Discount Calculator
Calculate the final sale price and amount saved from a percentage discount, or work backward to find the original price or the discount percentage.
Use this calculator forward or backward: find the sale price from an original price and a discount percentage, find the original price if you only know the sale price and the discount, or find the discount percentage itself if you know both prices. Enter your own numbers below and the result updates instantly.
How a Discount Actually Works
A discount reduces a price by a set percentage of that price — not a flat amount, unless it's specifically labeled as a fixed-amount deal. That distinction matters more than it sounds: 20% off a $500 item saves $100, but 20% off a $50 item only saves $10, even though the percentage is identical. Retailers lean on percentage discounts because they scale naturally across an entire price range, from clearance racks to big-ticket items.
- Original price: what the item costs before any markdown.
- Discount percentage: the portion of the original price being taken off.
- Sale price: what you actually pay after the discount is applied.
How to Use This Calculator
- Know the original price and the discount? Use the Percent Off tab to see the final sale price.
- Only know the sale price and the discount? Use Find Original Price to work backward to what it cost before the markdown.
- Have both prices but not the discount rate? Use Find Discount % to see exactly how much was taken off.
- Tap a preset (10%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 50%) to try a common discount instantly instead of typing it.
- Results and the formula used update live as you type — no separate click needed, though the button is there too.
The Formulas, With Worked Examples
Finding the sale price:Final Price = Original Price − (Original Price × Discount % ÷ 100)
Example: a $90 item at 20% off saves $18, bringing it down to $72.
Finding the original price:Original Price = Sale Price ÷ (1 − Discount % ÷ 100)
Example: an $80 sale price at 20% off means the item started at $80 ÷ 0.80 = $100.
Finding the discount percentage:Discount % = ((Original Price − Sale Price) ÷ Original Price) × 100
Example: a $200 item marked down to $140 was discounted by 30%.
Common Discount Amounts at a Glance
A quick reference for the discount percentages people check most often — use the presets above to try any of these instantly with your own price.
| Original Price | Discount | You Save | Final Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50 | 10% | $5.00 | $45.00 |
| $50 | 20% | $10.00 | $40.00 |
| $100 | 25% | $25.00 | $75.00 |
| $100 | 30% | $30.00 | $70.00 |
| $200 | 50% | $100.00 | $100.00 |
A Note on "Too Good to Be True" Discounts
Not every advertised discount reflects a genuine markdown. Some retailers inflate the listed "original" price shortly before a sale, so the discount percentage looks larger than the actual saving compared to what the item normally sells for — a practice regulators in several countries have specifically targeted with pricing-transparency rules. If a deal looks unusually large, it's worth checking a price history tool or the retailer's own recent listings before assuming the percentage tells the whole story.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I calculate a discount percentage?
Subtract the sale price from the original price, divide that by the original price, then multiply by 100. A $200 item marked down to $140 is a 30% discount — the Find Discount % tab above does this for you automatically.
How do I calculate a 20% discount?
Multiply the original price by 0.20 to get the amount saved, then subtract that from the original price. On a $90 item, 20% off saves $18, so you’d pay $72.
How do I calculate a 30% discount?
Same idea at a different rate: multiply the price by 0.30 for the savings, then subtract. A $120 item at 30% off saves $36, bringing the price to $84.
How do I find the original price if I only know the sale price and the discount?
Divide the sale price by (1 minus the discount as a decimal). An $80 item that was 20% off started at $80 ÷ 0.80 = $100. Use the Find Original Price tab above to skip the manual math.
How do I calculate a discount percentage in Excel?
Put the original price in one cell and the sale price in another, then subtract and divide: =(A1-B1)/A1, formatted as a percentage. It’s the same formula this calculator runs — just typed into a spreadsheet instead.
What’s the difference between a percentage discount and a fixed amount off?
A percentage discount scales with the price — 20% off a $500 item saves more dollars than 20% off a $50 item. A fixed amount off (like "$10 off") saves the same dollar amount regardless of price, which is worth more, proportionally, on cheaper items.
If a store advertises 20% off, then takes another 10% off at checkout, is that a 30% discount?
No — stacked discounts are applied one after another, not added together. $100 at 20% off becomes $80; taking a further 10% off that $80 brings it to $72, which is a 28% total discount, not 30%.
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Last updated: September 13, 2026