VAT Calculator
Add or remove VAT at the rate you enter, see the VAT fraction, and work out whether you are payable or reclaimable.
Result
Enter amount to see the result.
https://calcgallery.com/consumption-tax/vat-calculator/
Results are arithmetic from the amounts and rates you enter. The site publishes no tax rate, threshold or tipping convention, and rates vary by jurisdiction and change. Check the rate on your receipt, invoice or tax authority guidance, and confirm anything that matters with a qualified adviser. Read the full disclaimer
How to use the VAT Calculator
- Choose whether you are removing VAT from a gross price or adding it to a net one.
- Enter the amount and your VAT rate.
- Read the net, the VAT and the gross. The three always add up.
- For a business period, switch to the position mode and enter your output and input VAT.
How it is calculated
add: gross = net × (1 + rate) vat = gross − netremove: net = gross ÷ (1 + rate) vat = gross − netRemoving VAT is a division, not a subtraction of the rate. Taking 20% off a 120 gross gives 96.00; dividing gives 100.00. Four pounds in a hundred and twenty, and the error grows with the rate.
The VAT is always computed as the difference between gross and net rather than as a second multiplication, so the three figures on screen always reconcile exactly.
The VAT fraction
The VAT inside a VAT-inclusive price is:
fraction = rate ÷ (1 + rate)At 20% that is exactly one sixth — 16.67% of the gross. At 5% it is 4.76%. It is always smaller than the rate, which surprises people, and it is the quickest way to check a receipt: at the UK standard rate, divide the gross by six.
Your VAT position
The other half of the question people bring here. A VAT-registered business charges VAT on what it sells and pays VAT on what it buys:
position = output VAT − input VATPositive is payable to the tax authority. Negative is reclaimable. The page reports the sign rather than an absolute number, because a business with more input than output VAT is in a materially different situation from one with the reverse, and an unsigned figure hides which.
What this does not cover. Partial exemption, the flat rate scheme, the cash accounting scheme, reverse charges, margin schemes and the rules for imports and exports are all real parts of VAT and none of them is modelled here. This is the arithmetic, not the scheme.
Practical tips
Divide by six at 20%. It is the fastest mental check on a VAT-inclusive price.
A reduced-rate item needs its own calculation. One rate applied to a mixed bill gives a figure that is right for nothing on it.
Keep net and gross straight in your records. Most accounting errors here come from entering a gross figure where a net one was wanted, not from the arithmetic.
Registration thresholds and schemes change the picture. Whether you should be charging VAT at all is a different question from what the VAT on a price is.
With your numbers
- At 20%, VAT is 16.6667% of the gross, not 20% of it
- $120.00 gross less $20.00 VAT
- $120.00 ÷ 1.2 = $100.00 net
Quick reference
The rate is the one you entered. VAT treatment of a particular supply — reduced rates, zero rating, exemption — is not modelled.
| Example | Net, excluding VAT |
|---|---|
| Remove 20% from 120 | €100.00 |
| Remove 20% from 599.99 | €499.99 |
| Remove 5% from 105 | €100.00 |
| Add 20% to 100 | €100.00 |
| Add 19% to 49.99 | $49.99 |
| Add 23% to 250 | $250.00 |
| Position: 8,000 out, 5,500 in | |
| Position: 5,500 out, 8,000 in |
Common questions about the VAT Calculator
- What is the VAT fraction?
- The share of a VAT-inclusive price that is VAT, which is the rate divided by one plus the rate. At the UK standard rate of 20% it is exactly one sixth, or 16.67%. HMRC Notice 700 uses the term. It is always smaller than the rate, because the rate is charged on the net price and the fraction is measured against the larger gross.
- How is VAT different from sales tax?
- In how it is collected, not in what the consumer pays. A retail sales tax is charged once, at the final sale. VAT is charged at every stage of production, with each business reclaiming the VAT it paid on its inputs, so only the value added at each stage is taxed. The consumer pays the same headline rate either way, which is why the arithmetic here is shared with the sales tax pages.
- Why does this page default to removing VAT?
- Because VAT jurisdictions quote consumer prices inclusive. A shelf price in the UK or the EU already contains the VAT, so someone arriving here usually has a gross figure and wants the net. US sales tax works the other way round, which is why the sales tax page defaults to adding.
- What does my VAT position mean?
- Output VAT is what you charged your customers; input VAT is what you paid your suppliers. The difference is your position: positive means you owe the balance to the tax authority, negative means you can reclaim it. The page reports the sign rather than an absolute figure, because which way it goes is the answer.
- Does this handle reduced or zero rates?
- It applies whatever single rate you enter. Which rate applies to a particular supply — standard, reduced, zero-rated or exempt — is a question of VAT law and varies by jurisdiction and by product. If a bill mixes rates, work out each portion separately.