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Sales Tax Calculator

Sales tax with the state and local rates separated, which is what lets you check a rate you were charged. A combined rate on a receipt is usually two or three jurisdictions stacked, and exempt items sit in the same basket at zero.

Also called: sales tax rate calculator, add sales tax.

$
%
That amount is
%
$
Total with sales tax
$108.25

$100.00 plus $8.25 of sales tax at 8.25% comes to $108.25. Only one rate applied. Most US receipts combine a state rate with a county and often a city rate. Nothing exempt. Groceries, medicine and sometimes clothing are zero rated in many states.

Before tax
$100.00
Tax
$8.25
Combined rate
8.25%
At the base rate
$8.25
At the local rate
$0.00
Taxable portion
$100.00
Total for the quantity
$108.25
Tax per unit
$8.25
On the rate split
Only one rate applied. Most US receipts combine a state rate with a county and often a city rate.
On exempt items
Nothing exempt. Groceries, medicine and sometimes clothing are zero rated in many states.
How this is calculated

Computed from the published rates for the tax year you selected, which is not necessarily the current year. A calculation, not tax advice, and it does not know anything about your circumstances beyond the figures entered.

Method and background

This is what the calculation gives for the numbers you entered. It is an estimate, not advice, and it knows nothing about your situation beyond those numbers. Rules for United States change on a published schedule; the effective date is shown on every rule-based tool.

How this is calculated

The rates add together and apply to the non-exempt portion of the amount. Separating them matters because a receipt shows one combined figure while the rate is set by a state, a county and often a city, and checking a charge means knowing which part should be what. Working backwards from a tax-inclusive total divides rather than multiplies, which is the arithmetic people get wrong: extracting 8.25 percent from an inclusive total is dividing by 1.0825, not taking 8.25 percent of it.

the rates stack additively, and only the non-exempt portion is taxed
A
Amount
E
Exempt portion

Worked examples

Each of these is asserted on every build. If a change to the engine ever moved one of these answers, the build would fail before the page could print it.

tax added to 100

Amount
$100.00
Sales tax rate
8.25%
That amount is
Amount is before tax
Additional local rate
0%
Of the amount, exempt from tax
$0.00
Quantity
1

Total with sales tax$108.25

8.25% of 100

Open this example

extracting tax from an inclusive total divides

Amount
$108.25
Sales tax rate
8.25%
That amount is
Amount already includes tax
Additional local rate
0%
Of the amount, exempt from tax
$0.00
Quantity
1

Total with sales tax$108.25

boundary: 108.25 over 1.0825, not 8.25% of 108.25

Open this example

Method and limits

What it assumes

  • Rates stack additively, which is how US sales tax works and not how a VAT chain does.

What it deliberately does not model

  • Rates vary by exact address rather than by city, and some jurisdictions have district taxes on top.
  • What is exempt differs by state, particularly for groceries, clothing and prepared food.
  • Origin and destination sourcing rules decide which jurisdiction applies for remote sales.

Formula version 1.0.0 · definition 1.0.0 · United States · Report a problem with this calculator

Frequently asked questions

How do I get the tax out of a total that already includes it?
Divide by one plus the rate, not multiply by the rate. Taking 8.25 percent of a tax-inclusive total overstates the tax, because that total is already 108.25 percent of the net.
Why does the rate differ across town?
Because city and district taxes stack on the state rate, and the boundaries follow addresses rather than postcodes. Two shops a street apart can charge different rates legitimately.