Georgia imposes a 4% statewide base sales tax on most retail purchases of tangible personal property and certain services. On top of that, every Georgia county and many cities layer additional local taxes — a Local Option Sales Tax (LOST), a Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST), and sometimes a Municipal Option Sales Tax (MOST) — which typically add another 3–4 percentage points. The result is that most shoppers in Atlanta, Savannah, Augusta, Columbus, and Macon pay a combined rate of 7–8%, even though the state portion is only 4%.
This calculator handles both directions: ADD mode takes a pre-tax price and produces the final total; REMOVE mode takes a receipt total (tax already included) and works backwards to find the pre-tax price and the exact tax paid. The local rate field defaults to Georgia’s average local rate of 3.4% so you get a realistic combined estimate instantly, but you can type in any local rate — or pick a county from the preset table — for a precise figure.
How it works
ADD mode (pre-tax to total)
The formula is straightforward:
tax = net price x combined rate / 100 total = net price + tax
The combined rate is always state rate (4%) + local rate. The result panel then splits the tax back into the state portion and the local portion so you can see each component separately.
REMOVE mode (total to pre-tax)
When a price already includes tax, you need the reverse formula:
net price = total / (1 + combined rate / 100) tax = total - net price
At a 7.4% combined rate, dividing by 1.074 recovers the original pre-tax price. The state and local shares of the tax are then calculated proportionally (state 4/7.4 of the total tax, local 3.4/7.4).
Worked example
A retailer in Fulton County (Atlanta) charges $85.00 pre-tax for a jacket. The combined rate is 4% state + 3.9% local = 7.9%.
| Line | Calculation | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-tax price | — | $85.00 |
| State tax (4%) | 85 x 0.04 | $3.40 |
| Local tax (3.9%) | 85 x 0.039 | $3.32 |
| Combined tax (7.9%) | 85 x 0.079 | $6.72 |
| Total with tax | 85 + 6.72 | $91.72 |
Running the same figure through REMOVE mode with a total of $91.72 at 7.9% gives back $85.00 net and $6.72 tax — confirming the round-trip.
Georgia state rate and typical combined rates at a glance
| Jurisdiction | State | Local | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia statewide base | 4.0% | 0% | 4.0% |
| Georgia average (all counties) | 4.0% | ~3.4% | ~7.4% |
| Fulton County (Atlanta) | 4.0% | 3.9% | 7.9% |
| DeKalb County | 4.0% | 4.0% | 8.0% |
| Chatham County (Savannah) | 4.0% | 4.0% | 8.0% |
| Cobb County | 4.0% | 2.0% | 6.0% |
Rates are updated by the Georgia DOR each January and July. Always confirm the current rate for your county at dor.georgia.gov before using figures for business accounting or tax filings.
Every calculation runs entirely inside your browser — no amounts, prices, or personal data are ever transmitted to any server.