VAT Calculator UK

A VAT calculator saves you from the most common VAT mistake of all: taking 20% off a price that already includes VAT. Our free tool adds VAT to a net price or removes it from a gross price at the UK standard rate of 20%, the reduced rate of 5%, the zero rate or any custom rate you need. It shows the net amount, the VAT and the gross total side by side, updates as you type, and has a bulk mode for working through a column of invoice lines with totals at the bottom. Copy the results or download them as a CSV for your spreadsheet. Everything is worked out in your browser, so your figures stay on your device.

How to use the VAT calculator

1. 1 Choose add or removePick Add VAT when you have a price before VAT and need the total. Pick Remove VAT when the price already includes VAT and you need to split out the VAT.
2. 2 Select the rateUse Standard 20% for most goods and services, Reduced 5% for things such as domestic energy and children's car seats, Zero 0% for zero-rated items, or Custom for any other rate.
3. 3 Type the amountEnter the figure with or without a pound sign or commas. The net, VAT and gross amounts update instantly.
4. 4 Use bulk mode for listsTick bulk mode and paste one amount per line, for example a column from a spreadsheet. Each line is worked out separately and totalled.
5. 5 Copy or downloadCopy the results to paste into an email or invoice, or download a CSV of every line to open in Excel or Google Sheets.

How to add VAT to a price

Adding VAT is the easy direction. Multiply the net price by the VAT rate to get the VAT, then add it on. At the standard rate of 20%, a net price of £250 has £50 of VAT and a gross price of £300. The quick shortcut is to multiply the net price by 1.2. At the reduced rate of 5%, multiply by 1.05 instead, so £250 becomes £262.50.

You add VAT when you are VAT registered and are pricing your own work, writing an invoice, or checking a supplier's quote that shows prices excluding VAT. Trade suppliers, wholesalers and many business-to-business price lists show prices excluding VAT, so always check which figure you are looking at before you compare two quotes.

How to remove VAT from a price (and the mistake to avoid)

To find the price before VAT from a price that includes VAT, divide by 1 plus the rate. At 20%, divide the gross price by 1.2. A receipt for £120 including VAT is £100 net plus £20 VAT. At 5%, divide by 1.05.

The mistake to avoid is simply taking 20% off the gross price. On a £120 receipt that gives £96, which is wrong, because the 20% VAT was calculated on the £100 net price, not on the £120 total. Taking 20% off removes too much. Another way to see it: the VAT in a standard-rated gross price is always one sixth of the total, or 16.67%, and in a 5% price it is one twenty-first, or about 4.76%. This is sometimes called the VAT fraction, and it is what the remove VAT mode uses behind the scenes.

Removing VAT is useful when you are entering receipts into your bookkeeping software, reclaiming VAT on business purchases, or checking that a supplier has charged the right amount of VAT on a total.

UK VAT rates explained

The UK has three VAT rates. Most goods and services are standard-rated at 20%. Some are reduced-rated at 5%, and some are zero-rated at 0%. On top of those, some supplies are exempt from VAT or outside the scope of VAT altogether, which is different from zero-rated even though no VAT is charged on the sale.

• Standard rate, 20%: most goods and services, including most professional services, adult clothing, electronics, alcohol, and many types of food and drink such as crisps, confectionery and hot takeaway food.
• Reduced rate, 5%: examples given by GOV.UK include home energy and children's car seats. Other examples include some mobility aids for older people. The rules for each item are detailed, so check the HMRC guidance for your product.
• Zero rate, 0%: examples include most food, children's clothes and many books and newspapers. Zero-rated sales still count towards your VAT taxable turnover, and you can usually reclaim VAT on the costs that relate to them.
• Exempt and outside the scope: some services, such as most insurance, postage stamps and certain financial and health services, are exempt. No VAT is charged, and you usually cannot reclaim VAT on related costs.

When to use a custom rate

The custom rate is there for anything that is not 20%, 5% or 0%. Common reasons include checking old invoices from periods when the UK used different rates, such as the 17.5% standard rate before January 2011 or the temporary reduced rates for hospitality during the pandemic, working out a foreign VAT rate for an overseas supplier, or modelling a flat rate scheme percentage.

A word of caution on the Flat Rate Scheme: if you use it, you still charge your customers VAT at the normal rate on your invoices. The flat rate percentage for your trade is applied to your VAT-inclusive turnover to work out what you pay HMRC, not added to your customers' bills. You can use the custom rate here to see what that payment comes to, but do not put the flat rate on your invoices.

Bulk mode, rounding and invoice totals

Bulk mode lets you paste a list of amounts, one per line, and see the net, VAT and gross figures for each line together with totals. It accepts pound signs, commas and spaces, so you can paste straight from a spreadsheet column or a bank statement. Lines that are not numbers are flagged and left out of the totals rather than breaking the whole calculation. Negative amounts work too, which is handy for credit notes.

VAT is rounded to the nearest penny on each line, and the totals are the sum of the rounded lines. HMRC allows you to work out VAT either per line or on the invoice total, as long as you are consistent, so a line-by-line total can sometimes differ by a penny or two from a calculation done on the grand total. Neither is wrong. If your accounting software rounds on the invoice total, enter the total as a single amount instead.

Do you need to be VAT registered?

You only charge VAT if your business is VAT registered. Registration becomes compulsory when your VAT taxable turnover goes over the registration threshold in a rolling 12-month period, or if you expect it to go over the threshold in the next 30 days alone. You can also register voluntarily below the threshold, which some businesses do so they can reclaim VAT on their costs. Check the current threshold on GOV.UK before you rely on it, as it can change at a Budget.

If you are not registered, you must not charge VAT or show it on your invoices. Prices to your customers are simply your prices. When you buy from VAT-registered suppliers, the VAT you pay is a cost to your business that you cannot reclaim.

Once registered, you keep digital records and file VAT returns through software that works with Making Tax Digital. This calculator is a quick checking tool, not a replacement for your bookkeeping software or an accountant's advice on complex supplies.

Sources and rates used

The rates built into this calculator are for the 2026/27 tax year and were last checked against GOV.UK in October 2026. The standard rate has been 20% since 4 January 2011. If a rate changes at a future Budget, use the custom rate box until the calculator is updated.

• VAT rates (standard 20%, reduced 5%, zero 0%): https://www.gov.uk/vat-rates
• Rates of VAT on different goods and services: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rates-of-vat-on-different-goods-and-services

Examples you can copy

Add VAT:     net x 1.2   = gross
             £250 x 1.2  = £300  (VAT £50)

Remove VAT:  gross / 1.2 = net
             £120 / 1.2  = £100  (VAT £20)

Wrong way:   £120 - 20%  = £96   (removes £4 too much)

20% rate:  VAT = gross x 1/6   (16.67%)
 5% rate:  VAT = gross x 1/21  (4.76%)

£600 gross at 20%  ->  VAT £100, net £500
£210 gross at 5%   ->  VAT £10,  net £200

Common mistakes to avoid

Frequently asked questions