Create a professional invoice or tax invoice with VAT, then download it as a PDF or print it.
Invoice Calculator
Work out an invoice total from line items — with discounts, VAT on exclusive or inclusive prices, and any deposit already paid. Use it to check a supplier’s invoice or to price a job before you bill it.
Runs in your browser — nothing you enter is sent to our servers
Tax rates and rules can change. Verify current requirements with SARS or a qualified tax professional. This calculator does the arithmetic only — it is not tax advice.
How it works
- Line amount = quantity × unit price, rounded to the cent. A line discount is taken off that: line total = amount − amount × discount %.
- Invoice discount (if any) is taken off the sum of the line totals.
- VAT, if your prices exclude VAT: VAT = discounted total × rate. If your prices include VAT: VAT = discounted total × rate ÷ (100 + rate), and the subtotal is what remains.
- Total = subtotal + VAT. Balance due = total − deposit or amount already paid.
Discounts always come before VAT, because VAT is charged on the price actually charged. With “On each line” rounding, VAT is rounded on every line and added up (less the VAT on any invoice discount), which is how some accounting systems do it. The difference is at most a few cents. Leave a line’s quantity empty to count it as 1.
Example
A web designer bills (all prices excl. VAT):
- Website design: 1 × R8,500 = R8,500
- Hosting: 12 months × R150 = R1,800
- Logo revisions: 2 × R450 = R900, less 10% = R810
Subtotal R11,110.00 → VAT at 15% R1,666.50 → total R12,776.50. The client paid a R5,000 deposit, so the balance due is R7,776.50.
If the same three lines were retail prices including VAT, the total would be R11,110.00, of which R1,449.13 is VAT (11,110 × 15 ÷ 115) and R9,660.87 is the subtotal.
Got the numbers right? Turn them into a tax invoice with the invoice generator, or check a single amount with the VAT calculator.
Frequently asked questions
How is this different from the invoice generator?
The invoice calculator works out and checks the numbers: line totals, line and invoice discounts, VAT on exclusive or inclusive prices, deposits and the balance due. The invoice generator turns your line items into a finished invoice document you can download as a PDF.
Should the discount come before or after VAT?
Before. VAT is charged on the price actually charged, so discounts reduce the VAT-exclusive amount first and VAT is calculated on what remains. That is how this calculator works.
What does “prices include VAT” change?
If your unit prices are retail prices that already include VAT, the calculator works out the VAT inside them (× 15 ÷ 115 at 15%) instead of adding 15% on top. The total stays the same as the sum of your lines.
Per-line or total VAT rounding — which should I use?
Both are common. Rounding once on the total is the simplest; some accounting systems round VAT on each line and add the lines up, which can differ by a cent or two on long invoices. Choose the method that matches the system you, or your supplier, use.
Is anything I enter saved?
No. The calculation runs in your browser and nothing is sent to ToolTarvern or saved. Download the CSV if you want to keep a copy.
Related tools
Add or remove VAT, or work back from a VAT amount. Shows net, VAT and total, with South Africa’s 15% as the default rate.
Sale price and savings from a discount, stacked discounts, or the discount % between two prices.
Create a quotation with line items, VAT and validity date, and download it as a PDF.
Related guides
How to write an invoice in South Africa (and when it must be a tax invoice)
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