VAT calculator, add or remove VAT
Add VAT to a price, or take it out of a total to find the price before VAT, at the UK's 20%, 5% or 0% rates. Free, it shows the working, and the amounts you enter are remembered by your browser only.
- Add VAT or reverse it out of a total
- Standard 20%, reduced 5% and zero rate
- Shows the sum so you can check it
Pick add or remove, type the amount, then choose the rate.
Building work for a VAT-registered contractor under CIS may fall under the domestic reverse charge, where no VAT goes on your invoice at all. See the CIS calculator.
The working
| Net | £4,200.00 |
|---|---|
| VAT: £4,200.00 × 20% | £840.00 |
| Total | £5,040.00 |
UK VAT rates in 2026
There are three UK VAT rates: 20% standard, 5% reduced and 0% zero. Most of what a trade sells is standard rated, at 20%. The rates on gov.uk show the standard rate has been 20% since 4 January 2011, when it went up from 17.5%.
Zero-rated is not the same as exempt. A zero-rated sale is still a VAT sale charged at 0%, and it counts towards your turnover for the registration threshold. Exempt items, which gov.uk gives as postage stamps and financial and property transactions, carry no VAT at all.
How to add and remove VAT
To add VAT, multiply the net price by 1.2 at 20%, or 1.05 at 5%. To remove VAT, divide the total by the same number. The calculator does exactly this and shows each step.
Adding 20%: a roofer prices a re-felt at £4,200 before VAT. VAT is £4,200 × 0.20 = £840, so the customer pays £4,200 × 1.2 = £5,040.
Removing 20%: a merchant receipt says £318 including VAT. The price before VAT is £318 ÷ 1.2 = £265, and the VAT is £318 minus £265 = £53. That £53 is the figure you reclaim, if you are VAT-registered and the receipt is a proper VAT invoice.
Removing 5%: a stair lift supplied and fitted for a 72-year-old costs £3,150 including VAT. £3,150 ÷ 1.05 = £3,000 before VAT, and the VAT is £150.
Why taking 20% off is wrong
20% off £318 is £63.60, which gives £254.40. That is £10.60 too low. VAT is 20% of the net price, not of the total, so you divide by 1.2 instead of subtracting 20%.
The VAT fraction
HMRC's VAT guide gives the VAT fraction as 1/6 at 20% and 1/21 at 5%. Divide any VAT-inclusive total by 6 (or 21) and you have the VAT in it: £318 ÷ 6 = £53.
What is 5% or 0% for trades
Most work on an existing home is 20%. HMRC's buildings and construction notice says work to an existing building is normally standard rated. The lower rates only apply in specific cases, and the paperwork matters, so check the notice before you quote at 5% or 0%.
If you are not sure a job qualifies, read the notice or ask an accountant before you send the quote, not after the customer has paid.
- Energy-saving materials, 0% until 31 March 2027: installing insulation, draught stripping, heating controls, solar panels, heat pumps, and since 1 February 2024 batteries and water source heat pumps, in homes. From 1 April 2027 it goes back to 5% (VAT Notice 708/6). Selling the materials without fitting them is 20%.
- Mobility aids for people aged 60 or over, 5%: supplying and fitting grab rails, ramps, stair lifts, bath lifts, built-in shower seats and walk-in baths in the customer's home. Get a written declaration from the customer, separate from the invoice (VAT Notice 701/7).
- Conversions and empty homes, 5%: converting a non-residential building into a home, changing the number of homes in a building, and renovating a home that has been empty for at least two years (Notice 708).
- New-build homes, 0%: building a new house or flat is zero-rated (Notice 708). Extensions to an existing house are not, unless the extension is a whole new dwelling.
"Reverse VAT" and the construction reverse charge
"Reverse VAT" usually means working backwards from a total to the price before VAT, which is what the remove mode does. The domestic reverse charge is something else: an HMRC rule that changes who pays the VAT over, not how it is calculated.
Since 1 March 2021, when a VAT-registered subcontractor does building work for a VAT-registered contractor and the payment goes through CIS, the subcontractor does not add VAT to the invoice. The contractor accounts for the VAT on their own return instead (HMRC's technical guide). The invoice still states the VAT due, but leaves it out of the total.
It never applies to a homeowner or to a business that has told you in writing it is an end user. Those customers get a normal VAT invoice. If you work under CIS, the CIS calculator shows the deduction and the reverse charge on the same invoice.
The VAT threshold: £90,000
Registration is compulsory (gov.uk: register for VAT) when the past 12 months of taxable turnover pass £90,000, or when you expect to pass £90,000 in the next 30 days on their own. The threshold rose from £85,000 on 1 April 2024 and is still £90,000 in October 2026.
The 12 months are rolling, not your tax year. Check the total every month: if a busy summer takes the last 12 months over £90,000 at the end of August, you have 30 days from the end of August to register.
Two points for trades. Work you invoice under the domestic reverse charge still counts towards your turnover, as do zero-rated sales. And once you are registered, you can ask HMRC to cancel if turnover falls below £88,000.
Pennies, rounding and what the tool leaves out
The calculator rounds to the nearest penny. On an invoice, HMRC's VAT guide (section 17.5) lets you round the total VAT down to a whole penny, and if you work VAT out line by line you must use one rounding method consistently. On a big invoice with many lines, your accounting software may land a penny or two away from this tool. That is normal.
It works out the VAT on an amount. It does not tell you which rate applies to a job, whether you need to register, or what you owe on your return. Use it to check a sum, and take tax advice from an accountant.
Common questions
How do I calculate VAT backwards?
Divide the total by 1.2 for 20% VAT, or by 1.05 for 5%. The answer is the price before VAT, and the difference is the VAT. £540 including VAT is £450 before VAT plus £90 VAT.
What is the VAT on £100?
If £100 is the price before VAT, the VAT at 20% is £20 and the total is £120. If £100 already includes VAT, the VAT in it is £16.67 and the price before VAT is £83.33.
What is the VAT rate in the UK in 2026?
20% standard, 5% reduced and 0% zero rate, as listed on gov.uk. Most goods and services, including most building and repair work, are at 20%.
What is the VAT threshold for 2026/27?
£90,000 of taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months, or £90,000 expected in the next 30 days on its own. It has been £90,000 since 1 April 2024.
Is labour VAT-able for tradesmen?
Yes, if you are VAT-registered. Labour and materials on a job are normally charged at the same rate, usually 20%. The exceptions are the specific 0% and 5% cases above, such as fitting insulation or heat pumps in a home.
Do I charge VAT to a homeowner if I am VAT-registered?
Yes. The domestic reverse charge only applies between VAT-registered businesses under CIS, and a homeowner is neither. They get a normal VAT invoice at the right rate.
Is reverse VAT the same as the reverse charge?
No. Reverse VAT is the sum for taking VAT out of a total. The reverse charge is an HMRC rule for construction and a few other sectors where the customer, not the supplier, pays the VAT to HMRC.
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