Combined rate: 8.200% (state 6.25% + local 1.95%)
Example: $100 purchase
$100 + tax ≈ $108.20 at the state average rate.
Rates are approximate combined state + average local sales tax. City rates shown where available. Verify with your state revenue department before filing.
Calculate Sales Tax by State
The Tools Kit's free Sales Tax Calculator adds sales tax to a price or works backwards from a receipt total to the price before tax. Choose any of the 50 states or Washington, DC, and the calculator applies that state's combined sales tax rate: the state rate plus the average local rate, shown side by side so you can see where the number comes from. For major cities in California, Florida, New York and Texas you can pick the city for a more specific rate.
Sales tax = price × combined rate. Total = price + sales tax. At the Texas average of 8.20% (6.25% state plus 1.95% local), a $100 purchase carries $8.20 in tax for a total of $108.20.
How to Use the Sales Tax Calculator
- 1
Choose your state
Pick any of the 50 states or the District of Columbia. The combined rate appears below the fields, split into the state rate and the average local rate.
- 2
Pick a city if one is listed
For California, Florida, New York and Texas a City dropdown appears with major cities such as Los Angeles, Miami, New York City and Houston. Leave it on "State average" to use the statewide combined rate.
- 3
Choose the mode
Select "Add tax to price" to add sales tax to a price, or "Price before tax" to split a tax-included total back into the pre-tax price and the tax.
- 4
Enter the amount and read the results
Type the price or the total with tax. The pre-tax price, sales tax and total update instantly, rounded to the nearest cent.
Everything is calculated in your browser from a bundled rate table, with no account and no limit on how many amounts you check.
How to Add Sales Tax to a Price
To add sales tax, convert the combined rate to a decimal and multiply it by the price, then add that tax to the price. Shopping in New York City at 8.875%, a $249 item carries $249 × 0.08875 = $22.10 in tax (rounded to the nearest cent), for a total of $271.10. In Los Angeles at 9.5%, a $1,200 laptop carries $114.00 in tax, for $1,314.00 at the register.
If an item is on sale, take the discount off first: sales tax is charged on the price you actually pay. Work out the sale price with the Discount Calculator, then enter that price here. For any other quick percentage of a number, the Percentage Calculator handles the general case.
Reverse Sales Tax: Find the Price Before Tax
A reverse sales tax calculation splits a tax-included total into the original price and the tax. Divide the total by 1 plus the rate: pre-tax price = total ÷ (1 + rate). A $108.25 Houston receipt at 8.25% divides by 1.0825 to give $100.00, so the sales tax was $8.25. A $108 New York City total at 8.875% gives a pre-tax price of $99.20 and $8.80 of tax.
The common mistake is subtracting the percentage from the total. Taking 8.25% off $108.25 leaves about $99.32, which understates the price because the tax was charged on the smaller pre-tax amount, not on the total. In "Price before tax" mode the calculator divides correctly, rounds the price to the nearest cent, and treats the rest of the total as tax so the two always add up exactly. The same divide-by-one-plus-the-rate method is used to remove UK VAT in the VAT Calculator.
State and Local Sales Tax Rates Explained
US sales tax is set at more than one level. Each state sets its own rate, and counties, cities and special districts can add local rates on top, so two stores in the same state can charge different totals. This calculator uses combined rates from the Tax Foundation 2026 midyear update, dated July 1, 2026, where the local part is a population-weighted state average. When you select a listed city, the calculator uses that city's combined rate instead.
- Highest combined averages: Louisiana 10.13%, Tennessee 9.61% and Washington 9.57%.
- No sales tax: Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon show a 0% combined rate.
- Local tax only: Alaska has no state sales tax, but its 1.82% average local rate still applies.
- Lowest among states with a state sales tax: Hawaii at a 4.5% combined average.
These are approximate rates for everyday estimates. Product exemptions (for example groceries or clothing in some states), exact address-level local rates and use tax are not modeled, so confirm the exact rate with your state revenue department before filing a return. Sales tax outside the US follows different rules: see the GST/HST Calculator for Canada and the Sales Tax Calculator Pakistan for Pakistan's 18% rate.
Common uses
- Checking the out-the-door price of a purchase before you reach the register
- Pulling the sales tax out of a receipt total for expense reports or bookkeeping
- Comparing what the same purchase costs in different states or cities
- Estimating the tax on a car before you plan the loan in the Auto Loan Calculator
- Checking the tax line before you bill a customer with the Invoice Generator
More money and everyday math tools are collected in the Calculator Tools section.
Sales tax terms explained
| Term | What it means here |
|---|---|
| State sales tax rate | The rate set by the state government; it is 0% in Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon |
| Local sales tax rate | County, city and special-district rates added on top of the state rate; here shown as a population-weighted state average or as a listed city rate |
| Combined rate | State rate plus local rate: the rate actually applied at the register, and the rate this calculator uses |
| Pre-tax price | The shelf or list price before sales tax is added; also called the subtotal |
| Tax-inclusive total | The amount paid including sales tax, as printed at the bottom of a receipt |
| Reverse sales tax | Working backwards from a tax-inclusive total to the price before tax by dividing by 1 plus the rate |
| Use tax | A tax owed on taxable purchases where no sales tax was collected, such as some out-of-state purchases; not calculated by this tool |
Sales tax calculator by state
Every state's combined state + average local rate, with a dedicated purchase-amount table for each.
- Alabama sales tax (9.46%)
- Alaska sales tax (1.82%)
- Arizona sales tax (8.54%)
- Arkansas sales tax (9.48%)
- California sales tax (9.03%)
- Colorado sales tax (7.89%)
- Connecticut sales tax (6.35%)
- Delaware sales tax (0.00%)
- District of Columbia sales tax (6.00%)
- Florida sales tax (6.98%)
- Georgia sales tax (7.56%)
- Hawaii sales tax (4.50%)
- Idaho sales tax (6.03%)
- Illinois sales tax (8.98%)
- Indiana sales tax (7.00%)
- Iowa sales tax (6.94%)
- Kansas sales tax (8.71%)
- Kentucky sales tax (6.00%)
- Louisiana sales tax (10.13%)
- Maine sales tax (5.50%)
- Maryland sales tax (6.00%)
- Massachusetts sales tax (6.25%)
- Michigan sales tax (6.00%)
- Minnesota sales tax (8.14%)
- Mississippi sales tax (7.06%)
- Missouri sales tax (8.45%)
- Montana sales tax (0.00%)
- Nebraska sales tax (6.98%)
- Nevada sales tax (8.24%)
- New Hampshire sales tax (0.00%)
- New Jersey sales tax (6.63%)
- New Mexico sales tax (7.68%)
- New York sales tax (8.54%)
- North Carolina sales tax (7.10%)
- North Dakota sales tax (7.09%)
- Ohio sales tax (7.29%)
- Oklahoma sales tax (9.06%)
- Oregon sales tax (0.00%)
- Pennsylvania sales tax (6.34%)
- Rhode Island sales tax (7.00%)
- South Carolina sales tax (7.49%)
- South Dakota sales tax (6.11%)
- Tennessee sales tax (9.61%)
- Texas sales tax (8.20%)
- Utah sales tax (7.42%)
- Vermont sales tax (6.43%)
- Virginia sales tax (5.77%)
- Washington sales tax (9.57%)
- West Virginia sales tax (6.60%)
- Wisconsin sales tax (5.72%)
- Wyoming sales tax (5.39%)
Frequently Asked Questions
Multiply the pre-tax price by the combined sales tax rate written as a decimal, then add the result to the price. At an 8.25% combined rate, a $100 item carries $8.25 in tax for a total of $108.25. The calculator does this for you once you pick a state and enter the price.
Divide the total by 1 plus the rate as a decimal. A $108.25 total at 8.25% divided by 1.0825 is $100.00, so the tax was $8.25. Choose "Price before tax" mode in the calculator to do this reverse sales tax calculation automatically.
Because the tax was charged on the pre-tax price, not on the total. Taking 8.25% off a $108.25 total gives about $99.32, which is too low. Dividing by 1.0825 gives the correct $100.00 pre-tax price.
It uses combined state plus average local rates for all 50 states and the District of Columbia, based on the Tax Foundation 2026 midyear update, with rates dated July 1, 2026. Selected major cities in California, Florida, New York and Texas have their own city rates. Rates are approximate, so verify with your state revenue department before filing.
City rates are listed for major cities in four states: Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego and Sacramento in California; Miami, Orlando, Tampa and Jacksonville in Florida; New York City, Buffalo, Albany and Rochester in New York; and Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio and Fort Worth in Texas. For every other location the calculator uses the state average combined rate.
Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon have no statewide sales tax and a 0% combined rate in this calculator. Alaska has no state sales tax, but local governments can levy one, so the calculator applies Alaska’s 1.82% average local rate.
In the rate data this calculator uses, Louisiana has the highest combined average rate at 10.13% (5% state plus 5.13% average local), followed by Tennessee at 9.61% and Washington at 9.57%. Individual cities can be higher or lower than their state average.
It depends on the combined rate where you buy. At the Texas state average of 8.20% it is $8.20, for a total of $108.20; in Houston at 8.25% it is $8.25. Each state result in the calculator includes a $100 purchase example at that state’s average rate.
The calculator works in whole cents and rounds the tax to the nearest cent on the amount you enter. In reverse mode it rounds the pre-tax price to the nearest cent and treats the remainder of the total as tax, so the price and tax always add up exactly to the total.
No. It applies one combined rate to the amount you enter. It does not handle use tax, product exemptions such as groceries or clothing, the exact local rate at a specific address, or remote-seller nexus rules, so check those with your state before relying on the figure for compliance.
Yes. It is free with no signup, and every calculation runs in your browser using a rate table bundled with the page, so the amounts you type are not sent to a server.
Reviewed by Raja Jahangir · Last reviewed: October 2026
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How do you calculate sales tax on a purchase?
To calculate sales tax, multiply the pre-tax price by the combined state and local rate, then add the result to the price. At an 8.25% combined rate, a $100 item carries $8.25 in tax and costs $108.25 in total. Combined rates differ by state and often by city, so pick both before calculating.
How do you find the price before sales tax?
To find a price before sales tax, divide the total by 1 plus the rate written as a decimal. A $108.25 receipt at 8.25% divides by 1.0825 to give $100.00 before tax, with $8.25 of tax. Subtracting 8.25% from the total instead gives $99.32, which is wrong.
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