Free tool
Sales tax calculator
Enter a price and a tax rate to add sales tax on top, or switch to reverse mode to pull the tax back out of a total that already includes it. See the pre-tax price, the sales tax, and the final amount at a glance.
Your numbers
Price with tax added
- Pre-tax price
- $100.00
- Sales tax
- $7.25
- Total
- $107.25
Your amount is treated as the pre-tax price. Sales tax is added on top to get the total.
Results are rounded estimates for planning only and are not tax or financial advice. Actual tax owed can vary by jurisdiction, exemptions, and rounding rules.
How sales tax works
Sales tax is a percentage added to the price of taxable goods and services at checkout. To add it, multiply the pre-tax price by the rate written as a decimal — a 7.25% rate means multiplying by 0.0725 — and add the result to the price. The combined rate you actually pay often stacks state, county, and city portions, so it can differ from one address to the next.
Add vs. reverse
Use Add tax when you know the shelf or list price and want the final amount. Use Reverse (remove tax) when you only have the tax-inclusive total — say from a receipt or an out-the-door quote — and want to split it back into the pre-tax price and the tax. Reverse mode divides the total by one plus the rate to recover the base, then treats the remainder as tax.
Running a business?
If you are pricing products, the price net of tax is what flows into your margins. Once you know your pre-tax revenue, check how much of it you keep with the profit margin calculator.
A quick note
This tool is a planning estimate, not tax advice. Real tax owed depends on your jurisdiction, product exemptions, and rounding rules. Confirm the exact rate for your location before relying on a figure for filing or pricing.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate sales tax?
Multiply the pre-tax price by the tax rate written as a decimal. For example, a $100 item at a 7.25% rate has $100 × 0.0725 = $7.25 in sales tax, for a total of $107.25. Set this tool to "Add tax" mode to do it automatically.
How do I calculate sales tax backwards?
When a price already includes tax, divide the total by 1 plus the tax rate as a decimal to find the pre-tax price, then subtract that from the total to get the tax. For a $107.25 total at 7.25%, the pre-tax price is $107.25 ÷ 1.0725 = $100, so the tax was $7.25. Use "Reverse (remove tax)" mode for this.
What is reverse sales tax?
Reverse sales tax means starting from a tax-inclusive total and working out how much of it was the pre-tax price and how much was the tax. It is useful for receipts that only show one combined number, or for backing out tax on a quoted out-the-door price.
Is this sales tax calculation exact?
It is a precise arithmetic estimate based on the rate you enter, but real-world tax can differ. Combined state, county, and local rates vary by address, some items are exempt or taxed differently, and stores may apply specific rounding rules. Treat the result as a planning estimate.