Sales Tax Calculator
Add tax to a price, or work backward from a tax-included total to find the pre-tax price.
Last updated
—Pre-tax
—Tax amount
—Total
How to add or remove sales tax
- Choose Add tax to a price or Remove tax from a total.
- Type the price and the tax rate as a percentage.
- Read the tax amount and the total, or the price before tax.
The formulas
Adding tax: total = price × (1 + rate ÷ 100)
Removing tax: pre-tax price = total ÷ (1 + rate ÷ 100) — this is the reverse calculation, useful when a receipt only shows the final tax-included total.
Questions about sales tax
How do I add sales tax to a price?
Multiply the price by 1 plus the rate as a decimal. $40 with 8% tax is $40 × 1.08 = $43.20, of which $3.20 is tax.
How do I work out the price before tax from a receipt total?
Divide the total by 1 plus the rate as a decimal. $54 including 8% tax is $54 ÷ 1.08 = $50 before tax.
Why can’t I just subtract 8% from the total?
Because the tax was 8% of the pre-tax price, not of the total. 8% off $54 gives $49.68, not the correct $50.
Does it work for VAT and GST too?
Yes, the maths is the same for any percentage tax. The VAT / GST calculator also has preset rates for many countries.