What is the sales tax rate in San Francisco?

San Francisco's combined sales tax rate is currently 8.625%. That stacks the 7.25% California statewide base rate with countywide and district taxes specific to San Francisco. The tool uses this as the default but lets you adjust it if rates change.

Are groceries taxed in San Francisco?

Most unprepared food sold for home consumption is exempt from California sales tax, as are prescription medicines. Prepared or hot food, dietary supplements, and most other goods are taxable. Select the exempt option to zero out the tax for qualifying items.

How is the tax amount calculated?

Sales tax equals the pre-tax amount multiplied by the rate as a decimal. For an 8.625% rate, that is amount times 0.08625. The result is added to the price to give your total at the register.

Why does my receipt sometimes differ by a cent?

Retailers round each taxable line or the total to the nearest cent, and rounding rules vary slightly. This tool rounds the final tax to two decimals, so a single-cent difference from a store receipt is normal and expected.

Does this cover other Bay Area cities?

The default is San Francisco's 8.625% rate. Neighboring cities and counties have different district taxes, so if you are shopping elsewhere in the Bay Area, override the rate field with that locality's published combined rate.

San Francisco Combined Sales Tax Calculator

A San Francisco receipt adds more than the headline California state rate because city and district taxes stack on top. This calculator applies the current combined 8.625% rate and handles California’s exemptions so you know the exact total before you pay.

How it works

Sales tax is the pre-tax amount times the rate, with exempt categories taxed at zero:

rate (decimal) = combined rate% / 100
tax   = taxable ? amount × rate : 0
total = amount + tax

California exempts most unprepared groceries and prescription drugs, so selecting an exempt item type sets the tax to zero while still showing the total. Prepared food and general merchandise remain taxable at the full combined rate.

Example and tips

A $100 taxable purchase at 8.625% incurs $8.63 in tax for a $108.63 total. The same $100 spent on unprepared groceries is exempt, so you pay exactly $100. If you shop outside San Francisco, replace the rate with the destination’s published combined rate, since district taxes vary block by block across the Bay Area.