Use our free Sales Tax Calculator to add sales tax to a price, remove sales tax from a total, or find the tax rate. Enter your values to calculate the tax amount and price instantly.
Sales Tax Calculator
Add sales tax, remove sales tax, or find the tax rate.
How to Use the Sales Tax Calculator
Choose what you want to calculate from the menu.
To add sales tax, enter the price before tax and the sales tax rate.
To remove sales tax from a total, enter the total price and tax rate.
To find the sales tax rate, enter the price before tax and the total price.
Select a currency to change how monetary values are displayed. The currency selector does not perform currency conversion.
What Is Sales Tax?
Sales tax is an amount added to the price of taxable goods or services. It is usually calculated as a percentage of the price before tax.
For example, if an item costs $100 before tax and the sales tax rate is 8%, the tax is:
$100 × 8% = $8
The total price is:
$100 + $8 = $108
Sales Tax Formula
To calculate the sales tax amount:
Sales Tax = Price Before Tax × Tax Rate ÷ 100
To calculate the total price:
Total Price = Price Before Tax + Sales Tax
For example, with a price of $80 and a tax rate of 7.5%:
Sales Tax = $80 × 7.5% = $6
Total Price = $80 + $6 = $86
How to Add Sales Tax to a Price
To add sales tax, multiply the price before tax by the tax rate and then add the tax amount to the original price.
For example:
Price Before Tax: $100
Tax Rate: 8.25%
Sales Tax:
$100 × 8.25% = $8.25
Total Price:
$100 + $8.25 = $108.25
How to Remove Sales Tax From a Total
Removing sales tax requires a different calculation from simply subtracting the tax percentage from the total.
Use:
Price Before Tax = Total Price ÷ (1 + Tax Rate ÷ 100)
For example:
Total Price: $108.25
Tax Rate: 8.25%
Calculation:
$108.25 ÷ 1.0825 = $100
The price before tax is $100, and the sales tax is $8.25.
How to Find the Sales Tax Rate
If you know the price before tax and the total price, you can calculate the tax rate.
First calculate the tax amount:
Sales Tax = Total Price − Price Before Tax
Then:
Tax Rate = Sales Tax ÷ Price Before Tax × 100
For example:
Price Before Tax: $80
Total Price: $86
Sales Tax:
$86 − $80 = $6
Tax Rate:
$6 ÷ $80 × 100 = 7.5%
Why You Shouldn’t Simply Subtract the Tax Percentage
Suppose a product costs $100 before tax and an 8% sales tax is added.
The final price is $108.
Subtracting 8% directly from $108 gives $99.36, not $100.
That’s because the original 8% tax was calculated from the pre-tax price, not from the final price.
To reverse the calculation correctly, divide the total by 1 + the tax rate.
Calculation Examples
What Is 8% Sales Tax on $50?
Sales Tax:
$50 × 8% = $4
Total Price:
$54
What Is 7.5% Sales Tax on $80?
Sales Tax:
$80 × 7.5% = $6
Total Price:
$86
What Is the Price Before Tax if the Total Is $110 With 10% Tax?
Price Before Tax:
$110 ÷ 1.10 = $100
Sales Tax:
$10
What Tax Rate Turns $200 Into $215?
Sales Tax:
$215 − $200 = $15
Tax Rate:
$15 ÷ $200 × 100 = 7.5%
Frequently Asked Questions
What Does a Sales Tax Calculator Do?
It calculates the tax amount and total price from a pre-tax price and tax rate. It can also reverse sales tax from a total or calculate the tax rate from known prices.
How Do I Calculate Sales Tax?
Multiply the price before tax by the sales tax percentage divided by 100. Add the resulting tax amount to the original price to calculate the total.
How Do I Calculate a Price Before Sales Tax?
Divide the total price by 1 + the tax rate expressed as a decimal.
For example, with an 8% tax rate:
Price Before Tax = Total ÷ 1.08
Can I Use Decimal Tax Rates?
Yes. You can enter rates such as 6.25%, 7.5%, or 8.875%.
Does the Calculator Know My Local Sales Tax Rate?
No. Enter the tax rate that applies to your purchase or jurisdiction. Sales tax rates can vary by location and circumstances.
Does the Currency Affect the Calculation?
No. The mathematics is identical for every currency. Selecting a currency only changes how monetary amounts are displayed.
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Working with VAT instead? Try our VAT Calculator.