Freelancers & small businesses

VAT calculator: add or remove 20% VAT

Q: Do I have to charge VAT?

Only if you are VAT-registered. You must register once your VAT-taxable turnover goes over £90,000 in any rolling 12-month period, and you can register voluntarily below that. Until you are registered you do not add VAT to your prices.

Put in a figure and choose whether it already includes VAT. The calculator splits it into the net amount, the VAT and the gross to the penny — and it gets the reverse sum right, because taking VAT off a price is a division, not simply knocking 20% off.

Work out the VAT

Everything runs entirely in your browser — nothing is sent anywhere.

What do you want to do?

Net amount (before VAT) the VAT-exclusive figure

VAT rate

UK VAT rates in 2026

There are three VAT rates. Most goods and services are charged at the standard rate; the reduced and zero rates cover specific things set by HMRC.

Rate	%	Typical examples
Standard	20%	Most goods and services
Reduced	5%	Home energy, children's car seats
Zero	0%	Most food, children's clothes, books

Some things are exempt from VAT (such as insurance and most financial services) or fall outside the scope of VAT entirely — that's different from zero-rated, and you don't charge VAT on them at all.

Adding VAT vs removing VAT

Adding VAT to a net price is easy: multiply by the rate and add it on. £100 net plus 20% is £20 VAT, so £120 gross.

Removing VAT from a gross (VAT-inclusive) price is where people slip up. You can't just take 20% off — that under-states the net. To strip 20% VAT out of a gross figure you divide by 1.2:

The reverse-VAT trap

£120 gross ÷ 1.2 = £100 net, so the VAT is £20. Doing £120 − 20% gives £96, which is wrong by £4. For the reduced rate you divide by 1.05 instead.

More free tools

Do I need to register for VAT? →The £90,000 rolling-12-month threshold, and what happens when you cross it. VAT Flat Rate Scheme →See if the flat rate beats the standard scheme — and whether the 16.5% rate catches you. Freelance day rate →Work out what to charge — and whether to quote your rate plus VAT. Side hustle tax →Is your extra income taxable, or under the £1,000 trading allowance? Full tax bill calculator →Your whole Self Assessment bill for 2026/27.

Common questions

How do I add 20% VAT to a price?

Multiply the net (VAT-exclusive) price by 0.20 to get the VAT, then add it on. So £100 × 0.20 = £20 VAT, giving a gross price of £120. A quick shortcut is to multiply the net figure by 1.2.

How do I remove VAT from a gross price?

Divide the gross (VAT-inclusive) price by 1.2 for standard-rate VAT. £120 ÷ 1.2 = £100 net, so the VAT is £20. Don't just take 20% off the gross figure — that gives £96, which is wrong. For the 5% reduced rate you divide by 1.05 instead.

What are the UK VAT rates?

There are three: the standard rate of 20% on most goods and services, a reduced rate of 5% on things like domestic energy and children's car seats, and a zero rate of 0% on most food, children's clothes and books. Some items, such as insurance and many financial services, are exempt from VAT altogether.

Do I have to charge VAT?

Only if you're VAT-registered. You must register once your VAT-taxable turnover goes over £90,000 in any rolling 12-month period, and you can register voluntarily below that. Until you're registered you don't add VAT to your prices. Our VAT registration checker works out where you stand.

Is the VAT amount the same as 20% of the gross price?

No. On a VAT-inclusive price the VAT is one sixth of the gross (because the gross is 120% of the net), not 20% of it. £120 gross contains £20 of VAT — that's £120 ÷ 6, or 16.67% of the gross. The calculator above does this for you.

Does this include the Flat Rate Scheme?

No — this calculates VAT at the standard, reduced and zero rates on individual prices. The Flat Rate Scheme is a separate way some small businesses account for the VAT they owe HMRC, using a single percentage of their gross turnover. You still show 20% VAT on your invoices under the Flat Rate Scheme. Our Flat Rate Scheme calculator works out whether it's worth it for you.

Stop doing VAT sums on every invoice

Working out VAT line by line is fine once. Doing it on every invoice — and keeping track of what's paid, what's outstanding and what's overdue — is where freelancers lose hours and chase the wrong people. Our Invoice Tracker does the VAT and the chasing for you.

Freelancer Invoice Tracker & Log — net, VAT and gross worked out on every line, with Paid / Outstanding / Overdue totals updating automatically.
Freelance Day-Rate & Profit Calculator — set a rate that still works after VAT and tax.
Self Assessment Tax Estimator 2026/27 — your whole Income Tax and Class 4 NIC bill.
Rental Property ROI & Yield Calculator — for anyone with a buy-to-let too.

Excel and Google Sheets. Working formulas, not just formatting. Built and checked by us, with AI assistance, and every calculation verified.

Get the Invoice Tracker — £9 →

£9 on its own, or all four tools for £19, with a 14-day money-back guarantee.