VAT and percent added
You learn to work out a percentage of a price and add it on, like VAT.
How to work it out
- Work out how much 10% or 1% is: divide by 10 or by 100.
- Build the percentage you are looking for: 20% is 2 × 10%.
- If it needs to be added, add it to the price.
100
20
80
16
A worked example
The price without VAT is £200. How much is 23% VAT?
- Work out 1%: 200 ÷ 100 = 2.
- Multiply by 23: 23 × 2 = 46.
- The VAT is £46.
More examples
The price without VAT is £100. What is the price with 9% VAT?
- Work out 1%: 100 ÷ 100 = 1.
- Multiply by 9: 9 × 1 = 9.
- Add it: 100 + 9 = 109.
- It costs £109.
A price of £60 goes up by 50%. What is the new price?
- Work out 10%: 60 ÷ 10 = 6.
- Multiply by 5: 5 × 6 = 30.
- Add it: 60 + 30 = 90.
- It costs £90.
Try it yourself
A price of £80 goes up by 25%. What is the new price?
The price without VAT is £100. What is the price with 5% VAT?
Watch out
You give only the VAT as the answer, when the question asks for the price with VAT.
Read the question: with VAT means the price plus the VAT. Add it.
You add the percentage as pounds: £200 + 23 becomes £223.
23% is not £23. First work out how many pounds 23% is.
Tips
- For 9% VAT, work out 1% and multiply by 9.
Why it works
1% is a hundredth and 10% is a tenth: those are easy to work out. Every other percentage is a number of lots of 1% or 10%. With VAT, that amount is added to the price.