Everyday money
Sales Tax & VAT Calculator
Add sales tax to a net price to get the total your customer pays, or work backwards — extract the tax from a tax-inclusive total to find the net amount. Pick a mode, enter the amount and rate, and the worksheet shows the tax and the formula instantly, all in your browser. In the United States, sales tax is set by states, counties and cities rather than the federal government, so the combined rate at the register can swing from 0% in states like Oregon, Montana and Delaware to well over 9% in parts of Louisiana, Tennessee and California. Use this tool to confirm a receipt, price out a purchase before you get to checkout, or back the tax out of a tax-inclusive total when you need the pre-tax figure for an expense report.
Amount & rate
net plus tax
Use “Add tax” at checkout, “Remove tax” to find the pre-tax price from a receipt.
How the sales tax calculator works
Sales tax and VAT are charged as a percentage of the net (pre-tax) price. Adding tax is straightforward multiplication. Removing tax is the reverse: a tax-inclusive total already contains the net price plus its tax, so you divide it back out.
Add tax (net → total)
tax = net × rate ÷ 100 total = net + tax = net × (1 + rate ÷ 100)Remove tax (total → net)
net = total ÷ (1 + rate ÷ 100) tax = total − netwhere: net = price before tax, rate = the tax/VAT percentage, total = tax-inclusive price
For example, $100 net at 8.25% becomes $108.25 ($8.25 tax). A $108.25 tax-inclusive total at 8.25% comes back to $100 net.
Notes & assumptions
- Assumes a single flat tax rate on the full amount — no exemptions, tiers or compound taxes.
- “Remove tax” mode treats the amount you enter as already including the tax.
- Calculations are for general information only — verify before relying on them.
Worked example
You're buying a $250 jacket in Chicago, where the combined sales tax rate is about 10.25%. Choose Add tax, enter 250 as the net amount and 10.25 as the rate: the tax comes to $25.63 and your total at the register is $275.63. Now flip it around. Say your receipt shows a $54.10 total from a store in a 8.2% tax area and you need the pre-tax price for a reimbursement. Choose Remove tax, enter 54.10 and 8.2: the calculator divides the total by 1.082 to get a $50.00 net price, with $4.10 of that total being tax. Always divide a tax-inclusive total back out rather than just subtracting the percent — taking 8.2% off $54.10 would give the wrong answer because the tax was charged on the smaller pre-tax base.
Frequently asked questions
How do I add sales tax to a price?
Multiply the pre-tax price by the tax rate as a decimal to get the tax amount, then add it to the price. For a $40 item at 7% tax: 40 × 0.07 = $2.80 tax, for a $42.80 total. A faster way is to multiply directly by 1.07, which gives the total in one step.
How do I back out sales tax from a total?
Divide the tax-inclusive total by 1 plus the rate as a decimal. If a receipt total is $107 and the rate is 7%, the pre-tax price is 107 ÷ 1.07 = $100, so the tax was $7. Don't just multiply the total by the rate — that overstates the tax because the percent was originally applied to the smaller pre-tax amount.
Do sales tax rates differ between states?
Yes, significantly. Five states — Oregon, Montana, New Hampshire, Delaware and Alaska — have no statewide sales tax, though some Alaska localities add their own. Most other states charge between 4% and 7% at the state level, and counties and cities often stack additional local tax on top, pushing combined rates above 9% or even 10% in some metro areas. The rate that applies is generally based on where the sale takes place or where the item is delivered.
What's the difference between US sales tax and VAT?
US sales tax is added once, at the final retail sale, and is shown separately on your receipt — the sticker price usually doesn't include it. Value-added tax (VAT), used in the EU, the UK and many other countries, is collected at each stage of production and is almost always baked into the displayed price. This calculator handles either: use it on a US net price, or to extract VAT from a price that already includes it.
Is sales tax charged on every purchase?
No. Many states exempt necessities such as groceries and prescription drugs, and some exempt clothing below a certain price. Rules vary widely by state, so the only way to be sure is to check your state's guidance — this calculator applies a single flat rate to the full amount you enter.
Do I pay sales tax on online orders?
Usually yes. Since the 2018 South Dakota v. Wayfair Supreme Court decision, most online retailers collect sales tax based on the buyer's shipping address once they exceed a sales threshold in that state. The rate applied is the combined state and local rate for your delivery location.