Reverse sales tax calculator
Bookkeepers, resellers and anyone reconciling receipts need the item price hiding inside a tax-inclusive total. Enter the total and the combined rate.
Quick answer
Divide the total by one plus the rate: at 8.25%, $108.25 ÷ 1.0825 = $100.00 pre-tax and $8.25 tax. Subtracting 8.25% from the total instead gives the wrong answer because the tax was charged on the smaller pre-tax figure.
Reverse out sales tax
Questions people ask
Common reconciliation questions.
How do you calculate sales tax backwards from a total?
Divide the tax-inclusive total by one plus the rate expressed as a decimal. At 8.25%, $108.25 ÷ 1.0825 = $100.00 pre-tax, leaving $8.25 of tax.
Why can't I just subtract 8.25% from the total?
Because the tax was charged on the smaller pre-tax figure, not on the total. Subtracting 8.25% of $108.25 removes $8.93 and understates the item price by 68 cents.
Do I need the exact local rate?
Yes — the combined rate includes county, city and special-district increments, so two stores 10 minutes apart can charge different rates. Look up the exact combined rate for the store's location first.
Look up the exact combined rate for a city
Sources & transparency
- No external data used — results are computed in your browser from the numbers you enter
Last reviewed August 2026. Figures are published for reference and can change; verify with the source agency before filing or contracting. How we build and check this data.