California charges a statewide base sales tax rate of 7.25% as of 2025 — the highest base rate of any US state. Use this calculator to add tax to a pre-tax price or strip tax out of a total that already includes it. The rate field defaults to 7.25% but you can override it with your local combined rate, since counties and cities add district taxes that can push the total as high as 10.75%. Everything runs in your browser.
How it works
The calculator works in two modes:
- Add tax — multiply the pre-tax price by the rate, then add it back:
tax = price × (rate ÷ 100)andtotal = price + tax. - Remove tax — the amount you enter is treated as the tax-inclusive total, and the pre-tax price is recovered with
net = total ÷ (1 + rate ÷ 100). The tax is thentotal − net.
The default rate is California’s 7.25% state base. To match what a customer pays at checkout, replace it with your city or county’s combined rate.
Example
A $100 item at the 7.25% base rate:
| Mode | Input | Formula | Tax | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Add tax | $100.00 | 100 × 0.0725 | $7.25 | Total $107.25 |
| Remove tax | $107.25 | 107.25 ÷ 1.0725 | $7.25 | Pre-tax $100.00 |
Important: California’s statewide base rate is 7.25%. Local and district taxes can raise the combined rate to as high as 10.75% depending on the city or county.
All calculations run entirely in your browser — no amounts or personal data are transmitted.