VAT Calculator — Germany, Austria, Switzerland Germany, Austria, Switzerland
Add VAT to a net price or extract it from a gross price. All statutory DACH rates pre-loaded, with the correct reverse formula.
Data Source
Statutory rates from UStG § 12 (DE), UStG 1994 § 10 (AT), and MWSTG Art. 25 (CH). Verified June 2026.
Notice
This tool computes VAT for informational purposes only. B2B transactions, reverse charge, and the Kleinunternehmerregelung (§ 19 UStG) are not modeled. Consult a tax adviser for binding calculations.
What is VAT (Mehrwertsteuer)?
The tax added to almost every purchase in the DACH region
Value Added Tax (VAT), called Mehrwertsteuer (MwSt.) or Umsatzsteuer (USt.) in Germany and Austria, and Mehrwertsteuer (MWST) in Switzerland, is a consumption tax levied at each stage of the supply chain. The final consumer bears the full economic burden. In Germany the standard rate is 19 %, in Austria 20 %, and in Switzerland 8.1 % — each country legislated separately.
Quick answer: To add VAT multiply the net by (1 + r/100). To remove VAT from a gross, divide by (1 + r/100) — NOT by multiplying the gross by r/100, which gives the wrong answer.
Whether you are issuing an invoice, checking a receipt, or planning a purchase, this calculator handles both directions with one click.
Every VAT calculation goes in one of two directions.
Adding VAT (net → gross): You know the price before tax and want the price the customer pays.
Extracting VAT (gross → net): You see a price that already includes tax and want to know how much of it is tax.
VAT = net × r ÷ 100 | Gross = net + VATVAT = gross × r ÷ (100 + r) | Net = gross − VATThe most common mistake when extracting VAT is multiplying the gross price by r/100 instead of r/(100+r).
Wrong approach
Gross €119 × 19/100 = €22.61 — this overstates the VAT by €3.61 and gets the net wrong.
Correct approach
Gross €119 × 19/(100+19) = €119 × 19/119 = €19.00 — the exact statutory amount embedded in the gross.
The correct formula divides by the gross factor (1 + r/100), which is what the tax authority uses. The wrong formula inflates the result because it applies the rate to a base that already includes the tax.
All rates below are statutory as of 2026. Each country legislates rates independently; the EU sets a minimum standard rate of 15 % (Germany and Austria exceed it) but Switzerland is not an EU member.
| Country | Rate type | Rate | Applies to (examples) | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | Standard | 19 % | Most goods and services | UStG § 12 Abs. 1 |
| Germany | Reduced | 7 % | Food, books, public transport, newspapers | UStG § 12 Abs. 2 |
| Austria | Standard | 20 % | Most goods and services | UStG 1994 § 10 Abs. 1 |
| Austria | Reduced | 10 % | Food, books, passenger transport, medicines | UStG 1994 § 10 Abs. 2 |
| Austria | Intermediate | 13 % | Art, live events, wine from farm, animals | UStG 1994 § 10 Abs. 3 |
| Switzerland | Standard | 8.1 % | Most goods and services | MWSTG Art. 25 Abs. 1 |
| Switzerland | Reduced | 2.6 % | Food, non-alcoholic beverages, newspapers, medicines | MWSTG Art. 25 Abs. 2 |
| Switzerland | Accommodation | 3.8 % | Hotel overnight stays | MWSTG Art. 25 Abs. 4 |
Switzerland raised its rates on 1 January 2024 (from 7.7 %, 2.5 %, 3.7 %) to fund the AHV pension reform. The current rates listed above are effective from that date.
The following examples walk through a full calculation for each direction using real DACH rates.
Add German standard VAT (19 %) to a €250 net invoice
Net = €250.00. Rate = 19 % (Germany, UStG § 12 Abs. 1). VAT = 250 × 19/100 = €47.50. Gross = 250 + 47.50 = €297.50. You enter €297.50 on the invoice as the total price.
Extract Austrian standard VAT (20 %) from a €360 gross receipt
Gross = €360.00. Rate = 20 % (Austria, UStG 1994 § 10 Abs. 1). VAT = 360 × 20/(100+20) = 360 × 20/120 = €60.00. Net = 360 − 60 = €300.00. The receipt is showing €60 tax on €300 of goods.
Add Swiss reduced VAT (2.6 %) to a CHF 80 grocery basket
Net = CHF 80.00. Rate = 2.6 % (Switzerland, MWSTG Art. 25 Abs. 2). VAT = 80 × 2.6/100 = CHF 2.08. Gross = 80 + 2.08 = CHF 82.08. (Note: the calculator uses € as the unit symbol; for CHF simply ignore the symbol and use the same formula.)
Extract German reduced VAT (7 %) from a €5.35 book price
Gross = €5.35. Rate = 7 % (Germany, UStG § 12 Abs. 2). VAT = 5.35 × 7/(100+7) = 5.35 × 7/107 = €0.35. Net = 5.35 − 0.35 = €5.00. Books in Germany carry the reduced 7 % rate, not the standard 19 %.
All three values — net, VAT, and gross — are always shown, so you can read the result in whichever direction your paperwork needs. For a consumer, the VAT amount is the part of the shelf price that goes to the state, not to the seller: according to the European Commission's VAT rules, the tax is collected by the business but borne by the final consumer. For a small business owner, the net amount is the figure that belongs in your revenue accounting, while the VAT amount is money you merely hold in trust until the next advance return (Umsatzsteuervoranmeldung in Germany).
A quick plausibility check: at the German standard rate of 19 %, the VAT in a gross price is always just under 16 % of that gross (19/119 ≈ 15.97 %). If the VAT you extracted is around 19 % of the gross, you have multiplied instead of using the r/(100+r) formula — re-check the direction setting. According to the Swiss Federal Tax Administration's guidelines, the same logic applies to the 8.1 % rate: the VAT share of a Swiss gross price is 8.1/108.1 ≈ 7.49 %, not 8.1 %.
This calculator models the basic VAT arithmetic for private consumers and straightforward B2C invoices. Several real-world scenarios require professional advice:
B2B reverse charge not modeled
In intra-EU and international B2B transactions, the buyer is often liable for VAT under the reverse charge mechanism (§ 13b UStG in Germany). This calculator does not handle reverse charge — use it for B2C or domestic B2B only.
Kleinunternehmerregelung (§ 19 UStG) not modeled
German micro-businesses with turnover below the Kleinunternehmergrenze (§ 19 UStG) are exempt from charging VAT. This calculator assumes the standard VAT liability applies. If you operate under § 19, your invoices show no VAT at all.
Switzerland: CHF amounts, not EUR
Swiss VAT is calculated in Swiss francs. The calculator uses € as the currency symbol for all outputs. Simply treat the number as CHF when computing Swiss VAT — the formula is identical.