What Is Average Handle Time (AHT) and How to Calculate It

Updated: January 13, 2026 to reflect reporting best practices, and a more customer-focused approach to using average handle time (AHT).

Average handle time (AHT) is a key customer support metric that measures how long it takes an agent to fully resolve a request. from the moment work begins to final resolution. For help desk and IT teams, AHT helps balance efficiency, staffing, and service quality.

This guide is for IT managers, help desk leaders, and customer support teams who want to understand what AHT is, how to calculate it, and how to improve it without hurting customer satisfaction.

What Is Average Handle Time (AHT)?

Average handle time (AHT) is the average amount of time an agent spends actively working on a ticket, including:

• Time spent communicating with the requester
• Any waiting or hold time
• Follow-up or after-work needed to close the ticket

In help desk environments, AHT typically applies to tickets, not just phone calls. It reflects how efficiently your team resolves issues while maintaining quality support.

How Do You Calculate Average Handle Time?

Average Handle Time Formula

The standard AHT formula is:

Handling time includes all work done by the agent, not just the initial response.

Example AHT Calculation

If your team:

• Spent 1,000 total minutes resolving tickets
• Closed 50 tickets

Your AHT would be:

1,000 ÷ 50 = 20 minutes per ticket

This means the average ticket took 20 minutes of agent effort from start to finish.

Why Average Handle Time Matters for Help Desk Teams

Tracking AHT helps teams understand both efficiency and workload. When used correctly, it supports better decision-making, not micromanagement.

Key benefits of monitoring AHT include:

• Staffing insights: Understand how many agents you need during peak times
• Process improvement: Spot bottlenecks in workflows or approvals
• Training opportunities: Identify where agents need better tools or guidance
• Customer experience balance: Ensure speed doesn't come at the cost of quality

AHT should always be reviewed alongside other metrics, like first response time, resolution time, and customer satisfaction (CSAT).

What Is a Good Average Handle Time?

While there's no universal "good" average handle time, industry benchmarks can provide useful context.

Many sources reference statistics reported by CallCentre Helper's Erlang Calculator, which helps call centers determine staffing needs based on anticipated call volume. According to CallCentre Helper's aggregated data, the average AHT across users is 6 minutes and 10 seconds.

An admittedly dated but still frequently cited 2004 Cornell University report also places the average handle time across industries at 6 minutes and 10 seconds.

Average Handle Time Benchmarks by Industry

According to the Cornell University report, average handle time varies significantly by industry:

• Business & IT Services: 8.8 minutes
• Large Businesses: 8.7 minutes
• Subcontractors: 6.0 minutes
• Telecommunications: 5.4 minutes
• Financial Services: 4.7 minutes
• Retail: 4.7 minutes

These benchmarks highlight why AHT should always be evaluated in context, based on ticket complexity and support environment.

Ultimately, average handle time is relative. A "good" AHT is only one input alongside more customer-centric metrics such as Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) and Net Promoter Score (NPS). If customers are frustrated by how long it takes to resolve issues, lowering AHT without sacrificing quality can be a meaningful, customer-focused initiative.

Common Mistakes When Using AHT

Relying on AHT alone can lead to poor outcomes if it's not viewed through a customer-focused lens. Avoid these common pitfalls:

• Treating AHT as a performance score instead of a long-term trend
• Encouraging agents to rush tickets, which can frustrate customers or lead to repeat issues
• Comparing agents who handle very different ticket types or levels of complexity
• Ignoring customer satisfaction, resolution quality, or repeat contact rates

AHT works best when it supports a customer-oriented support strategy, combined with clear priorities, SLAs, automation, and experience-based metrics like CSAT.

Benefits of a Low Average Handle Time

Those caveats aside, companies generally want low average handle times. Here are five benefits of a low AHT, provided service quality remains high.

1. Happier Customers

A low AHT means customers get quick, accurate help, leading to greater customer satisfaction. Happy customers are loyal customers, and they're more likely to reward efficient customer service with word-of-mouth advertising.

2. Greater Efficiency

Low Average Handle Times improve customer service department efficiency. When agents spend less time on each call, ticket, or chat, they can handle more support requests and speed up resolution time. Today's customers will often pay more for a product or service if they know the support is outstanding, which is often the case with some of the most expensive products and services, as these types of companies stand behind the idea of providing a premium experience for their customers throughout.

3. Lower Costs

Greater efficiency often means lower costs. Reducing AHT decreases the cost per ticket and can also decrease the number of agents needed to operate the customer service department.

4. Market Advantage

Some companies are notorious for long hold times and frustratingly slow support ticket responses. Businesses that boast low Average Handle Times gain a competitive advantage over competitors that do not prioritize this customer-focused approach.

5. Better Bottom Line

Low AHT often means a better customer experience, which ultimately bolsters profits, retention, and loyalty. 60% of Americans do more business with companies that provide good customer service, while 40% stop doing business with companies that have poor customer service.

How Mojo Helpdesk Helps You Improve AHT

Mojo Helpdesk helps teams reduce average handle time by removing manual work and keeping tickets organized.

With Mojo Helpdesk, you can:

• Automate ticket routing based on category, priority, or requester
• Use canned responses to resolve common issues faster
• Set SLAs and priorities so agents focus on what matters most
• Enable a knowledge base to reduce repetitive questions
• Track handle time and resolution trends with built-in reporting

These tools help agents spend less time on administrative tasks and more time solving problems efficiently.