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VAT Calculator (South Africa)

Free South Africa VAT calculator. Add or remove 15% VAT to or from a price, showing the VAT amount and the net or gross total.

Published

Written by PennyCompass Team

Add or remove 15% VAT to or from a price.

VAT amount

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Excluding VAT

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Including VAT

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Your breakdown

Updates live as you type
ItemAmount

Worked example

Take a VAT-exclusive price of R1,000. To add VAT, multiply by 0.15, which gives R150, so the VAT-inclusive price is R1,150. Now reverse it: if a customer is quoted R1,150 including VAT and you need the VAT portion, multiply R1,150 by 15 divided by 115. That equals R150 again, and the net price is R1,150 minus R150, which is R1,000. The 15 over 115 fraction is the part people get wrong most often, because taking 15% of an already-inclusive price overstates the VAT. The standard rate stayed at 15% for 2025/26 after the proposed increase was withdrawn.

StepAmount
Price excluding VATR1,000
VAT added (R1,000 x 15%)R150
Price including VATR1,150
VAT from an inclusive R1,150 (x 15/115)R150
R1,150 inclusive: net vs VAT Net price R1,000 VAT R150 VAT is 15% of the net, or 13.04% of the inclusive price. Add VAT: x 0.15. Remove VAT: x 15/115.

How it is calculated

VAT is a tax on the price of goods and services, charged at a flat 15% on standard-rated supplies. Adding VAT to a net price is a simple 15% mark-up, but pulling VAT back out of an inclusive total needs the 15 over 115 fraction, since the 15% was applied to the smaller net figure. As a share of the gross price, the VAT works out to about 13.04%, which is why the two directions use different multipliers. A handful of items are zero-rated or exempt, such as basic foodstuffs, so not every line on a till slip carries VAT. Registered businesses charge output VAT on sales and claim back input VAT on purchases, paying SARS only the difference.

Frequently asked questions

How do I work out 15% VAT in South Africa?
To add VAT to a VAT-exclusive price, multiply it by 0.15 and add the result. To remove VAT from a VAT-inclusive price, multiply the price by 15 divided by 115, which gives the VAT portion, then subtract it to get the net amount. The standard VAT rate stayed at 15% for 2025/26.
What goods and services are zero-rated for VAT in South Africa?
A defined list of basic foodstuffs is zero-rated, including brown bread, maize meal, dried beans, rice, lentils, milk, eggs, and a few others. Exports, certain educational services, and public transport are also zero-rated. Zero-rated means VAT is charged at 0 percent, so the supplier can still claim input VAT credits, unlike exempt supplies where no credit is available.
At what annual turnover must a business register for VAT?
A business must register for VAT once its taxable supplies exceed R1 million in any twelve-month period. Voluntary registration is possible from R50,000. Once registered, the business must charge 15% output VAT on standard-rated sales and may claim back input VAT on qualifying purchases, paying SARS only the net difference.
Why does removing VAT use 15/115 instead of simply taking off 15 percent?
The 15 percent rate was applied to the net price, so the gross already contains 115 units for every 100 units of net value. Taking 15 percent off the gross would understate the VAT. The fraction 15/115 correctly isolates the tax that was built into the inclusive price. As a percentage of the gross, VAT works out to about 13.04 percent, not 15 percent.

Related calculators

VAT Payable

Output less input VAT.

VAT Registration

Threshold check.

Sources

  1. SARS — VAT and Capital Gains Tax, South African Revenue Service
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