Discount Calculator
Calculate the sale price after any discount percentage, find the original price from a discounted price, or determine the exact discount percentage you received. Includes a visual price breakdown and comparison of common discount rates.
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How It Works
Multiply the original price by (1 minus the discount rate expressed as a decimal). This gives the amount you actually pay. The difference from the original price is your dollar savings.
Sale price = Original x (1 - discount/100)$120 original at 25% off = $120 x 0.75 = $90 sale priceDivide the sale price by (1 minus the discount rate). This reverses the discount to recover the original price. The common mistake of adding the percentage back to the sale price gives a different wrong answer.
Original = Sale / (1 - discount/100)$90 sale at 25% off: original = $90 / 0.75 = $120Subtract sale from original to get savings, divide savings by original price, multiply by 100. This works from any two known prices.
Discount% = (Original - Sale) / Original x 100Paid $90, was $120: ($30/$120) x 100 = 25% offApply each discount sequentially to the already-discounted price, not by adding the percentages together. Each successive discount applies to a smaller number.
Final = Price x (1-d1) x (1-d2)$100, 20% off then 10% off = $72 not $70Markup percentage uses cost as the base. Discount percentage uses the selling price as the base. These are different reference points so the numbers are not interchangeable or reversible.
33% markup on cost = 25% gross margin on price33% markup on $100 cost = $133 price, then 25% off = back to $100The comparison table shows what the same item costs at four different discount rates simultaneously. This reveals whether a sale is genuinely good value compared to other possible discount levels.
Compare 10%, 20%, 30%, and 50% at the same time$150 item: 20%=$120, 30%=$105, 40%=$90, 50%=$75Quick Reference
Common examples — verify instantly above.
25% off
$120 original price
$90 sale, save $30
50% off
$80 original price
$40 sale, save $40
15% off
$250 original price
$212.50 sale price
Find original
$75 sale at 25% off
$100.00 original price
Find discount%
Paid $90, was $120
25% discount received
Stacked 20%+10%
$100 item
$72.00 final price
Compare 4 rates
$200 item
$170/$160/$140/$100
Black Friday 40%
$299 original price
$179.40 sale price
Tips & Shortcuts
Calculate price per unit by dividing price by quantity to compare different package sizes — the larger size is usually cheaper per unit even if it costs more upfront.
Stacked discounts do not add: 20% off plus 10% off equals 28% total, not 30%. Always calculate each discount applied to the previous result.
A buy-two-get-one-free promotion equals 33.3% off per item only if you need all three. If you only need one or two, the effective discount is lower or zero.
Percentage discounts favor high-priced items significantly. 20% off a $500 item saves $100 while 20% off a $20 item saves only $4.
Retailer markups often range from 50% to 200% above cost. A 30% off sale on a highly marked-up item may still carry substantial profit margins.
When negotiating any price, always ask for the best available price. An additional 5% to 10% off beyond the advertised discount is often available simply by asking.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Adding discount percentages together for stacked deals
Two 20% discounts are NOT 40% off. They equal 36% off total. Calculate sequentially: $100 x 0.80 x 0.80 = $64, not $60. Adding percentages always overstates the actual discount.
Confusing markup percent with discount percent
A 50% markup means price = 1.5 times cost. A 50% discount means sale = 0.5 times price. They use different base numbers so are not interchangeable or directly comparable.
Ignoring price per unit when evaluating bulk deals
A 50% off deal requiring purchase of 3 items might be worse per unit than a 30% off deal on 1 item if you only need one item.
Getting excited about percentage without calculating dollar savings
25% off a $12 item saves only $3. 10% off a $500 item saves $50. Always convert the percentage to an actual dollar amount before evaluating whether a deal is worth acting on.
Missing fine print on how stacked coupons apply
Some coupons cannot be combined with sale prices, or a coupon applies to the original price rather than the already-reduced sale price. Read all terms before assuming maximum savings.
Buying unnecessary items because the discount is large
A 70% off item you do not need still costs money. The best financial decision is never buying something unnecessary regardless of how impressive the discount percentage appears.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sale price = Original price x (1 minus discount% / 100). Example: $120 with 25% off becomes $120 x 0.75 = $90. Your savings are $30. This is the fundamental discount formula used in retail pricing.
Original price = Sale price / (1 minus discount% / 100). If something costs $90 after a 25% discount: $90 / 0.75 = $120 original price. Note: do not add the percentage to the sale price — that gives the wrong answer.
Discount % = (Original minus Sale) / Original x 100. If you paid $90 for something originally priced at $120: ($30 / $120) x 100 = 25% discount. This is useful when the percentage is not shown on the label.
No. Two successive discounts do not add up. A 20% discount followed by an additional 10% discount is NOT 30% off total. It equals: 1 minus (0.80 x 0.90) = 28% off. Always apply discounts sequentially to the previous price.
Markup is applied to cost to create a selling price using: Price = Cost x (1 + markup%). Discount is applied to the selling price using: Sale = Price x (1 minus discount%). A 50% markup on cost is NOT reversed by a 50% discount — that requires a 33.3% discount.
Apply each coupon discount sequentially to the previous result: Final = Price x (1-d1) x (1-d2). A 20% off storewide plus a 10% off coupon on a $100 item gives $100 x 0.80 x 0.90 = $72, not $70 as simple addition would suggest.
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