Why the rate on your receipt is never 7.25%
California sets a statewide sales tax of 7.25%, the highest base rate in the country. Almost nobody actually pays it. Counties and cities add district taxes on top, so the real figure at the till ranges from 7.25% in a handful of unincorporated areas to over 10.75% in parts of Los Angeles County.
This calculator applies whatever rate you enter. The section below tells you which rate to enter.
The formula
Worked example: $100 at the 7.25% base rate
- Tax: $7.25
- Total: $107.25
Now the same $100 across real locations:
| Location | Rate | Tax on $100 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| State base only | 7.25% | $7.25 | $107.25 |
| San Diego | 7.75% | $7.75 | $107.75 |
| Los Angeles city | 9.50% | $9.50 | $109.50 |
| Santa Monica | 10.25% | $10.25 | $110.25 |
| Highest districts | 10.75% | $10.75 | $110.75 |
On a $2,000 purchase the difference between the base rate and a high district is $70. On a car it runs into hundreds.
Which rate applies to you
For goods collected in a shop, the rate is the shop's location. For anything delivered, it is the delivery address — which is why online orders to the same seller are taxed differently depending on where they ship.
Vehicles are the exception that catches people out: the rate follows where the vehicle is registered, not where the dealer sits. Buying across a county line to save tax does not work.
What is not taxed
California exempts most unprepared food, prescription medicine, and — unusually — it taxes hot prepared food but not cold. A rotisserie chicken is taxable, the same chicken cold from the refrigerator case is not.
Sales tax is also not charged on the tip, on most services, or on delivery stated separately at actual cost.
What this calculator leaves out
Use tax on out-of-state purchases brought into California, which is technically owed at the same rate. Also district rate changes, which take effect quarterly, so verify the current figure for large purchases.
Working backwards from a total
Given a receipt total and no breakdown, divide rather than subtract. At 9.5%, a $109.50 total came from a $100 item: 109.50 ÷ 1.095 = 100. Taking 9.5% off the total instead gives $99.10, which is wrong by 90 cents and wrong by more on larger amounts.
This matters for expense claims and for any business reclaiming the tax paid, where the pre-tax figure is the one that goes on the form.
The business side of the same rate
Sellers collect the tax and remit it; it never belongs to the business. Recording gross takings as revenue overstates income and understates the liability sitting in the bank account.
On $50,000 of monthly sales at 9.5%, roughly $4,340 of what arrived is not yours. Filing frequency depends on volume — monthly, quarterly or annually — and California charges interest plus penalties on late remittance regardless of whether the money was spent by mistake.
Related calculators
- Sales tax calculator — the same maths for any rate or state
- California income tax calculator — the other California levy
- VAT calculator — the European equivalent, which works differently