VAT Calculator

About this vat calculator

Tax-inclusive vs tax-exclusive pricing trips up almost every small business owner at some point. The math is simple but easy to confuse: adding tax means multiplying by (1 + rate); removing tax means dividing by (1 + rate), not subtracting the percentage from the gross.

A common mistake is to "remove 15% VAT" by subtracting 15% from the gross figure. That gives the wrong answer because the 15% was calculated on the smaller net amount, not on the gross. The calculator does the right math automatically so you do not have to think about which direction to apply the percentage.

Useful for cross-checking supplier invoices, generating customer quotes, calculating refunds, and reconciling expense claims. Works for any tax percentage — VAT, GST, sales tax, service tax — the rate is just a number.

How to use it

1. Pick the mode — add tax to a net price, or remove tax from a gross price.
2. Enter the amount.
3. Enter the tax rate.
4. Read the three numbers: net (pre-tax), tax amount, gross (tax-inclusive).

Tips & notes

• Always invoice clients with the tax line shown separately. It avoids disputes about whether the price was inclusive or exclusive.
• For mental math, remember: adding 20% then "removing 20%" does NOT get you back to the original number. To remove 20% from a gross, divide by 1.2.
• When comparing supplier quotes, normalise to either gross or net across all of them. Mixing the two leads to bad decisions.

Frequently asked questions