Sales Tax Calculator
Last updated: November 14, 2026
Direct answer. Sales tax is Price × (Rate ÷ 100). The total is Price + Sales tax. On a $100 taxable price at 8.25%, the tax is $8.25 and the total is $108.25.
U.S. sales tax is added to a taxable price at a rate set by a state, and often by a county or city as well. This calculator does not guess your local rate. You enter the combined rate that applies to the purchase, and it returns the tax in dollars and the total you pay.
Sales Tax Calculator
Enter a pre-tax price and the sales tax rate that applies to you. This tool does not ship state rate presets; rates change and exemptions vary, so you enter the rate yourself.
Result
Key takeaways
- Sales tax = Price × (Rate ÷ 100). Total = Price + Sales tax.
- Enter the combined rate that applies to the purchase, in percent. $100 at 8.25% is a $108.25 total.
- This page does not ship a table of state rates. Rates change, and local add-ons are common, so a stale preset would be worse than a blank field.
- Look up the current rate from your state department of revenue or the retailer’s receipt math, then type that number here.
How to use this calculator
- Enter the price before tax, in dollars.
- Enter the sales tax rate as a percent, such as 8.25 for 8.25%. Do not type the dollar tax amount in this field.
- Read the tax in dollars and the total with tax. The working is under the result.
The formula
The rate is a percent of the taxable price, not a flat fee. Both the tax and the total are in the same currency as the price you entered.
Worked examples
| Price before tax | Rate (%) | Sales tax | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| $100.00 | 8.25 | $8.25 | $108.25 |
| $19.99 | 8.25 | $1.65 | $21.64 |
| $0.00 | 8.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
100 × 0.0825 = 8.25 in tax. The total is 100 + 8.25 = 108.25.
19.99 × 0.0825 = 1.649175, which displays as 1.65 after ordinary rounding to cents in your head, and 21.64 as a total if you add the rounded tax. This calculator shows the unrounded working first; retailers may round each line differently.
When this is useful in the United States
Shoppers comparing a pre-tax online price with an in-store total can add the combined local rate to see whether the difference is tax or a different list price.
Small sellers who invoice before checkout can estimate what a customer in a given city will be charged once the seller has looked up that jurisdiction’s rate.
A move to a new metro area is a good time to replace last year’s rate with a fresh official figure rather than reuse a memorized number.
Common mistakes
- Typing the tax amount, such as 8.25 dollars, into the rate field when the rate is actually something else. The rate field is a percent.
- Assuming one state has a single rate. Many U.S. states allow local add-ons, so the rate on a receipt may be higher than the statewide rate you remember.
- Using a rate copied from an unofficial blog or from this site. This page does not publish state rates.
Units are dollars for the price, tax, and total, and percent for the rate. A 6% state rate plus a 2.25% local rate should be entered as 8.25, not as two separate taxes, unless you are studying the pieces by hand. This calculator is not tax advice and does not determine whether an item is taxable. Last-mile rules, marketplace facilitator laws, and product exemptions are outside its scope. A combined rate is only as good as its source and its date. If you charge tax in a marketplace or on a remote sale, destination rules may differ from the rate at your storefront, and those rules are not modeled here. Exempt groceries, clothing thresholds, and cap amounts that exist in some states are also outside this simple Price × Rate calculation. Use the result as a check on a receipt or as an estimate after you have looked up the rate, not as a filing figure. To remove tax from a total, divide by (1 + rate ÷ 100) instead of using this add-tax form. If a receipt total disagrees with this result, first confirm whether shipping, bottle deposits, or an exempt item was in the taxable price. Then confirm the rate and the date you collected it. A one-cent gap is often ordinary rounding on the merchant’s side, not a different formula.
Frequently asked questions
Does this calculator include every U.S. state rate?
No. There is no preset list on this page. Rates vary by jurisdiction and change over time. Enter the rate that applies to your purchase after you confirm it from an official or merchant source.
Where can I confirm a sales tax rate?
Start with your state department of revenue or tax commission. Some states also publish local rate look-ups. A recent receipt from the same jurisdiction is a practical check, not a substitute for the official rate if you are filing or charging tax.
Is the total always the price plus tax?
For a simple ad valorem sales tax on a fully taxable price, yes. Some items are exempt, taxed at a different rate, or subject to a cap. Those special cases are not modeled here.
Can I use this to remove tax from a total?
This tool adds tax to a pre-tax price. To recover a pre-tax amount from a total, divide the total by (1 + rate ÷ 100) with a reverse-percentage calculation.