Sales tax & VAT calculator
Add tax to a price, or find the price before tax hidden inside a total. Works for sales tax, VAT and GST at whatever rate applies to you.
Tax in, tax out
- Price before tax
- $100.00
- Tax at 20%
- $20.00
- Price with tax
- $120.00
Tax is 16.67% of a price that includes it (20% ÷ 120%), which is why taking 20% off the total doesn't remove it.
Adding and removing tax
Price with tax = price before tax × (1 + rate ÷ 100)
Price before tax = price with tax ÷ (1 + rate ÷ 100)
Example: 120 including 20% VAT is 120 ÷ 1.2 = 100 before VAT, so the VAT is 20. Taking 20% off 120 instead gives 96, which is wrong: the 20% was charged on 100, not on 120. At any rate, tax makes up rate ÷ (100 + rate) of a tax-inclusive price: one sixth at 20%.
Which rate?
Enter the rate that applies to your purchase. US sales tax often combines state, county and city rates, so add them together. The buttons fill in a few published standard rates as examples; reduced rates apply to some goods, and rates change, so check the current one with the tax authority.
Sources
- GOV.UK, VAT rates: UK standard rate 20%.
- Revenue (Ireland), Current VAT rates: standard rate 23%.
- Australian Taxation Office, Goods and services tax (GST): GST of 10% on most goods and services.
- Canada Revenue Agency, GST/HST calculator and rates: GST 5%, HST 13% in Ontario.
- European Commission, VAT rates: EU standard rates must be at least 15%; each country's rates are in the Commission's Taxes in Europe Database.
Questions
Why isn't removing 20% VAT the same as 20% off?
Because the VAT was 20% of the price before tax. Divide by 1.2 to remove it; multiplying by 0.8 takes off too much.
Can I use this for GST or HST?
Yes. GST, HST and VAT are all charged as a percentage of the price, so the same formulas apply; just enter the right rate.
Why might a receipt differ by a cent?
Tax may be rounded on each item or on the whole bill, and the rules differ between countries and shops.