United Kingdom VAT Calculator (2026) — Add or Reverse VAT
United Kingdom's standard VAT rate is 20%, with reduced rates of 5% on certain goods and services. Use the calculator below to add VAT to a net price, or reverse a VAT-included gross price to find the net amount.
How to use this calculator:
- Adding VAT — enter a net (pre-VAT) price, pick "Add VAT to net price," and the calculator applies United Kingdom's rate to show the VAT amount and gross total.
- Reversing (removing) VAT — enter a gross price that already includes VAT, pick "Remove VAT from gross price," and the calculator divides by 1 + the rate to isolate the net price and the exact VAT paid.
Understanding United Kingdom VAT
United Kingdom charges a standard VAT rate of 20%, alongside reduced rate of 5% for specific categories of goods and services. 0% rate applies to most food and children’s clothing
Home energy and children's car seats at 5%; most food and children's clothing are zero-rated (0%) rather than exempt, letting sellers still reclaim input VAT.
VAT registration threshold
£90,000
EU distance-selling threshold
€10,000/year (EU-wide, applies once combined cross-border B2C sales exceed this)
Bloc
Non-EU European country
Why Reverse VAT Calculation Matters
Invoices and receipts usually show only the VAT-included gross price — not the net amount. Reversing the calculation matters for bookkeeping (separating revenue from VAT collected), expense claims, and cross-border price comparisons. Because dividing by (1 + rate) isn't the same as simply subtracting the rate, doing this by hand is a common source of errors — the calculator above handles it exactly.
History & How the Rate Is Built
The UK introduced VAT on April 1, 1973 at a 10% standard rate, replacing the old Purchase Tax (a single-stage wholesale tax with rates up to 55% on luxury goods) shortly after joining the EEC. The UK deliberately zero-rated food, children's clothing, and books from the start — a political choice preserved under an EU 'grandfathering' rule that barred creating new zero-rated categories but allowed keeping existing ones.
Since Brexit, the UK has regained full sovereignty over its VAT rates and exemptions without needing EU approval — used so far mainly for narrow changes like zero-rating period products (sanitary items) in January 2021, rather than a wholesale rewrite of the zero-rating list.
Business Use Case: Registering for VAT in United Kingdom
A UK grocery retailer sells most food at 0% VAT (zero-rated, not merely exempt) — meaning the retailer can still reclaim VAT paid on its own business inputs, unlike a true exemption, which is why the UK's zero-rating list is more business-friendly than an exemption would be.
Real-World Example
A £100.00 net price in United Kingdom at the standard rate of 20%:
- VAT amount: £100.00 × 20% = £20.00
- Gross price: £100.00 + £20.00 = £120.00
United Kingdom VAT Compliance & Registration
Domestic businesses in United Kingdom generally must register for VAT once annual taxable turnover exceeds £90,000. Below that threshold, small businesses can often trade without charging VAT, though voluntary registration is usually available. For cross-border EU sales, the €10,000 distance-selling threshold and the One-Stop Shop (OSS) apply regardless of United Kingdom's domestic threshold — once total EU-wide B2C sales exceed €10,000, VAT is charged at the buyer's country rate and reported through a single OSS return.
Frequently Asked Questions — United Kingdom VAT
What is the VAT rate in United Kingdom?▾
What is the VAT registration threshold in United Kingdom?▾
How do I remove VAT from a United Kingdom price?▾
Do I charge United Kingdom VAT rates when selling from another EU country?▾
Is United Kingdom in the EU VAT area?▾
References & Sources
Rates last verified January 2026. VAT rates and thresholds are set by national legislation and can change — always confirm current figures with United Kingdom's national tax authority before invoicing. This tool is for estimation and educational purposes only and is not tax, legal, or accounting advice.
Jordan Hayes
Verified AuthorLead Content Editor & Personal Finance Specialist
Jordan Hayes is a personal finance content strategist with 9+ years building educational finance and health resources. He has written and fact-checked over 200 personal finance guides covering mortgage amortization, retirement planning, tax strategy, and budgeting. His work applies IRS publications, Federal Reserve data, and peer-reviewed research to make complex calculations accessible.