Sales Tax Calculator

Calculate sales tax amounts, tax-inclusive and tax-exclusive prices for any tax rate or jurisdiction.

How to Use Sales Tax Calculator

1

Enter the price

Type the subtotal amount before tax.
2

Set the tax rate

Enter the sales tax percentage for your location.
3

View the total

See the tax amount and final price including tax.

Tested tool guide Tested browser tools Checked August 16, 2026

What Sales Tax Calculator does, with a checked example

Sales tax math is a single multiplication, but the direction trips people up. The tool runs two ways. Give it a pre-tax price and a rate, and it returns the tax and the grand total. Give it a total that already includes tax, and it divides by one plus the rate to recover the pre-tax price and the tax hidden inside it. The common mistake is applying the rate to an inclusive total, which double-counts tax and overstates it. Rates are often combined state-plus-local figures, and the tool accepts any rate you enter.

Worked example

A concrete input and expected output from the current implementation.

Input

Price $200.00, rate 7% (tax not included); total $214.00, rate 7% (tax included)

Expected output

From $200.00 at 7%: tax $14.00, total $214.00. From $214.00 at 7%: pre-tax $200.00, tax $14.00.

7% of $200.00 is $14.00, so the total is $214.00. In the other direction, $214.00 already holds the tax, so dividing by 1.07 gives the $200.00 base and the $14.00 inside it. Both directions reconcile to the same numbers.

How the result is produced

From pre-tax price to total

You enter a price that has no tax in it yet and a percentage rate. Tax equals the price times the rate, and the total equals the price plus that tax. With $200.00 at 7%, the tax is $14.00 and the total is $214.00. The rate is interpreted as a percentage, so 7 means 0.07, and results round to cents.

From tax-inclusive total to pre-tax price

When a total already contains the tax, the pre-tax price is the total divided by one plus the rate, not the total minus the rate applied to the total. For $214.00 at 7%, that is 214 divided by 1.07, which gives $200.00 with $14.00 of tax inside. This direction is what invoice verification and reimbursement work need.

Good uses

Pricing goods for a store or shop: you set a pre-tax price and need the tax and grand total to display at the register or in a listing.
Checking an invoice before paying: a vendor quotes a total that includes tax, and you want the pre-tax amount and the tax line verified against the rate you agreed on.
Filling an expense report: a restaurant or hotel receipt shows one total that includes tax; you need the pre-tax amount and the tax portion as separate claim lines.

Limits and checks

The rate is whatever you type. Real rates combine state, county, city, and district components and vary by exact address, so a ZIP-level lookup can miss special districts. The tool will not look up or verify any rate.
Rounding is to cents, but jurisdictions define rounding differently, including per-line versus per-invoice and half-up versus half-even. A computed total can differ from an official receipt by a cent even when the rate is right.
The tool does arithmetic, not law. It will not say whether an item is taxable, whether a buyer owes use tax, or whether a seller must collect at all. Grocery, clothing, and digital-goods exemptions exist in many places and are not reflected here.

Common questions

A total is $107.00 at 7%. Why is the tax $7.00 and not $7.49?

Because $107.00 already includes the tax. The pre-tax price is 107 divided by 1.07, which is $100.00, so the tax inside is $7.00. Applying 7% to the full $107.00 gives $7.49 and counts the tax a second time. This is the direction most people get backwards.

Does the calculator know my state or city rate?

No. It applies exactly the rate you enter and keeps no jurisdiction tables, because rates change and differ by address. For a current rate, check your state revenue department or the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board's rate directory; for VAT, see the European Commission's VAT rates database.

References and verification

The example and behavioral notes were checked against the browser implementation. Standards and primary references below define the relevant format, formula, or platform behavior.