Unlimited PTO: Policy on Paper, Culture in Action

I was 25 when I joined a fully remote team with an unlimited PTO policy. This was at the peak of the pivot to remote work and the rise of unique time-off policies, so I was quick to brag about ours. But people were just as quick to share their opinions.

Their “wisdom” usually sounded like this: “No one actually takes time off under unlimited PTO.”

Then I started traveling: Joshua Tree, Sedona, Canada, Colorado, Iceland, Puerto Rico, Portugal. And I noticed my teammates were traveling too. A pre-meeting chat about recent adventures and extracurricular activities outside of work was the norm. And despite this, the work didn’t wobble.

In fact, our Chief People Officer, the embodiment of the company’s culture, nudged people to unplug if they were overdue, and would quietly shut down Slack replies that crept in during someone’s OOO.

Fast forward a few years and a few roles later, my focus shifted back to PTO while working on upcoming improvements to Workable’s work calendar feature. As I followed the online conversation, I kept hearing the same refrain, but it didn’t match what I had seen firsthand.

So I looked for evidence: I surveyed more than 500 professionals and spoke with two Chief People Officers, Anna Binder, Chief People Officer at Asana, and Michelle Labbe, Chief People Officer at Toptal, to see how flexible time off actually functions inside high-performing companies.

What people think about “unlimited” PTO

The survey revealed a clear perception: more than half of respondents believe people with unlimited PTO take less time than they would with a set bank. About a third think they take the same, and a much smaller group believes they take more.

In short, the common narrative is “unlimited = less.”

Yet when asked what theywould feel comfortable taking under an unlimited policy, the center of gravity looked healthy: many chose four weeks, plenty chose three, and very few (2 people) said they’d take only a handful of days.

However, people who actually had unlimited PTO told a different story.

Several respondents described taking four, five, even six weeks off in a year. One noted, “I have unlimited PTO and last year I took more than 4 weeks throughout the year.” Another shared, “I make sure to take a minimum of 5 weeks per year.” Others mentioned using it for a mix of vacations, sick days, and mental health, with totals adding up well beyond the typical three-week baseline.

The qualitative feedback also sheds light on why the numbers look contradictory. On paper, most people say they’d feel fine taking three or four weeks under an unlimited policy. But in practice, norms and signals from leadership make all the difference. When expectations are vague, employees hesitate and worry about being judged or quietly penalized for taking “too much.” One respondent described being encouraged to “enjoy the summer,” only to be reprimanded after six approved weeks away. Another noted their company called it unlimited but “recommended” three weeks, which left people unsure what the real limit was.

The takeaway: the policy alone doesn’t dictate behavior. The culture around it does. Where leaders model rest, approvals are consistent, and norms are explicit, people actually take the healthy breaks they say they want.

Inside two companies that make it work: Asana

When asked about Asana’s policies, Chief People Officer, Anna Binder, is intentional with language.

“At Asana, we do not call it unlimited PTO. We offer flexible PTO, built on mutual trust and shared accountability. We believe that rest and time off are critical to high performance, and that balance matters at every level, from micro breaks during the workday to longer vacations and sabbaticals.”

That philosophy translates into practice: time off is planned collaboratively around team goals, managers model healthy habits, and the company celebrates people taking rest. The outcomes speak for themselves: lower burnout, stronger retention, and teams that return more energized and creative.

“We encourage managers to check usage patterns and proactively remind team members to take time away.”

She also points out that burnout does not only come from long hours. It often stems from ambiguity and duplicative work. Asana addresses this with clarity of priorities, making it safe to truly step away.

“We use our own platform to keep teams aligned on priorities, connected to the company mission, and confident they are making progress on the work that matters.”

At Asana, rest is not just permitted. It is built into the operating model. That choice has become a cornerstone of its reputation as a high performing workplace, reflected in its five year streak on Fortune’s Great Place to Work list.

“At Asana, flexible PTO is paired with clear norms, leadership modeling, and goal-based planning. That makes it not just a perk on paper, but a practice everyone benefits from.”

Inside two companies that make it work: Toptal

Michelle Labbe, Toptal’s Chief People Officer, emphasizes that a healthy PTO culture starts at the top: leaders must set a good example by using their own vacation time and by honoring boundaries when team members are out of office.

“Leaders have to model the behavior and take time off themselves. They also have to respect their people’s time off and not reach out while they are away.”

To make this more than a policy on paper, Toptal builds in practices that ensure people actually use their time. Midyear, the HR team reviews usage and flags underuse so managers can help employees plan breaks. This spreads rest more evenly across the year, prevents holiday bottlenecks, and keeps coverage balanced.

The misconception Labbe encounters most often is that an unlimited or generous PTO policy means anything goes. In practice, she says, the opposite is true.

“I can count on one hand how many people abused the unlimited time off policy — it usually has the opposite effect. When companies don’t give an actual number of days, people often worry about whether there is an unspoken limit and about being judged for taking too much time.”

That is why cultural signals matter as much as guidelines. Leaders who actively go dark when out of office normalize disconnecting, and managers who track underuse protect both individual wellbeing and team performance.

“Taking time off is critical to all employees at every level. Without breaks, people risk serious health consequences that spill into both their personal and professional lives. They’re more likely to get sick, lose sleep, and struggle to focus—ultimately leading to poorer performance.”

At Toptal, rest is safeguarded by design. Pairing clear expectations with a positive example from leadership and proactive practices ensures people truly take the time they need.

Why the label isn’t the policy

One theme was clear from both the survey and the leaders I spoke with: the words “Unlimited PTO” by themselves do very little. What matters is how the policy is lived. Employees are not looking for a magic number of days. They are looking for clarity about what is normal here, confidence that their team can absorb their absence, and signals that managers will support them if something urgent comes up while they are away.

When those conditions are in place, flexible time off works as intended. The survey showed that most people would take a healthy amount of time—three to five weeks—if expectations were clear. And at Asana and Toptal, we see proof that clarity and culture turn flexibility into real results, with higher retention, lower burnout, and stronger team performance.

What operators should do next

To succeed, flexible PTO policies need structure behind the promise, with guidelines, rituals, and expectations that remove uncertainty and promote real rest. The unlimited or flexible approach should include:

• Language that matches reality. If you mean flexibility with shared accountability, say so. Don’t call it “unlimited” if norms imply a de facto cap. Asana’s “flexible PTO” framing sets clear expectations from day one.
• Managerial rituals. Require periodic usage reviews; coach managers to approve promptly, plan coverage, and praise real disconnection. Toptal’s cadence, plus a strict “don’t ping people on vacation” norm, prevents underuse and resentment.
• A real floor. Consider a minimum (for example, 15 days) to counter the tendency to take less when the number is undefined. It preserves flexibility while protecting health and fairness.

Written by Brendan Jeannetti, Future of Work journalist at Workable

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