Percentage Calculator

When this calculator is useful

Percentages appear throughout everyday life across the euro area, and this page gathers the five most common jobs into a single tool. Reach for it when a shop advertises 30% off and you want the real price, when an invoice quotes a net amount and you need to add VAT, or when you want to express one figure as a proportion of another. Each tab handles one type of question, so you choose the one that matches what you are trying to find.

The core jobs are: finding X% of a number (20% of €150), finding what percentage one number is of another (€30 out of €150 is 20%), and measuring a percentage increase, decrease or change between two values. Together they cover discounts, mark-ups on a cost price, VAT-inclusive pricing, and changes in any figure from energy use to salary — the percentage questions that recur week to week.

Understanding your result

Each mode returns a slightly different kind of answer. The percent-of tab gives a plain amount — 20% of €150 is €30. The what-percentage tab gives a proportion — €30 of €150 is 20%. The change tab gives a signed figure: a move from €100 to €150 is +50%, and from €100 to €50 is −50%, with the sign indicating whether the value rose or fell.

The distinction worth knowing is between a percentage and a percentage point. If a central-bank rate moves from 2% to 4%, that is a rise of 2 percentage points, but a 100% relative increase. Both statements are correct; they answer different questions. This calculator's change tab always works in relative terms, so enter 2 and 4 and you will get +100%, not +2.

A worked example

Suppose a jacket is priced at €150 with 30% off. Enter €150 in the value box and 30 in the percent box on the Add/Subtract tab, choose subtract, and you get €105, with the €45 saving shown. If the receipt only displayed the €105 sale price and you wanted the original, Reverse % takes €105 as 70% of the original and returns €150.

For a VAT example, say a service costs €200 net and the applicable VAT rate is 21%. Add 21% to €200 on the Add/Subtract tab and you get €242. To work the other way and strip VAT from a €242 gross total, use Reverse %: divide by 1.21 to recover the €200 net amount.

Points to be careful about

Most percentage errors across the euro area come from working off the wrong base or confusing relative change with percentage points.

• Confusing a percentage change with percentage points — going from 2% to 4% is +2 points but +100% in relative terms.
• Trying to reverse a 21% VAT addition by subtracting 21% — €100 plus 21% is €121, but €121 minus 21% is €95.59, not €100. To undo it you divide by 1.21.
• Applying one country's VAT rate everywhere — standard rates differ across member states, so check the rate that applies.
• Assuming two percentage changes add up — a 10% rise followed by a 10% fall leaves you below where you started.

Everyday euro-area percentage uses

The most widespread percentage in the euro area is VAT, but unlike a single national rate it varies by country — standard rates commonly sit between roughly 19% and 25%, with reduced rates for items such as food, books or medicines. Use the Add/Subtract tab to add your country's rate to a net price, or Reverse % to extract the net amount from a VAT-inclusive total by dividing by one plus the rate.

Beyond VAT, percentages run through discounts and seasonal sales, loan and savings interest rates, salary increases, and changes in everyday measures like energy prices or inflation figures quoted in the news. Whenever a number is given as a percentage, one of the five tabs above will turn it into the euro figure you actually need.