VAT Calculator
Add VAT to a net price or extract VAT from a gross amount. Choose from common rates or enter any custom percentage.
Price ex-VAT
$1,000.00
VAT (20%)
$200.00
Price incl. VAT
$1,200.00
Enter any currency — the calculator uses the same unit as your input.
How to Use the VAT Calculator
1. Choose Your Direction. Select "Add VAT" when you have a net price and need to find the final amount a customer pays, or "Remove VAT (ex-VAT)" when you have a VAT-inclusive total and need to work out the net price and the VAT portion separately.
2. Enter the Price. In Add VAT mode, enter the price excluding VAT. In Remove VAT mode, enter the total price including VAT — the calculator handles the division for you.
3. Select a VAT Rate. Choose one of the common presets — 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, or 25% — to match your country's standard rate, or select Custom to enter a reduced rate or different country's rate.
4. Read Your Results. The calculator shows the Price ex-VAT, VAT amount, and Price incl. VAT.
Tomasz, a freelance web developer based outside the EU, landed a new client: a VAT-registered marketing agency in Germany. He used the calculator out of habit, entering his €4,000 project fee and Germany's 19% rate, and got a VAT-inclusive total of €4,760 to put on his invoice. Before sending it, he mentioned the number to a fellow freelancer, who asked whether he'd checked if the reverse charge applied to the deal. What surprised Tomasz was learning that for cross-border B2B services like his, the standard rule is the opposite of what he'd assumed — his client, not Tomasz, was supposed to account for the German VAT on their own return, meaning Tomasz should have invoiced the plain €4,000 with no VAT added at all, along with a note referencing the reverse charge. He corrected the invoice, added the required reverse-charge reference, and confirmed his client's VAT number before sending the revised version.
Key Terms
Add VAT (Direction)
Calculates the VAT-inclusive total by applying a rate on top of a known net price.
Remove VAT / ex-VAT (Direction)
Works backward from a known VAT-inclusive total to isolate net price and VAT amount by dividing by (1 + rate).
VAT Rate
The percentage applied to a sale, varying by country and type of good or service.
Net Price (Price ex-VAT)
The value of a sale before VAT is added — the amount that counts as your actual revenue.
Gross Price (Price incl. VAT)
The final amount a customer actually pays, combining net price and VAT charged on top.
Output VAT & Input VAT
Output VAT is collected from customers; Input VAT is paid on business purchases. Businesses remit the net difference.
When You Shouldn't Add VAT At All: The Reverse Charge for Cross-Border Services
Toggle this calculator to "Add VAT" for a business-to-business sale that crosses an international border, and you might be doing something that shouldn't happen at all. For a large share of cross-border B2B service sales, particularly within and into the EU, the standard rule isn't to add VAT — it's to charge none, and let the buyer handle it instead.
How the Reverse Charge Actually Works
Under this mechanism, a seller invoices a VAT-registered business customer in another country at the net price with no VAT added, and includes a note on the invoice stating the reverse charge applies. The buyer self-assesses VAT at their own country's rate.
Why This Matters Specifically for Freelancers and Digital Sellers
Consulting, design, software development, and other professional services sold to a VAT-registered business in a different country are exactly the kind of transaction this mechanism was built for.
What to Check Before You Invoice
The reverse charge generally applies when the sale is a service (not a physical good), your customer is a registered business with a valid VAT number, and the customer is in a different country than you are.