Net to Gross Calculator
Enter a net (take-home) amount and a tax or deduction rate and this calculator works backwards to find the gross amount before tax. It covers three common situations: adding back VAT or sales tax, reversing a flat income-tax rate, and grossing up for US payroll (FICA) deductions. You can also flip it around and go from gross to net. Results update instantly as you type, with a full breakdown showing every figure.
Formula
Worked example
To receive a net bonus of $5,000 after a 22% flat withholding: Gross = 5,000 / (1 - 0.22) = 5,000 / 0.78 = $6,410.26. Tax withheld = $6,410.26 - $5,000 = $1,410.26. Effective rate = 1,410.26 / 6,410.26 = 22%. The gross-up multiplier is 6,410.26 / 5,000 = 1.2821.
What is a net-to-gross calculation (gross-up)?
A gross-up converts a desired after-tax (net) amount into the pre-tax (gross) amount someone must receive so that, after deductions, the agreed net lands exactly in their hands. Employers use it for bonuses, expense reimbursements, and relocation payments where the intent is that the recipient keeps a specific sum. The key insight is that ordinary arithmetic is asymmetric: deducting 20% from $100 gives $80, but adding 20% to $80 gives only $96. To reverse a 20% deduction you must divide by 0.80 (i.e. 1 minus the rate), not multiply by 1.20.
Net vs. gross: two different starting points
Gross is the total before any tax or deduction is removed. Net is what remains after. The relationship depends on which side the tax is applied to. For VAT and sales tax, the tax is added on top of a net price: a $50 item with 20% VAT costs $60 gross. For income tax and payroll deductions, the tax is taken from the gross: a $5,000 gross salary at 22% tax yields a $3,900 net. These two conventions require different formulas, which is why the calculator asks which type of tax you are working with. For VAT: gross = net x (1 + rate). For income tax: gross = net / (1 - rate).
US payroll (FICA) gross-up
FICA (Federal Insurance Contributions Act) covers Social Security at 6.2% and Medicare at 1.45%, for a combined employee rate of 7.65% on gross wages (2026 rates; the Social Security wage base is $176,100). To guarantee a net of $3,000 after FICA: gross = 3,000 / (1 - 0.0765) = 3,000 / 0.9235 = $3,248.51. Social Security = $3,248.51 x 6.2% = $201.41. Medicare = $3,248.51 x 1.45% = $47.10. Note that FICA is only one layer: federal and state income-tax withholding sit on top of it, so a full payroll gross-up stacks the rates.
Gross-up multiplier and the reverse formula
Once you know the effective tax rate, the gross-up multiplier is simply 1 / (1 - effective rate). A combined rate of 30% gives a multiplier of 1 / 0.70 = 1.4286, meaning every dollar of net requires $1.4286 gross. Stacking independent rates (federal + state + FICA) requires multiplying them as (1 - r1) x (1 - r2) x ... rather than adding them, because each rate applies to the residual after the previous one. However, for flat marginal-rate estimates, treating them as additive is a close enough approximation for planning purposes.
Common tax and deduction rates by type
| Context | Typical rate | Applied to | Formula |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK VAT (standard) | 20% | Net (ex-VAT) price | Gross = Net x 1.20 |
| EU VAT (common) | 21-25% | Net (ex-VAT) price | Gross = Net x (1 + rate) |
| US sales tax | 0-13% | Net (pre-tax) price | Gross = Net x (1 + rate) |
| US FICA (employee) | 7.65% | Gross wages | Net = Gross x 0.9235 |
| US federal income tax (22% bracket) | 22% | Taxable gross | Gross = Net / 0.78 |
| US federal income tax (24% bracket) | 24% | Taxable gross | Gross = Net / 0.76 |
| UK basic-rate income tax | 20% | Gross salary | Gross = Net / 0.80 |
| Canada federal income tax (basic) | 20.5% | Gross income | Gross = Net / 0.795 |
Reference rates for the most common tax contexts. Rates change by jurisdiction and year.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between net to gross and gross to net?
Net to gross (gross-up) starts from the take-home amount you want someone to receive and calculates the gross payment needed before deductions. Gross to net starts from a known gross amount and subtracts the applicable taxes or deductions to find the take-home. The two directions use inverse formulas: gross to net multiplies gross by (1 - rate); net to gross divides net by (1 - rate).
Why can't I just add the tax rate back to the net amount?
Because tax percentages are relative to different bases. If you earn $1,000 gross and pay 20% income tax, you keep $800. But adding 20% to $800 gives only $960, not $1,000, because 20% of $800 is only $160. The correct reversal is to divide by (1 - 0.20) = 0.80, giving exactly $1,000. This non-obvious asymmetry is why a proper gross-up formula is essential.
How do I gross up a bonus so the employee receives a specific net?
Decide on the combined withholding rate (federal + state income tax + FICA, or your jurisdiction's equivalent). Then apply: Gross bonus = Target net / (1 - combined rate). For example, to net $5,000 at a 30% combined rate: $5,000 / 0.70 = $7,142.86. Pay the $7,142.86 gross; after withholding $2,142.86 (30%), the employee pockets exactly $5,000.
What FICA rates does this calculator use?
The calculator uses the 2026 employee rates: Social Security at 6.2% (on wages up to the annual wage base of $176,100) and Medicare at 1.45%, for a combined 7.65%. Self-employed individuals pay both the employee and employer halves, a combined 15.3%, though they receive a 50% above-the-line deduction on the employer portion. The wage base is not enforced in this calculator, so results above the Social Security threshold will be slightly overstated.
Does VAT gross-up use the same formula as income tax gross-up?
No. VAT is added on top of a net price, so gross = net x (1 + VAT rate). For example, at 20% VAT: gross = $100 x 1.20 = $120. Income tax is deducted from gross, so gross = net / (1 - tax rate). At 20% income tax: gross = $80 / 0.80 = $100. The two formulas are not interchangeable - using the wrong one produces an incorrect result.
How do I stack multiple tax rates for a full payroll gross-up?
Multiply the net-of-each-rate factors together. For instance, if federal withholding is 22%, state withholding is 5%, and FICA is 7.65%, the combined keep fraction is (1 - 0.22) x (1 - 0.05) x (1 - 0.0765) = 0.78 x 0.95 x 0.9235 = 0.6843. The gross-up multiplier is 1 / 0.6843 = 1.4613, so a $3,000 net requires a gross of $4,384. Alternatively, combine the rates additively as an approximation: 22 + 5 + 7.65 = 34.65%, giving gross = $3,000 / 0.6535 = $4,592, slightly higher because additive stacking overstates the combined rate slightly.