Sales Tax Calculator
Add sales tax to any price, or work backward to pull the tax out of a total. Enter an amount and your combined state-plus-local rate to see the exact tax and final price — the way US sales tax actually works.
A $100 purchase at a 7.25% sales tax rate adds $7.25 in tax, for a total of $107.25. US sales tax is set by states and localities — not the federal government — so your combined rate depends on where the sale happens, usually 6%–10%. Five states (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, Oregon) charge no statewide sales tax.
Sales Tax Calculator
Your numbers
Educational estimate. Combined sales tax rates vary by exact address and by what’s being sold (groceries, clothing, and services are often taxed differently). Verify with your jurisdiction. Not tax advice.
Result
Adding taxIn “add” mode the tax is a percentage of the pre-tax price. In “extract” mode we divide the total by (1 + rate) to recover the original price the tax was calculated on.
Sales tax is added on top of the listed price at checkout, which is why the amount you pay is higher than the sticker. The rate depends entirely on where the sale is taxed.
What this calculator does
This tool does two everyday jobs. In add mode it puts sales tax on top of a listed price so you know the real checkout total. In extract mode it works backward from a tax-inclusive total to recover the original price and the tax hidden inside it — invaluable for expense reports, bookkeeping, and reconciling receipts.
Who should use it
Shoppers checking a final price, freelancers and small businesses invoicing customers, bookkeepers splitting tax out of a gross receipt, and anyone comparing costs across states. If you sell products, it’s a quick way to confirm the tax you should be collecting.
Sales tax in the US is genuinely complex: rates vary by exact address, and many categories (groceries, prescription drugs, clothing in some states, most services) are taxed at reduced rates or exempt entirely. This calculator applies one flat rate you supply. For collecting tax as a business, use address-level rate data and check each state’s rules.
How US sales tax works
Unlike most countries, the United States has no national sales tax or VAT. Instead, 45 states plus the District of Columbia levy their own sales tax, and thousands of counties and cities add local taxes on top. Your combined rate is the sum of the state rate plus every applicable local rate — which is why two addresses a mile apart can owe different amounts.
Sales tax is almost always destination-based for remote sales: the rate is set by where the buyer takes delivery, not where the seller sits. It’s added at the point of sale, collected by the seller, and remitted to the state. The buyer bears the cost; the seller is the middleman the state relies on to collect it.
The formula
The extract formula is the one people get wrong most often — you can’t just multiply the total by the rate, because the tax was calculated on the smaller pre-tax figure, not the total.
State rates and the no-tax states
Five states — remembered by the acronym NOMAD — have no statewide sales tax, though a couple allow local taxes:
| No statewide sales tax | Note |
|---|---|
| New Hampshire | No sales tax at all |
| Oregon | No sales tax at all |
| Montana | No general sales tax (some resort-area local taxes) |
| Alaska | No state tax, but many localities levy their own |
| Delaware | No sales tax (has a gross-receipts tax on businesses) |
Among states that do charge sales tax, California has the highest state base rate at 7.25%, and combined state-plus-local rates in places like Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, and parts of Alabama can exceed 9.5%. Most Americans pay a combined rate somewhere between 6% and 9%. Because local rates change and vary by exact location, always confirm your rate with the state’s Department of Revenue or an address-level lookup.
Worked examples
Example 1 — Adding tax at checkout
$250 electronics purchase, 8.5% combined rate.
Tax = $250 × 8.5% = $21.25, for a total of $271.25. The sticker said $250, but the rate set by the state and city adds the rest at the register.
Example 2 — Extracting tax for bookkeeping
A $107.25 receipt at a 7.25% rate.
Pre-tax price = $107.25 ÷ 1.0725 = $100.00, so the sales tax inside the total is $7.25. Splitting the receipt this way is essential for recording the expense and the recoverable tax correctly — multiplying $107.25 by 7.25% would overstate the tax.
Example 3 — The no-tax-state road trip
A $1,200 laptop bought in Portland, Oregon.
Oregon has no sales tax, so the total is $1,200.00 — the same as the sticker. The identical laptop in a 9% jurisdiction would cost $1,308. This is why big-ticket shoppers near a border pay attention to which side they’re on.
For businesses: nexus & remitting
If you sell products, you’re the state’s tax collector. Your obligation to collect turns on nexus — a connection to a state strong enough to require you to register. Physical presence (an office, employees, inventory) always creates nexus. Since the 2018 South Dakota v. Wayfair decision, economic nexus also applies: exceed a state’s sales or transaction threshold (commonly $100,000 in sales or 200 transactions) and you must collect there even with no physical presence.
Once you have nexus, you register for a sales tax permit, collect the correct destination-based rate on taxable sales, and remit on the state’s schedule (monthly, quarterly, or annually). Marketplace facilitators like Amazon and Etsy now collect and remit on behalf of many sellers, but you remain responsible for your direct sales. Automated tax software is worth it once you sell across multiple states.
Common mistakes
- Extracting tax by multiplying the total by the rate. You must divide by (1 + rate), because the tax was based on the pre-tax price.
- Using the seller’s rate instead of the buyer’s. Remote sales are usually taxed at the destination — where the customer receives the goods.
- Assuming everything is taxable. Groceries, prescriptions, and many services are exempt or reduced in most states.
- Ignoring local taxes. The state rate is only part of it; county and city rates can add several points.
- Forgetting economic nexus. Online sellers can owe tax in states they’ve never set foot in once they cross the sales threshold.
- Confusing sales tax with income or use tax. Use tax applies when you buy tax-free and owe your home state’s tax on the purchase.
Best practices
Confirm your combined rate by exact address, not just state · Check whether the item is taxable in your state before assuming · For business, monitor economic-nexus thresholds in every state you ship to · Keep receipts with tax broken out for clean bookkeeping · Use address-level tax software once you sell in multiple states · Remit collected tax on time — it isn’t your money, and penalties are steep.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate sales tax?
Which states have no sales tax?
What is the highest sales tax rate?
Is there a federal sales tax in the US?
How do I remove sales tax from a total?
Is sales tax based on where I live or where I buy?
Are groceries and services taxed?
What is economic nexus?
What’s the difference between sales tax and use tax?
Is this an official tax tool?
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