Sales Tax Calculator

What This Calculator Covers

This tool calculates US sales tax using the statewide base rate for any of the 50 states and Washington D.C. Select your state from the dropdown and enter a price — the calculator shows the exact tax amount and your total cost in seconds.

It has two modes. Add Tax to Price takes a pre-tax price and adds the sales tax — useful when a retailer quotes prices before tax, or when you are shopping online and want to know the true cost. Remove Tax from Total works in reverse: you enter a total that already includes tax (like an amount on a receipt) and the calculator backs out the pre-tax price and the exact tax paid. This is useful for accounting, budgeting, or when you need to separate tax from a total for expense reporting.

The rates shown are the official state base rates as of 2025. Most states also allow counties and cities to levy additional local taxes on top of the state rate — your actual checkout total may be higher. See the full state rates reference table below, and consult your state's revenue department for combined local rates.

How to Calculate Sales Tax

The formula for adding sales tax to a price is straightforward:

Example: You are buying a $299 laptop in Texas, which has a 6.25% state sales tax rate.

• Tax amount = $299 × 0.0625 = $18.69
• Total = $299 + $18.69 = $317.69

To reverse the calculation and find the pre-tax price from a tax-inclusive total, divide the total by (1 + rate):

Example: You paid $317.69 in Texas and want to know what portion was tax.

• Pre-tax price = $317.69 ÷ 1.0625 = $299.00
• Tax paid = $317.69 − $299.00 = $18.69

For multiple items, multiply the unit price by quantity to get a subtotal, then apply the tax rate to the subtotal — not to each item individually — since tax is assessed on the total sale in most jurisdictions.

Understanding State vs. Total Sales Tax Rates

The rate shown in this calculator is the statewide base rate — what the state itself levies. In most states, the actual rate you pay at checkout is higher, because counties and cities are permitted to add their own taxes on top. These local additions range from a fraction of a percent to several percentage points.

Consider these examples of the gap between state base rate and typical combined rate:

Combined rates are approximate averages and vary by city and county. Always confirm with your state revenue department for the exact rate at a specific location.

For most everyday purchases, the state base rate gives you a reliable floor — your actual tax will be at least this amount. For large purchases like vehicles or appliances, the difference between the base rate and the combined rate can add up to hundreds of dollars, making it worth looking up the exact local rate for your ZIP code before you buy.

States with No Sales Tax

Five states impose no statewide sales tax: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon. Residents in these states enjoy a significant advantage for large purchases — a $40,000 vehicle that costs $2,800 in California sales tax (7%) costs nothing in tax in Oregon.

However, the situation is more nuanced than it first appears:

• Alaska: No state sales tax, but Alaskan boroughs and municipalities are free to set their own. About 100 jurisdictions in Alaska impose local sales taxes, averaging around 1.76%. Juneau charges 5%, and some smaller communities charge up to 7%.
• Delaware: No general sales tax, but the state charges a 3.75% gross receipts tax on most businesses. Delaware also charges a 3% rental tax on hotel accommodations and vehicle rentals. The absence of a retail sales tax makes Delaware a popular shopping destination for residents of neighboring Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
• Montana: No sales tax at any level. The state makes up revenue through income taxes, property taxes, and taxes on specific industries like lodging and tobacco.
• New Hampshire: No sales tax. The state funds government primarily through property taxes and targeted excise taxes on meals, rooms, and motor vehicle rentals (9%), but general retail is untaxed.
• Oregon: No sales tax, although some municipalities have discussed local options. The state has one of the higher income tax rates in the nation, partially offsetting the consumer advantage.

If you live near the border of a no-tax state, purchasing large items there can generate meaningful savings — but remember that your home state may expect you to pay use tax on those purchases (see below).

Common Sales Tax Exemptions: Groceries, Clothing, and More

Sales tax laws are riddled with exemptions that vary widely by state. Understanding them can help you correctly estimate your actual tax burden.

Groceries and food: The most significant and complex exemption. Roughly 30 states exempt basic groceries from sales tax entirely. About 13 states tax food at the full rate. Six states apply a reduced grocery rate. But defining "grocery" is contentious — prepared meals, candy, soft drinks, dietary supplements, and bottled water are treated differently from basic staples in many states. Illinois taxes food at just 1% versus its general 6.25% rate, but candy and soft drinks are taxed at the full rate. In Tennessee, grocery items are taxed at 4% rather than the full 7%.

Prescription drugs: Almost universally exempt. All 45 states with a general sales tax exempt prescription medications. Over-the-counter drugs are taxed in most states, though several exempt them as well.

Clothing: New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Minnesota exempt most clothing from sales tax. In New York, clothing items under $110 are exempt. Vermont, Rhode Island, and Connecticut also have partial clothing exemptions. Most other states tax clothing at the standard rate.

Medical devices and equipment: Most states exempt medical devices prescribed by a doctor — wheelchairs, hearing aids, CPAP machines, and similar items. The line between taxable personal care items and exempt medical equipment can be fuzzy and subject to audit.

Agricultural inputs: Farm equipment, seeds, fertilizer, and livestock feed are exempt in most agricultural states, recognizing that farming is a business input rather than final consumption.

This calculator applies the base state rate to all purchases without exemptions. For categories where you believe an exemption applies, verify with your state's department of revenue — the rules are specific and enforcement varies.

Sales Tax on Online Purchases After South Dakota v. Wayfair

Before 2018, online shopping offered a near-certain path to avoiding sales tax: if a retailer had no physical presence — no store, warehouse, or employee — in your state, that state could not require the retailer to collect tax from you. This "physical presence" standard came from a 1992 Supreme Court case (Quill Corp. v. North Dakota) and remained the law for 26 years, costing states an estimated $8–33 billion in uncollected taxes annually.

The 2018 Supreme Court ruling in South Dakota v. Wayfair changed everything. The Court overturned Quill and held that states can require out-of-state sellers to collect and remit sales tax based on economic nexus — a seller's volume of activity in a state — rather than physical presence alone. The decision was driven in part by the enormous shift of commerce from physical stores to online platforms.

Today, all 45 states with a general sales tax have enacted economic nexus laws. The thresholds are typically $100,000 in annual sales into a state or 200 separate transactions. Any seller exceeding those thresholds must collect and remit that state's sales tax — regardless of whether they have a single employee or square foot of space there.

In practical terms: when you buy from Amazon, Walmart.com, Target, Best Buy online, Etsy, or virtually any large marketplace or retailer today, you will see sales tax automatically applied at checkout based on your shipping address. The days of routinely tax-free online shopping are largely over for purchases from established retailers.

Where exemptions remain: very small sellers — independent artists on Etsy, small shops on Shopify — may fall below the economic nexus threshold in your state and choose not to collect tax. In that case, you technically owe use tax to your state (see below).

Use Tax: What You Technically Owe

Every state with a sales tax also has a companion use tax — a tax of the same rate as sales tax, levied on the use or storage of goods in the state when sales tax was not collected at the time of purchase. Use tax exists to prevent consumers from avoiding their state's tax by buying across state lines or online from sellers below economic nexus thresholds.

Common use tax scenarios:

• Ordering furniture online from a small retailer who doesn't charge your state's sales tax
• Buying a car in a no-tax state and registering it in your home state
• Purchasing business equipment out of state and shipping it to your location
• Purchasing items at a trade show or conference in another state

In practice, use tax on consumer purchases is rarely paid and even more rarely enforced — states lack the infrastructure to track individual consumer purchases. However, businesses are frequently audited for use tax compliance and face significant liability for years of uncollected tax plus interest and penalties. Business owners making large out-of-state purchases should consult a tax professional.

All 50 State Sales Tax Rates — 2025 Reference

Base state rates only. Local county and city taxes may increase the total rate significantly. Rates current as of 2025.

How Businesses Handle Sales Tax Collection

If you run a business that sells taxable goods or services, sales tax compliance involves several obligations beyond simply charging customers the right rate.

Sales tax permit: Before you can collect sales tax, you must register with each state where you have nexus (physical or economic) and obtain a sales tax permit. Operating without one while collecting tax — or failing to collect when required — both carry penalties.

Nexus determination: You have nexus in your home state. You also have nexus in any state where you have employees, warehouses, significant inventory, or where you exceed the economic nexus threshold ($100,000 in sales or 200 transactions annually in most states). Multi-state sellers need to track nexus across all states they ship to.

Charging the correct rate: For most online sales, the rate depends on the delivery address — called destination-based sourcing. This is the norm in most states. A few states use origin-based sourcing, where the rate is based on your business location. Arizona, California (partially), Illinois, Missouri, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, and Virginia use origin-based rules for intrastate sales.

Filing and remitting: Sales tax must be remitted to each state on a regular schedule — monthly, quarterly, or annually depending on your sales volume in that state. Late filing or underpayment generates interest and penalties. Most states now accept online filing through their revenue department portals.

Tax software: Businesses with significant e-commerce sales typically use automated sales tax software (Avalara, TaxJar, or Vertex) that integrates with their shopping cart or accounting software, automatically applies the correct rate by ZIP code, and handles filing. Manual compliance across dozens of states is error-prone and time-consuming.

Frequently Asked Questions