Sales Tax Calculator

How the Sales Tax Calculator Works

Enter a price and your local sales tax rate to see the tax and total. You can also work backwards: choose "Total with tax" to strip the tax out of a receipt total and find the original price. Sales tax rates combine state, county and city rates, so check your exact combined rate for accuracy.

A Few Sales Tax Facts

Five states — Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon — have no statewide sales tax, though some allow local taxes. Many states exempt groceries or prescription drugs, and rules for clothing, digital goods and services differ widely.

Example: A $100 Purchase

At a 7.25% rate, a $100 item costs $107.25. Working backwards, a $107.25 receipt total contains $7.25 of tax and an original price of $100. For larger purchases the difference adds up: 7.25% on a $2,000 appliance is $145.

How to Read Your Results

Enter the price and your combined state and local rate. The tool shows the pre-tax price, the tax and the total. Use "remove tax" mode when you have only a final total and want the original price.

Sales Tax Tips

• Look up your exact combined rate, since city and county rates add to the state rate.
• Check whether groceries, clothing or prescriptions are exempt in your state.
• Watch for tax-free holidays on back-to-school items in some states.
• Remember online purchases may also carry sales tax.

How Sales Tax Is Calculated

Sales tax is calculated by multiplying the pre-tax price by the combined tax rate. If a jacket costs $80 and the rate is 7.25%, tax is $80 × 0.0725 = $5.80, and the total is $85.80. To work backward from a receipt total, divide the total by 1 plus the tax rate as a decimal. For a $107.25 total with a 7.25% rate, $107.25 ÷ 1.0725 = $100.00 before tax. The calculator handles both directions and multiplies by quantity if you are buying several identical items.

Sales Tax on Common Purchase Amounts

Here is the tax on typical prices at two common combined rates:

Sales tax rates vary by location. Some cities and counties add their own rates on top of the state rate, so the combined rate can be much higher than the state rate alone.

Step-by-Step: Using the Calculator

1. Enter the item price. If you have several different items, add their prices together.
2. Enter your combined sales tax rate. Look at a recent local receipt, your state revenue department or your city website.
3. Enter the quantity if buying several identical items.
4. Choose whether the amount is before tax or already includes tax.
5. Read the tax and total, and use them to plan your budget or compare prices between stores or states.

Which Purchases Are Taxed and Which Are Not?

• Generally taxable: most physical goods such as electronics, furniture, clothing (in many states), and prepared food.
• Often exempt or reduced: groceries, prescription drugs and some medical devices, though rules vary by state.
• Services: some states tax services such as repairs or digital subscriptions, and others do not.
• Vehicles: often taxed at the point of registration; see auto loan calculator for how tax affects financing.
• Online purchases: most states require sellers to collect tax based on the delivery address.

Why sales tax rates vary so much by location

Sales tax in the US is not a single national rate; it's a combination of state, county, and sometimes city-level rates layered on top of each other, which is why the same purchase can cost noticeably different amounts in tax depending on exactly where you make it, even within the same state.

Five states (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon) have no statewide sales tax at all, though Alaska allows local jurisdictions to impose their own sales taxes, so it's still possible to pay some sales tax there depending on the specific city or borough.

Items that are often exempt from sales tax

Many states exempt or apply reduced rates to certain categories of purchases, most commonly groceries, prescription medications, and sometimes clothing up to a certain price point, though the specific exemptions vary significantly from state to state.

Some states also offer temporary sales tax holidays, often around back-to-school season, where specific categories like clothing, school supplies, or computers are temporarily exempt from sales tax for a limited window, which can be worth timing larger purchases around if your state offers one.

How sales tax affects your budget alongside your paycheck

Sales tax is a consumption tax, meaning it's charged when you spend money rather than when you earn it, so unlike income tax, it doesn't show up on your pay stub, but it still meaningfully affects how far your take-home pay actually stretches, especially in states or cities with higher combined sales tax rates.

When comparing the overall tax burden between states, it's worth looking at income tax and sales tax together, since a state with no income tax (which increases take-home pay) sometimes offsets that with a higher sales tax rate (which increases the cost of everyday purchases).

Sales tax on big purchases like cars

Sales tax on a vehicle purchase can add thousands of dollars to the total cost, and unlike everyday purchases, vehicle sales tax is often calculated and collected separately at the time of registration rather than at the point of sale, which can catch first-time car buyers off guard if they didn't budget for it.

Some states offer a trade-in credit that reduces the taxable amount of a new vehicle purchase by the value of a trade-in, effectively lowering the sales tax owed, while other states tax the full purchase price regardless of any trade-in, so it's worth checking your specific state's rule before assuming your trade-in will reduce your tax bill.

Online purchases and sales tax

Since a 2018 Supreme Court ruling (South Dakota v. Wayfair), most states now require online retailers to collect sales tax based on the buyer's location, even if the retailer has no physical presence in that state, closing what used to be a common way to avoid sales tax on online purchases.

This means the sales tax rate that applies to an online purchase is typically based on your shipping address rather than the seller's location, so use your own local combined state and local rate when estimating tax on an online order, not the seller's rate.

Sales Tax and Your Budget

Sales tax adds several percent to nearly every purchase, so it matters in budgeting for large items like appliances, furniture and cars. Include tax in your target price when you plan a purchase. If you live near a state border with lower rates, compare total cost including travel, although use tax rules may require you to pay your home state's tax on some out-of-state purchases. For everyday budgeting, see the monthly budget guide and the 50/30/20 rule.

Sales Tax vs Income Tax

Sales tax is a consumption tax, paid when you buy, while income tax is charged on earnings. States with no income tax often rely on sales tax and other levies. When comparing locations, consider both. Read states with no income tax and estimate your paycheck using the paycheck calculator.

Sales Tax results at a glance

These are the calculator's results at different values of amount, with every other input left at the example values above (the bold row is the example). Use them to see how quickly the result changes before entering your own numbers.

How amount Is changes the result

The same example with each amount Is option:

What changing sales Tax Rate does

Holding everything else at the example values, here is the effect of sales Tax Rate:

States without a statewide sales tax

Five states have no statewide sales tax: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon. Alaska allows local governments to charge their own sales taxes, so some Alaska purchases are still taxed. Everywhere else, the rate you pay is the state rate plus any county, city and special district rates, which is why two stores a few miles apart can charge different totals. Use the exact rate printed on a recent receipt from your area for the most accurate result.

Backing sales tax out of a total

To find the price before tax from a receipt total, divide the total by one plus the tax rate. A $107.25 total at 7.25% was $107.25 / 1.0725 = $100.00 before tax, with $7.25 of tax. This is useful for expense reports, returns and checking that the right rate was charged.