Canadian sales tax in brief
GST is 5% federal. HST combines GST and provincial tax in participating provinces: 13% in Ontario and 15% in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. Alberta and the territories charge GST only. BC, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Quebec add their own provincial tax on top of GST.
To add tax: total = price × (1 + rate). To remove tax: pre-tax = total ÷ (1 + rate). Rates change. Confirm on the CRA or provincial finance site before you file or invoice.
Worked example
An $80 cart in Alberta is $84 with 5% GST. The same cart in Ontario is $90.40 with 13% HST. The $6.40 gap is the provincial part of HST, not a different shelf price.
A $100 taxable item in Ontario is $113 with 13% HST. To recover the pre-tax amount from a $113 receipt, divide by 1.13 to get $100. Subtracting 13% from $113 gives $98.31, which is the usual off-by-a-couple-dollars mistake. In Alberta the same $100 is $105 with 5% GST.
Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and PEI use 15% HST. BC, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba add PST on top of GST (the combined rate is not HST). Quebec is GST + QST; 14.975% is a common combined figure on a taxable sale. Confirm on Canada.ca before you invoice.
Watch the same example
The video uses the $80 cart in the example: $84 in Alberta, $90.40 in Ontario, then dividing the till total back to the pre-tax price.
Common questions
Is food taxable?
Basic groceries are often zero-rated for GST/HST. Restaurant meals usually are taxable. This tool does not classify items.
How do I handle Quebec?
Type 14.975 as the rate for typical GST + QST on a taxable sale, or calculate each tax separately if you invoice that way.