Sales tax is a consumption tax imposed by governments on the sale of goods and services. In the United States, sales tax is primarily levied at the state and local (county, city) levels, rather than at the federal level. The rate and applicability of sales tax can vary significantly from state to state, and even within different localities of the same state.
How State Sales Tax is Calculated:
The calculation is straightforward. The sales tax amount is determined by multiplying the taxable price of a good or service by the applicable sales tax rate.
Use Cases for this Calculator:
This calculator is useful for consumers to estimate the final cost of purchases, for businesses to accurately charge customers, and for financial planning. It's especially helpful when shopping online or in states with different tax jurisdictions. Remember that many states also have local sales taxes (city, county) that are added on top of the state rate, so always check the combined tax rate for your specific location for the most accurate total cost. This calculator uses the provided rate as the total applicable sales tax rate.
function calculateSalesTax() {
var purchaseAmountInput = document.getElementById("purchaseAmount");
var salesTaxRateInput = document.getElementById("salesTaxRate");
var resultValue = document.getElementById("result-value");
var totalPriceDisplay = document.getElementById("totalPrice");
var purchaseAmount = parseFloat(purchaseAmountInput.value);
var salesTaxRate = parseFloat(salesTaxRateInput.value);
if (isNaN(purchaseAmount) || purchaseAmount < 0) {
alert("Please enter a valid positive purchase amount.");
resultValue.innerText = "$0.00";
totalPriceDisplay.innerText = "$0.00";
return;
}
if (isNaN(salesTaxRate) || salesTaxRate < 0) {
alert("Please enter a valid positive sales tax rate.");
resultValue.innerText = "$0.00";
totalPriceDisplay.innerText = "$0.00";
return;
}
var taxAmount = purchaseAmount * (salesTaxRate / 100);
var totalPrice = purchaseAmount + taxAmount;
resultValue.innerText = "$" + taxAmount.toFixed(2);
totalPriceDisplay.innerText = "$" + totalPrice.toFixed(2);
}