Sales Tax Calculator
Add sales tax to a price or work backward from a tax-included total.
How to Use
- Pick "Add tax to price" to compute the total a customer pays, or "Find pre-tax price" to back out the price from a tax-included total.
- Enter the price (or total) in dollars.
- Enter the sales tax rate as a percentage (e.g., 8.25 for 8.25%).
- Read the breakdown: pre-tax price, tax amount, and total.
- Use this for U.S. sales tax (state + local), VAT-style consumption taxes, or any percentage-based tax with a fixed multiplier.
- For multi-jurisdiction tax (state + city + special districts), sum the rates and use the combined number.
Formulas
Frequently Asked Questions
What sales tax rate should I use?
Combined state + local rate where the sale takes place. The U.S. average is around 7%, but rates range from 0% (no state sales tax in OR, MT, NH, AK, DE — though some local taxes still apply) to over 10% in some California cities. For e-commerce, use the rate at the buyer's destination (origin- vs. destination-based varies by state). For services, check whether your state taxes services at all.
How do I find the pre-tax price from a receipt?
Use reverse mode. If the after-tax total is $107 at 7% tax, divide by 1.07 to get $100 pre-tax. The tax was $7. Don't subtract 7% from the total — that gives a wrong answer because the 7% was applied to a smaller base.
What's the difference between sales tax and VAT?
Sales tax (U.S., Canada provincial) is collected only at the final retail sale. VAT (Europe, UK, most of the world) is collected at every step of the supply chain with credits for taxes already paid, so the end consumer effectively pays the full rate on the final retail margin only. Mathematically the calculator works for either; the difference is in who collects when.
Are there sales-tax-free states?
Five U.S. states have no state sales tax: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, Oregon. Some Alaska localities charge local sales tax. New Hampshire residents famously cross to Massachusetts to do their tax-free shopping. In the EU, no country exempts retail entirely — VAT is universal.
Does this handle tax holidays?
Indirectly — set the tax rate to 0 for tax-free periods. Many U.S. states run back-to-school sales-tax holidays where school supplies, clothing, or computers under a certain price are exempt. Specifics vary by state and year; check your state revenue department's website.
How do I compute tax for a multi-item receipt?
Sum the taxable items first, apply the tax rate to the sum. (Tax on each item separately and summing is mathematically equivalent if all items are taxed at the same rate, but rounding may produce 1-cent differences. Real cash registers typically tax the running total.)
Common Use Cases
E-commerce checkout planning
Compute the all-in price for items shipped to a specific zip code so customers know what they'll pay before clicking checkout.
Reconciling expense receipts
Back out the pre-tax price from receipts when categorizing business expenses for accounting.
Comparing multi-state pricing
See the difference in final price between buying in your state and a neighboring state with different tax rules.
Restaurant and bar pricing
Adjust menu prices to land at round-dollar after-tax totals for cash transactions.
Trade-in valuations
Calculate the tax savings from trading in an old vehicle (in states that grant the trade-in tax credit).
Sales tax holiday shopping
Compute exact savings by toggling between the regular rate and 0% for tax-free shopping days.
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