The behavior you're seeing is actually explained in the metric definitions.
Avg Handle Time is calculated using the total handle time divided by the total number of interactions handled, and it includes talk time, hold time, after-call work, and (for outbound) dialing and contacting time.
Avg Talk Time, on the other hand, is calculated as total talk time divided by the count of interactions with talk time.
Because these two metrics use different denominators, they are not directly comparable.
As noted in the documentation, Avg Talk, Avg Hold, and Avg ACW do not equal Avg Handle, since the calculations are based on cumulative totals and not on the same set of interactions.
You can find the full definitions of these metrics in the Genesys documentation here: https://help.genesys.cloud/articles/view-available-columns-in-performance-views-by-category/
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Mateus Nunes
Tech Leader Of CX at Solve4ME
Brazil
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Original Message:
Sent: 03-16-2026 20:24
From: Michael Nahass
Subject: Handle Time vs Talk Time
Can you please help me understand how avg talk time could exceed avg handle time? Total handle time divided by total handled calls (screenshot - example below) makes sense, but total talk time divided by total handled calls is not matching up - - so I'm sure I'm missing a part of the definition.
Thanks in advance for your help.
#Reporting/Analytics
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Mike Nahass
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