Sales Tax Calculator

Add sales tax to a price, or work backward to find the tax already included in a total.

By

Enter your numbers

Your state rate plus any county/city rate. Check your receipt or your state revenue department.

Your results will appear here as you type.

How this is calculated

Adding tax: Tax = Price × Rate ÷ 100. Removing tax: Pre-tax price = Total ÷ (1 + Rate ÷ 100), and Tax = Total − Pre-tax price.

Assumptions

  • Uses the combined rate you enter. US sales tax varies by state, county and city, and some items are exempt. This is an estimate, not a tax determination.

Estimates for planning and education only. Not financial, tax or legal advice, and not an official government calculation. Calculations run in your browser; nothing you enter is stored or sent.

How to find your sales tax rate

Sales tax in the US is set by states and, in many places, by counties and cities too. Your combined rate is the state rate plus any local rates. The easiest way to find it is a recent receipt from a store near you; your state revenue department’s website also lists rates.

Five states have no statewide sales tax: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon. Some Alaska localities still charge a local sales tax.

Working backward from a total

Example

You paid $53.63 including 7.25% tax. Pre-tax price = $53.63 ÷ 1.0725 = $50.00, so the tax was $3.63.

Tip: subtracting 7.25% from the total does not give the pre-tax price, because the tax was calculated on the smaller number. Always divide.

Frequently asked questions

Are groceries taxed?

It depends on the state. Many states exempt most groceries or tax them at a lower rate, while prepared food is usually taxed. Check your state revenue department.

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