Free sales tax calculator for all 50 US states — add tax to a price or reverse-calculate the pre-tax amount from a total. Look up sales tax by state and get the exact total with tax instantly.
Add tax or reverse-calculate pre-tax price
This sales tax calculator covers all 50 US states plus Washington D.C. with combined state and average local rates — so you see the real total with tax, not just the state baseline. Choose "Add Tax" to calculate how much tax is added to a purchase price, or switch to "Reverse" mode to find the pre-tax price from a receipt total that already includes tax. That reverse calculation is especially useful for small business owners reconciling invoices or anyone doing expense reports and needing to separate the tax portion from the total charged. Select your state from the dropdown to auto-fill the current blended rate, or type any custom rate for a specific city or county.
Sales tax rates vary dramatically across the US. Louisiana has the highest combined rate at 9.56%, followed by Tennessee at 9.55% and Arkansas at 9.47% — these states rely heavily on sales tax because they have lower property or income taxes. On the other end, five states charge zero sales tax: Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, Oregon, and Alaska (though Alaska allows local taxes up to roughly 7%). California's base state rate is 7.25% but climbs to 10%+ in cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco once local district taxes are added. Always verify your exact city or county rate with your local tax authority — especially for big-ticket purchases like cars, appliances, or electronics where a half-percentage-point difference means real money.
Louisiana (9.56%), Tennessee (9.55%), Arkansas (9.47%), Alabama (9.22%), and Oklahoma (8.95%) carry the highest combined state + local rates in the US. On a $1,000 purchase in Louisiana, you pay $95.60 in sales tax — nearly $1,100 total.
Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, Oregon, and Alaska have no state-level sales tax. Alaska allows local municipalities to impose their own sales taxes — some cities charge up to 7.5%. Shop strategically if you live near a state line.
To find the pre-tax price from a receipt total: Pre-Tax = Total ÷ (1 + Rate%). Example: a $108.50 charge at an 8.5% tax rate means $108.50 ÷ 1.085 = $100.00 pre-tax. The tax collected was exactly $8.50.
Rates shown are combined state + average local rates based on Tax Foundation 2025 data. Your actual rate may differ by city or county. New York City, for example, adds its own 4.5% on top of New York State's 4% base, bringing the total to 8.875%.