---
title: "Reverse VAT Calculator: Remove VAT from a Gross Price"
canonical: https://luckpanda.app/tools/reverse-vat-calculator
language: en
updated: 2026-10-09
content: baseline
---

# Reverse VAT calculator

**Reverse VAT calculator: how it works** Divide the gross price by 1 plus the rate. At 20%, divide by 1.2: £1,200 ÷ 1.2 = £1,000 net, so the VAT is £200.

Free online tool: https://luckpanda.app/tools/reverse-vat-calculator (create on screen, no account needed).

## Reverse VAT, worked through

A supplier's receipt shows £372.00 including 20% VAT. Net = £372.00 ÷ 1.2 = £310.00. VAT = £372.00 − £310.00 = £62.00, which is also £372.00 ÷ 6.

| Gross | Rate | VAT fraction | VAT | Net |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| £120.00 | 20% | 1/6 | £20.00 | £100.00 |
| £372.00 | 20% | 1/6 | £62.00 | £310.00 |
| £105.00 | 5% | 1/21 | £5.00 | £100.00 |
| £119.00 | 19% (DE) | 19/119 | £19.00 | £100.00 |

## How to use the reverse VAT calculator

1. Enter the price including VAT.
2. Pick the VAT rate that was charged.
3. Read the net amount and the VAT inside the price.

## When you need the net price

Reclaiming input VAT on purchases, recording expenses in your books net of VAT, or quoting a client a net price when you only know what they will pay all start from the gross figure. Your VAT return shows net sales and VAT separately, so every gross amount has to be split this way.

## Questions people ask

### How do I calculate VAT backwards?

Divide the gross price by 1 plus the rate. At 20%, divide by 1.2: £1,200 ÷ 1.2 = £1,000 net, so the VAT is £200.

### Why is reverse VAT not just 20% of the price?

VAT was charged on the net price, so it is 20% of the net, not of the gross. Of a gross price, the VAT is one sixth (20/120). 20% of £1,200 would be £240, which is wrong.

### What is the VAT fraction at 5%?

5/105, which is 1/21. On a £105 gross price at 5%, the VAT is £5.

### Can I use this for other countries?

Yes. Choose Custom and enter the rate, for example 19 for Germany or 23 for Ireland.

## For AI agents

Prompt: > Use https://luckpanda.app/tools/reverse-vat-calculator to take VAT out of an amount that includes it. Ask me for the amount including VAT, the VAT rate and the country, then show me the result and how it was worked out. Use the free API at https://luckpanda.app/api/public/calc/vat as described in https://luckpanda.app/tools/reverse-vat-calculator.md

JSON API (no auth, CORS open): `GET https://luckpanda.app/api/public/calc/vat?amount=1200&rate=20&mode=remove&country=GB`. MCP: `calculate_vat` on `https://luckpanda.app/mcp/public`. Amounts in the response are numbers in major units plus `formatted` strings in the document's own locale. OpenAPI: https://luckpanda.app/openapi-public.json.

To put the result on a document, make an invoice with a prefill link: see https://luckpanda.app/tools/invoice-generator.md