How many minutes between two clock times
Two timestamps on the same day: return the signed forward distance in minutes, wrapping past midnight.
- Both values are minutes since midnight.
- If endMinutes is after startMinutes the answer is straightforward.
- If endMinutes is at or before startMinutes the interval crosses midnight: add 1440 before subtracting.
- Midnight to midnight is 0.
hours_between(start_minutes: int, end_minutes: int) → int
Where you start
def hours_between(start_minutes: int, end_minutes: int) -> int:
Worked examples
| Call | Result |
|---|---|
hours_between(0, 60) | 60 |
hours_between(60, 0) | 1380 |
hours_between(1400, 100) | 140 |
hours_between(0, 1440) | 0 |
Hint
Subtract, then add 1440 if the result is not positive, and take modulo 1440.
Reference solution in Python
def hours_between(start_minutes: int, end_minutes: int) -> int:
diff = end_minutes - start_minutes
return ((diff % 1440) + 1440) % 1440