)

January 19, 2010 at 02:45 PM

Harry, i was bit puzzled to use 0 or 1 to calculate the ES of the rst activity..
But after seeing your explanation, now i am clear on using 0 or 1. Thank you

SOUMIT (https://www.blogger.com/pro le/13618077518402821847)

March 28, 2010 at 03:33 AM
If an activity x, ES = 1 and duration =5, EF = 1+5=6.
ES for activity (x+1)=6.

However, I have seen calculations, where EF(x) will be 5 (1 through 5 = 5days). then
ES(x+1)=6 (not 5).

Both these methods will not make any difference to your CPM calculations as long as
you keep it constant throughout.
But, in ur PMI certi cation exam, this can make a difference because you have to
choose what PMI thinks is correct from the given options.

Use the latter I think.

 Reply to SOUMIT

williams rodriguez constantino (http://williamsrodriguez.com/)

July 13, 2010 at 06:20 PM

De nitivamente son terminos que son necesarios comprender a fondo para darles la
aplicacion correcta en nuestros proyectos, agradezco mucho los comentarios y los
felicito... :D

 Reply to williams rodriguez constantino

Harwinder Singh
(https://www.blogger.com/pro le/17448550860024926123)
July 14, 2010 at 01:01 AM

Hello Williams,

I cannot read Spanish. So, I translated it to English for others' and my own
bene t. Here's what it translated to:

"They are de nitely terms that are necessary to fully understand them
correctly applied in our projects, I very much appreciate the comments and I
congratulate ... : D"

Thanks for your comments :)

Rookie
September 14, 2010 at 01:41 PM
Continuing from Soumit's comments on 28 March, I'm sharing this link and a few
questions.
(link removed)

This's the clearest description of the 2 conventions by far. It says:

The Zero Method – all starts and nishes are at the end of a time period. In the Zero
Method, the start of an activity has the same number as the nish of the previous
activity on the critical path.
The One Method - all starts are at the beginning of a time period and all nishes are at
the end. In the One Method, the nish of a previous activity on the critical path, has 1
added to it to get the start of the next activity.

It seems that
- Rita Mulcahy uses the "zero method"
- Andy Crowe uses the "one method"

So 2 questions remain
1) Which one does PMI use? Any recent exam takers care to share your experience?
2) Are "zero method" and "one method" the o cial terms to describe these calculation
conventions?

 Reply to Rookie

Anonymous
December 15, 2010 at 11:29 PM

the formula for FF = ES of next activity - EF is wrong

it should be FF = ESn - ES - duration

 Reply to Anonymous

Harwinder Singh
(https://www.blogger.com/pro le/17448550860024926123)
December 16, 2010 at 12:42 AM
 Hello Anon.,

Thanks for your feedback.

Please elaborate on the source of this information.

BR.

Anonymous
January 07, 2011 at 04:33 PM

Another excellent source of information on PMP is the PM Road Trip and in particular
the calculation for free oat as put forward by anon is correct:
FF = (ES of successor - ES of current - duration of current)

This can be found here:

http://www.pmroadtrip.com/pdm_01.html

I prefer the "one menthod" as it is re ects the real world much better. I would never start
the rst activity on day zero as that doesn't make sense. You start on day 1 and if it
takes 5 full working days to complete (duration) then you would be working on it on
days 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Then the earliest you can start the next activity is day 6, not day 5!.

 Reply to Anonymous

Shraddha
January 24, 2011 at 05:06 PM

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

 Reply to Shraddha

Harwinder Singh
(https://www.blogger.com/pro le/17448550860024926123)
February 07, 2011 at 03:26 PM
 Hello Shraddha,

I had to remove your post because it violates PMI's code of conduct. Try to
rephrase your question and post it again.

Thanks.

Anonymous
February 27, 2011 at 11:38 PM

I think both of th efollowing are same

FF=ES of next activity -EF of current - (1)
FF = (ES of Successor -ES of current -Duration of current) - (2)

here is the explaination

From (2) above
FF =(ES of Successor -ES of current -Duration of current)

which means
FF =(ES of Successor -(ES of current +Duration of current))

and -(ES of current +Duration of current) = EF of current

so it becomes

FF =(ES of Successor -EF of current)

whcih is same as (1)

so formula is harry's post is same as what annon has posted.

 Reply to Anonymous

Anonymous
April 08, 2011 at 04:54 PM
Hi,
I have another question regarding identifying oat and utilizing it as a buffer/slack.
In case of leads and lags to N/W diagram, how should oat be identi ed? For example, it
might be required to wait for 2 days before Activity B starts after Activity A, say due to
planned maintainance. If we just go by oat calculation, this may be considered as a
buffer that can be utilized.
So how to really identify oad in case of leads and lags?

 Reply to Anonymous

Muhmad (https://www.blogger.com/pro le/08989882633835986703)

July 04, 2011 at 11:43 AM

Thanks Harwinder for your wonderful example

 Reply to Muhmad

Ram (https://www.blogger.com/pro le/10411437936913857069)

September 18, 2011 at 02:30 PM

Harwinder,

I would like to know about Project oat ( Rita's book).As per my understanding there is
no oat for critical path activities.If this is correct.Does Project oat existis?.

And How do we diffrenciate oat with leads and lags!

Thanks
Ram

 Reply to Ram

Anonymous
January 20, 2013 at 12:22 AM

Excellent job clarifying the concept. My students have had a lot of trouble understanding
this but now it crystal clear.

Thanks

 Reply to Anonymous

Anonymous
April 20, 2013 at 09:47 AM
I CAN NOT UNDERSTAND HOW TO CALCULATE ACTIVITY DURATION IN CASE OF
RLLATION IS FF -2 OR FS +3 FOR EXAMPLE CAN YOU EXPLAIN PLEASE

 Reply to Anonymous

Parsa Mahmoudzadeh
(https://www.blogger.com/pro le/10902819405395859870)
November 22, 2013 at 06:04 PM

HI, Harwinder,

I think you are right for the most part, let me elaborate a little bit more; Free Float
belongs to every activities done before the target activity we concern about. actually,
Independent Float is belong only to one activity itself.

 Reply to Parsa Mahmoudzadeh

Amit Ranjan
January 18, 2014 at 03:07 PM

I agree with Dr. PDG.... But, for this we should also favors that Project Planning Tools
supports, if all stake holders will have believe & directed only from PMO O ce

 Reply to Amit Ranjan

shameer e.v (https://www.blogger.com/pro le/07302466513249926451)

October 07, 2014 at 11:16 AM

In my opinion....FLOAT is an asset of the project and NOT for the exclusive use/bene t
of the Contractor.

 Reply to shameer e.v

Anonymous
April 09, 2015 at 01:16 PM

Thanks, your example helped

 Reply to Anonymous

Hamid Samadani
September 05, 2017 at 10:33 PM

Excellent explanation! Thank you.

  Reply to Hamid Samadani

Harwinder Singh (https://www.deepfriedbrainproject.com)

September 06, 2017 at 02:20 AM

Thank you, Hamid. Glad you found it useful.

Jalal To'ma Nimri

October 19, 2018 at 06:46 PM

perfect <3

 Reply to Jalal To'ma Nimri

Harwinder Singh (https://www.deepfriedbrainproject.com)

October 19, 2018 at 09:58 PM

Thank you, Jalal. Glad you loved it.

zomuana
October 28, 2018 at 12:35 PM

Thank you very much for your clear and concise explanation especially with example..

 Reply to zomuana

Richard
November 24, 2018 at 05:58 PM

It is helpful. But I need clari cation on where resounces can be used when allocation.

 Reply to Richard