VAT Calculator
Add or remove VAT from prices
VAT Calculator tool
VAT Results
VAT Calculator: key facts
- What it does
- Add or remove VAT from prices
- Category
- Financial Calculators
- Cost
- Free, with no account, sign-up, or install.
- Your data
- Runs entirely in your browser — the files and text you enter are never uploaded to a server.
- Last reviewed
- . Report an incorrect result.
What this tool is for
Value-added tax is baked into prices across much of the world, which means you sometimes need to add it and sometimes need to pull it back out. This VAT Calculator does both: switch to "Add VAT" to find the gross price from a net one, or "Remove VAT" to recover the net price hidden inside a VAT-inclusive total.
Businesses use the reverse calculation constantly — recovering the net figure from a receipt for bookkeeping, or confirming the VAT element of a supplier invoice. Sellers use the forward mode to quote tax-inclusive prices. A quantity field scales either calculation across multiple units.
VAT Inclusive vs. VAT Exclusive Prices
A price is VAT inclusive — also called gross — when the tax is already built into the figure you see, like a shop shelf price. To pull out the net price and the VAT hidden inside it, use the "Remove VAT" mode. A price is VAT exclusive — also called net — when tax has not been added yet, as on many trade quotes and B2B listings. To find the gross, VAT-inclusive total a customer actually pays, use the "Add VAT" mode. In short: start from an inclusive price and Remove VAT, or start from an exclusive price and Add VAT.
How to use the VAT Calculator
- Choose your mode: "Add VAT" to add tax to a net price, or "Remove VAT" to extract it from an inclusive price.
- Enter the price — net in Add mode, gross in Remove mode.
- Enter the quantity and the VAT rate as a percentage.
- Read the price excluding VAT, the VAT amount, the price including VAT, and the total across all units.
Adding VAT, and stripping it back out
The two modes are not the same sum run backwards by eye, which is where most manual VAT errors come from. Adding VAT multiplies the net price by the rate and appends it. Removing VAT divides the gross price by one plus the rate — it does not subtract the rate as a percentage of the gross.
That distinction is worth being precise about. Taking 20% off a £120 gross price gives £96, which is wrong; dividing by 1.2 gives the correct £100 net. The percentage was charged on the smaller number, so reversing it requires division. The reverse mode exists precisely so this does not have to be done in your head.
Quantity is applied after the per-unit figures are settled, so the net, VAT, and gross columns on a multi-item line always reconcile.
- Adding 20% to a net price of 100 gives 20.00 of VAT and a gross price of 120.00.
- Removing 20% from a gross price of 100 gives a net of 83.33 and VAT of 16.67 — not 80 and 20.
- A gross 599.99 at a 20% rate breaks down as 499.99 net plus 100.00 VAT.
What the VAT Calculator gets right
- It works in both directions — adding VAT to a net price and reverse-calculating the net price from a VAT-inclusive total — which most simple tax tools cannot do.
- The reverse mode correctly divides by (1 + rate) rather than naively subtracting the percentage, so the recovered net figure is accurate.
- A quantity field scales either calculation, and inputs are validated against impossible rates.
- It runs locally with no sign-up, suitable for quick bookkeeping checks.
Other Ways to Say "Remove VAT"
Removing VAT goes by plenty of names: deducting VAT, subtracting VAT, extracting VAT, taking VAT off a price, or working out the "minus VAT" or "ex VAT" figure. They all describe the same calculation — recovering the net price from a VAT-inclusive total — which is exactly what this tool's "Remove VAT" mode does. Whichever phrase you searched for, switch to Remove VAT and enter the gross price.
Rates, categories, and who can reclaim
VAT rates are set nationally and revised from time to time, so the rate field is left free rather than hard-coded to a country. Standard rates across Europe currently run from the mid-teens to the mid-twenties in percentage terms, and most countries also operate reduced rates for categories such as food, books, children's clothing, energy, and public transport, plus zero-rated and exempt categories that are not the same thing in law.
Reclaiming is a separate question from charging. A VAT-registered business generally recovers the VAT it pays on business purchases and remits the difference, which is why invoices show net, VAT, and gross separately — the middle line is the one that matters for a return. A consumer bears the whole gross figure. This calculator does the arithmetic on a rate you supply; whether that rate is the right one for the goods, the country, and the date is a question for the relevant tax authority or an accountant.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I remove VAT from a price?
You divide rather than subtract. To strip 20% VAT from a £120 inclusive price, divide by 1.20 to get £100 net, making the VAT £20. Subtracting 20% of £120 would be wrong — this calculator's "Remove VAT" mode handles it correctly.
What is the difference between adding and removing VAT?
Adding VAT starts from a net (tax-free) price and calculates the gross price a customer pays. Removing VAT starts from a gross (tax-inclusive) price and works back to the net price and the tax within it. Pick the mode that matches the figure you already have.
Is VAT the same everywhere?
No — VAT rates differ by country and sometimes by product category, and some regions use sales tax instead. Enter the rate that applies to your situation; the calculator is rate-agnostic and works for any percentage you provide.
