Discount Calculator

A discount calculator applies percentage-based reductions to prices using three fundamental formulas. The first, and most common, computes the sale price: Sale Price = Original Price x (1 - Discount% / 100). For example, a $120 item at 25% off yields $120 x (1 - 0.25) = $90, with savings of $30. The second formula works in reverse, finding the discount percentage when you know both prices: Discount% = ((Original Price - Sale Price) / Original Price) x 100. The third recovers the original price from the sale price: Original Price = Sale Price / (1 - Discount% / 100).

These three operations cover every practical discount scenario a consumer or retailer encounters. Whether you are comparing deals across different stores, verifying that a "sale" price is genuinely discounted, or reverse-engineering the original cost of an item you bought on clearance, one of these formulas applies. Retailers also use stacked or successive discounts -- for instance, "20% off plus an extra 10% off." Note that stacked discounts are not simply additive: 20% + 10% does not equal 30% off. Instead, the second discount applies to the already-reduced price: $100 x 0.80 x 0.90 = $72, which is effectively 28% off.

Understanding discount mathematics is also important for interpreting common marketing tactics. "Buy one get one 50% off" on a $40 item means you pay $40 + $20 = $60 for two items, an effective per-item discount of 25%, not 50%. This calculator helps you cut through such complexities by providing exact numbers for any discount scenario you enter.

This tool provides three independent calculation modes:

1. Sale Price mode: Enter the original price and discount percentage. The calculator instantly shows the final sale price and the dollar amount you save.
2. Discount % mode: Enter the original price and the sale price. The calculator determines what discount percentage was applied and shows the savings amount.
3. Original Price mode: Enter the sale price and the discount percentage. The calculator reverse-engineers what the original price was before the discount.

All three modes calculate results in real time as you type -- no submit button is needed. Each mode operates independently, so you can use multiple modes simultaneously to compare different scenarios side by side.

• Shopping comparison: Compare discounts across different stores or online retailers to find the best actual price, especially when discounts are presented differently (percentage off vs. dollar off vs. "buy X get Y").
• Black Friday and seasonal sales: Quickly verify whether a "70% off" deal is genuine by computing the expected sale price and comparing it to the tagged price.
• Retail pricing strategy: Business owners can use the reverse calculation to determine what original price to set in order to achieve a target sale price at a specific discount level.
• Coupon stacking: Calculate the effective total discount when applying multiple successive percentage-off coupons to a single purchase.
• Wholesale vs. retail markup: Determine the effective discount a wholesale price represents compared to the retail price, helping businesses evaluate supplier deals.
• Budget planning: When you have a fixed budget and know the discount rate, calculate the maximum original-price item you can afford.
• Tax-inclusive pricing: After computing the discounted price, factor in local sales tax to know the exact out-of-pocket cost.