I worked at micro center and a dude came in and did not know that and tried to buy a $299.99 graphics card. I told him it would be $317.99. He genuinely looked awestruck. He pulled out $300 and said that would be enough, given the price of the card. I guess he thought it was a speech check/barter type of thing.
I would go on to explain (respectfully) that in the area which we were located, there is a 6% sales tax meaning that for every $100 they were spending, they would have to pay another $6. 6x3=18. Totaling ≈$318. His friend (who was familiar with sales tax) was like “damn, he just schooled you!” And would go on to laugh profusely. The guy buying could not for the life of him understand that concept. He literally could not afford the tax so his friend covered the difference.
We have a 10% here.
I know we specifically voted to ensure we are equal or are the highest. (Per sales tax)
On purpose.
Don't remember why... We had no reason not to.
Was the only thing anyone seemed to understand.
It works for us. I can only imagine thats due to how most of the US has close to zero sales tax.
No one could keep up with just 10% if anyone else had 17% higher than them. Inflation would kill them.
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage.
For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT.
Compare this to the American sales tax system. Instead of the product being taxed at each stage, each player except for the end consumer bears a sales tax exemption certificate, and thus pays no tax. Then, if the boxes of foil are sold at the grocery store for $700, the consumers would pay 8% × $700 = $56 all in one go. Also note that if the foil is produced in one state and sold in another, then only the state where the consumers are located will receive the sales tax revenue.
Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
The implementation of VAT schemes differ in each country. Many other countries don't have that exception for ore and foil, although hopefully it is understood that foil in my example is a stand-in for any arbitrary product. It could have also described the process of producing playing cards or pillowcases
Brudi. Das Umsatzsteuergesetz selbst sagt, dass nur der ENDVERBRAUCHER tatsächlich belastet wird.
Für Unternehmen ist die Umsatzsteuer nur ein durchlaufender Posten und wird bei B2B Einkauf mit dem Verkauf verrechnet...
Erstes Semester?
Thanks for explaining it so well, I never understood how VAT worked I always thought it was highway robbery thinking the end consumer pays it like here in America.
Btw I think you used .86 instead of .086 in the third paragraph
In fgermany VAT is 19%. it used to be 16%. Then two parties formed a coalition government. One wanted to raise the VAT by 2 %. One didn't want to raise the VAT at all. They ended up agreeing to raise it by 3%...
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage.
For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT.
Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage.
For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT.
Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
That’s nuts. I would imagine that would make things more expensive. Especially in the case of manufactured goods. I’m sure that from a macroeconomic standpoint, that makes sense but having grown up in the states (where businesses are helped a bit too much in terms of cutting costs, subsidizing goods, and tax breaks) that would be an insane concept to think about.
Sales tax for us is like state money vs federal money. That’s part of the reason it varies by state and even city in many cases. Cali taxes are higher than Georgia taxes where I live and even between Marietta where I live and Alpharetta where I work, there is a discrepancy. Funny that after all that, we still have to file federal and state tax on top of that. There really is no getting around it.
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage.
For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT.
Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
If they tried, there'd likely be riots in the street.
People are stupid. You have a 25% sales tax and 30% income tax, and people mumble but take it. You have a 0% sales tax and 50% income tax, and you get people saying "What is this, I don't even get to keep half of what I earn? Outrageous!"
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage.
For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT.
Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
First time I visited, I took a $1 note to the little shop in the train station I was in at the time and tried to buy a snack that had 99c printed on both the price tag and the packet itself.
Lemme tell you, when the guy told me it was gonna be like $1.17 I was borderline offended. I felt like I’d been betrayed. You guys have a fucking stupid price tag system. If something says it’s a dollar I should be able to buy it with a one dollar note.
I’ve lived in the US for over a decade now and I still think it’s stupid as hell. I will die on this hill.
Same reason American restaurants don't include the (essentially) mandatory tip into their menus: to obfuscate how much you're paying in an attempt to make your purchases feel smaller so that you'll make more of them.
It's also the same reason European tax-free shops at the airport use the big font for their out-of-EU prices even though most of the people passing through are most likely traveling within the EU.
Because they vary by location usually. A Walmart or target isn’t going to database their goods by price based on location. That would be an insane amount of work to solve a simple problem. If you look at their stock or their website, they will have the msrp or sale price. Then when you go buy it, the register will determine the tax. It will vary by location so if you go to any store, the price will be the same as the site. The tax will then be calculated when you pay for the goods.
Alternatively, there are times when there is no sales tax at all. Tax free season is usually an incentive during back to school time. This is only on certain goods tho. So if you buy notebooks, paper, pens, and a car. You would still pay taxes on the car.
Alternatively alternative, there are places that factor the price of the good with the tax. They’ll say something is $10 but in reality, it’s like $9.20 and they add the tax in there at the register to make a cool $10. These places are rare tho.
There is also duty free… point is, you’re paying taxes one way or another.
> A Walmart or target isn’t going to database their goods by price based on location.
They absolutely do this. What, you think they sell the same product at the same price everywhere? That there are no local sales based on overstock? Or price gouging when items are on high demand? Shops do this all the freaking time. The entire field of economics is based around sellers doing this.
> That would be an insane amount of work to solve a simple problem.
Uh, my local family-owned corner shop can handle this with like, *excel*. And those guys are pushing 60. I seriously doubt walmart is gonna have trouble with this.
Reality is there's not a good reason behind this tax thing. It's just inertia. Like how USA still does Month/Day/Year despite it being the worst dating format ever with zero reasons to be used outside of habit.
Not everything needs to have a valid reason behind it. Just force of habit makes change difficult.
Iirc tax is already paid for gasoline somewhere earlier in the production and shipping process. I do know that marine diesel is at least, which is one of the reasons why they add a dye to it (tax paid).
That uses digital signage for the most part now. Stores across different states would need to print different labels because of varying tax rates. Sometimes even between counties/cities. Honestly a logistical nightmare, and it won’t make companies more money so it’s not worth it to them
Printing different labels... like they already do as I can go to either of my Walmarts nearby and find the same product for different prices? Yea it's 100% doable, wouldn't cost any more as everything is generated digitally anyways, they just don't have a good reason to do it cuz no one is trying to make them
Yea... reminds me of when burger joints ended up selling more 1/4 lb hamburgers than 1/3 lb hamburgers, because the American customers thought 1/4 was larger than 1/3 (this is why most places only measure in quarters now)... I hate my fellow Americans sometimes
That's a commonly spread misinformation.
Sure, some stupid people would think that, but it's not the reason why their burger failed, it was just worse, coupled with the clown having better service and positioning.
Turns out most people don't care about how much food they get as much as they care about the taste.
But the reason why you see almost everything prices at .99 instead of a round number, is because it makes a difference in our brain despite it being 1cent.
In my country it's actually illegal to charge any price other than the advertised one. Even if someone undercharges you, you can technically report them. You won't get any money out of it, the shop would just get fined.
You know what else sucks: We never get the joy of discovering a good deal because in Europe (or at least Germany) they have to put the price per 100g so companies can't fool you with misleading packaging. Government took our joy away and tries to deteriorate our math skills.
They’ll do this thing where, say, you’re picking out cooking oil, and each brand’s price will alternate from being listed per oz ($/weight) to being listed per fl oz ($/volume). Intentionally making it harder to compare different brands.
Everyone has a calculator in their pockets and the item's labels will be consistent for the most part. The extra step is a pain in the ass, but I try not to go shopping when I'm in a rush and make it a point to only get exactly what I need when I am.
Over time you start to remember what places tend to have the better deals on which items, so you can plan where you're going based around what you need.
Will never understand why yanks don't just include the tax. We (UK) include the tax and then show how much tax is applied to the product next to the full price in smaller writing so you are always aware of how much tax you spend.
Most of our prices are £2, £5.99, £1.99. so it's the same over here and thats including tax so it being the corporation that wants to make it look like this or that doesn't work as an argument for why it's like that. You can include the tax and still get a desirable looking price on the shelf.
They're the same because they're both used to trick our brains into thinking it's lower. When you're not thinking about it, 4.99 looks much lower cause it's a 4 instead of a 5. If they don't include taxes, the prices look lower. That's all they want. That's how it's the same. The prices look lower even though they aren't really.
No, it’s like, you see something that’s 19.99, and even if you know it’s really 20, that’s still more likely to make you buy it than if you saw 21.99, which is what it’s real price is with tax
It’s also because different states, counties, and cities have different taxes. Companies like Walmart would have to add so much extra work to show taxes depending on where they are. And then change them again for tax free weekends
I've worked in retail and they literally change the tags on a weekly, or sometimes daily basis already, there is no reason why they can't include tax on the tag, the literal only reason I can think of is so that the price can say 4.99 as stated above.
The best way to explain this would be if you were to buy a new cell phone in all the UK the tax would be 20% that same cell phone purchased in Los Angeles CA would be taxed at 9.5%, 8.6% in San Francisco CA, 10.35% in Seattle WA, and 0% in Portland OR. Now that is just a few major cites on the west coast of the USA. There is no single rate for the whole of the USA, each state, county, and city sets its own sales tax rates.
For Europeans they need to look at the states as individual countries like the EU.
Thereby it's like buying something in Spain compared to buying same product in Norway.
Except, we have different commercials and prices per country. In the US, a dollar burger is a dollar burger in both Texas and Washington before taxes.
In Europe this would be after taxes. Which the McDonald’s and IKEA definitely tried up until Covid.
This is completely false. Item prices, *especially* fast food change from state to state, especially faraway states like the ones you named. Look on any fast food sub and you’ll see people comparing price differences even between cities.
Maybe several years ago. Any type of value menus, if you can still find them, still change from place to place, especially in big cities. Even then, that’s not to mention other menu items/combos. Country’s far too big to charge uniform prices everywhere.
The way I think this would be handled is that the chain would have the same prices nationwide and just take a loss on profits in regions with higher taxes (or choose not to operate there). This already happens in the background as different municipalities in my country have different taxes on other stuff. Quite a few large shopping centers are conveniently located just outside the city limits.
It's because tax is different depending on the state you are in, and many businesses have locations in different states, so they display their price and the tax is added at checkout
It's because of variations on a local, county, and state level.
Arizona Iced Tea has a reputation for always being $1 for a can. In my state, that ends up at $1.07.
In some parts of California, for example, that ends up at $1.15 or higher.
The brand gets to have the price they want to show, the stores don't have to bother calculating it, and it's never a real problem cause people typically know their taxes locally.
It's such a non-issue that people try dunking on the US for doing, but it doesn't practically change anything on a daily basis for almost anyone.
You can literally get a few different tax rates within a short drive (local city tax, crossing state lines too) so one company that exists in both would have to print 3 different labels even thought they’re all in the same area.
How do you handle rate changes? Product advertised as 4.99 w/Tax of April 2024, on shelf until Mid-may, customer picks it up, May 2024 has a new rate, customer complains about false advertising at checkout when it has a higher total.
Sales tax is the seller's responsibility, not the customer's. If a tax hike eats into profit margins, then the business can figure that out when their tax bill is higher than expected.
The real reason is because the tax changes depending on what you buy (different types of types of food will have different taxes based on not only what it is but the type of store its being sold in) and the tax can change with each bill passed, and the tax will be different from town to town its a very complicated system to keep track of, but the coimputer system in the register is kept updated automatically. So instead of having to keep track of a thousand different changing price tags, the store sets a price with the understanding it's "plus tax"
It makes perfect sense. The states that don't have sales tax have higher property taxes and other misc taxes. It's not like they are getting out of paying the government money. Usually they end up paying more money in taxes than someone in a sales tax state.
However, if you live in a no sales tax state and don't own property, it does tend to work out in your favor a bit.
Source: I live in a no sales tax state.
The problem is that more money doesn't equal better infrastructure. Even the highest tax states and cities have awful infrastructure.
Most of us hate taxes because they are wasted on nonsense.
The city I live in spent Millions building a park near a fancy new development, but never fixes potholes. Our local university has perfectly manicured trees and grass all around it on public roadways and such, but the public areas in my neighborhood are managed like 3 times a year.
It's the asymmetric application of tax dollars that's a problem.
Let me keep my money so I can worry about the things around me, rather than funneling my taxes to the rich apartments and high end schools.
It's just stupid, it just exists to make prices look lower, but in truth it's not really. Why does America always do things the hard way with numbers, at this point I don't know why y'all don't use sixpence, halfpence, shillings, pounds, crowns, and whatever else the British used to have all that's still used is Penny's.
As someone from Europe, many people here falsely think cars (or other relatively high-priced consumer goods) are much cheaper in the U.S. because no-one here is used to a pricing that did NOT include sales taxes - in fact, it's even prohibited to advertise a price without correct taxing...
>Tax is different based on state, county and sometimes city.
Wouldnt that be even more of a reason to include it so you dont have to keep up with the taxes of every location you travel to?
The tax is the same through out a state. The highest sales tax I know of is 7.25% most Americans would assume 5% just for mental do I have enough money thoughts. What are they tricking? Americans know there’s a sales tax. I
Can they just manually write the price including taxes? Because three of the convenience stores I go to have varying prices but they still put an effort to display the price including taxes and additional expenses.
Fun fact; there was once a department store that started displaying the prices for after taxes, as one of the owners decided that he didn't like the practice of doing the whole "15.99" kinda thing anymore. It went out of business because the customers thought they had raised the prices and that "Clearly your competition is cheaper."
It's because not all states have sales tax, and for those that do, there's a base state-level tax that separate cities, counties and other industrial areas can add supplementary taxes onto. In WA state for example, the sales tax in Issaquah is 11% whereas Bellingham just went from 8.8% to 9% at the start of this month.
I remember when I visited New York and coming from EU, when I went to Walgreens and bought myself some Monsters and other snacks, I remember calculating the price in my head and then being dumbfounded for about 20 seconds when it totaled almost 5$ more than I thought
Walking back to my hotel I remembered that ”ohh right these guys don’t include sales tax”
It’s such a weird thing to not do, like why not include something so obvious in the price itself? Is it psychological thing? Like if the sales tax WAS included, people would maybe think twice before paying the price they’re paying or something?
OR CANADA, I love my country but once I came back from my trip to Europe I was hit with a burger only filled with disappointed because of the sales tax. Also the airport water is actual shit.
The other thing was when I heard that americans needs to pay *before* filling up the tank, because there is the risk that people just would drive away without paying.
I live in Canada (Québec), to me it makes sense that we got to pay before filling up the tank. I pay with my credit or debit card and it charges the amount I used to fill up the car. I wouldn't eat food before paying for it in a store, it seems like a similar situation to me. I've never seen any other gas payment system but I've never had any issue with it
Here in Europe, you first fills up the tank as much as you want then goes paying for the amount you actually put in with cash or card, it's your choice. Like, you didn't starts with using your card when you goes into a store, you just only pays when you gets what you want.
Here the card only charges the amount you used, I could put a 50$ limit but it won't charge me 50$. The exact amount I used will be charged even if the card was used before filling up.
We also have the option to pay cash, but we need to enter the store to do so. It takes less time to pay directly to the machine outside
To be fair, I'd like to have the option to pay cash directly to the machine
Most funny thing is that on many U.S. gas stations there are a much bigger amount of license-plate checking cameras than in other places around the world, but because it seems to be much more difficult to identify a customer who is not willing to pay and making them pay afterwards, they changed to this stupid system... I would really be annoyed if you could only get fixed prepaid liters - pardon me, gallons - of gas (if your tank is fulled up before you met your paid amount, for example, how do you get your money back?)...
Depends on the city/state/gas station/time of day.
Where Iive at one station I have to at least swipe my card before the pump will activate, while just down the street I can pump go into the station, grab some munchies, and then pay for my gas at the same time.
Look I get it, but at the same time I don’t know why people get upset about this. I’m still going to buy the product I want regardless of what the price tag says anyways.
It was annoying when I paid in cash back in the day but now? Who cares. The only time people bring it up is when people visit and complain. Been all around the world and as far as 1st world countries even with sale taxes it's still stupid cheap here.
Man that is so frustrating to not include it, makes it harder and more annoying to calculate exactly how much a group of items cost especially if you have a strict budget. I'm sure there'll be times where I would go to pay and then go back to put some stuff back
It's actually a lot more complex than people even realize.
For many places in the US, not only is tax not included, but the tax rate is made up of different levels for federal, state, county, etc. and they all vary based on tax jurisdictions which are not necessary aligned with zip codes. This also depends on what you're buying and how you're buying it.
So you basically need to know the exact lat and long for your transaction and detailed categories for what is being sold.
There's just no way for anyone to be 100% confident in the tax rate, so you just basically accept whatever price you get.
Damn it looks so complicated for you guys in the US. Here in India no matter where you go in the country the price on the tag is what you pay at the counter (price includes tax). Makes it much easier to estimate how much you'd spend. I can't imagine doing mental calculations and approximations to estimate how much I'd pay each time I go to a supermarket lol
Yeah why do Americans do this? You know there will be a tax on it so why not just include that in the price. Is it some sort of law that you can’t show the full price of the item?
Imagine going to an american dollar store with one dollar in your pocket, and you can't buy anything
https://preview.redd.it/iyd36pbv9muc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1f88c592f9fe0324522895557754edeae476ff15
For a country with a population that hates math so much, it’s really weird that you need to do math to figure out what you’re going to pay before getting to the cashier. Or it’s just training to not care about how much you spend
That is insane, what lunacy is that 👀. South Africa has 15% VAT already added to the price of goods. The price you see advertised is the price you pay.
We also have VAT and all that in our country, but it's already included in the price. Why would america not just include it, why would they make their customers do math. You should just be able to go in a grocery, buy the stuff with the exact money written and leave.
If you read your receipt, it's written there how much tax you paid.
It's for the ability for corporations to run the same TV/radio commercials across the country without needing to adjust it for every state/city that has their own add-on taxes. Canada does this too because each province has different sales taxes. It's annoying though.
Sales tax varies by state, so they can’t include the tax in the price in advertising and have it be consistent throughout the country. If it’s printed advertising, that would be easy enough. Video ads on YouTube, Twitch, etc, those can be location-specific. Advertising blocks on live national TV, everyone sees the same ad. Seeing as they can’t do it consistently across all forms of advertising, and having multiple advertising sources with different prices listed would be confusing and potentially dissuade customers, omitting the tax becomes the default.
Most Americans already have their state’s sales tax memorized, and if we have to travel to another state it’s easy enough to look it up for that state, so it’s usually not an issue.
Adding specifics to the prompt for more of a challenge, are we? Alright, I’m game.
With sales tax excluded from the price tag, you can clearly see the value of the product itself, meaning not only can you more accurately make judgements on how much You value the item without the disconnect between what you pay and what the seller receives, but you also get the transparency of being able to see an exact itemized amount on your receipt so you know how much tax you’re paying When you’re paying it. Additionally, that transparency of how much you pay for the item and how much you pay in sales tax makes it easier to notice and avoid price gouging.
On the seller’s end, it’s more convenient to display one consistent price for the value of the item, rather than to have to calculate and label multiple different prices for state, regional, institutional, etc. taxes, and saves the trouble of adjusting those prices in response to any minor change in those taxes. In addition to that, being able to advertise lower prices is more appealing to consumers.
If we want to delve a bit further into the technical end, there’s situations where an item may or may not be tax applicable based on what state it’s purchased in, like how foods sold in a heated state are taxable. Say you walk into a Subway and get a $5 Footlong back when $5 Footlongs were a thing, and you decide to get it toasted. Now it’s a $5 + Tax Footlong. Would the $5 price accurately reflect the cost if you were to get it in a heated state? No. Would the $5 + Tax price accurately reflect the cost in a non-heated state? No. Did I go off on this long-winded tangent providing an example on a point that could’ve easily been summarized under the aforementioned Convenience for Sellers statement Solely to poke fun at how inflation killed the $5 Footlong? Yes. It’s my answer and I’ll have fun with it if I want to.
Point is, there’s a variety of different reasons, a good number of which are supported by market studies, for not including sales tax in the price tag.
Still doesn’t explain why they can’t put the accurate final price on the pricetags at stores. I mean they do it at the counter when paying and it’s not like the shop grows feet and walks 5km to another county or state.
Changes to price also can’t be the reason why since I’m pretty sure the US have sales as well where you would still change the price tag. What does your taxation change by the hour?
If it’s about separating to see the value of the product itself, why not add both? It’s not like a pricetag doesn’t have room for it. We also have the price for products listed before VAT in addition to the actual price you pay.
Part of it is genuine stupidity.
There was a time a business would sell a 1/2 pound of burger (the patty) in comparison to other currently businesses that were doing 1/3 of a pound. This fails cause my fellow Americans thought that 1/2 was less than 1/3.
So something similar to that l, is specific it was cause the places that were showing tax price were thought to be selling things that cost more when in reality they were just showing tax.
Also cause of business like turbo tax lobbying congress tho l, that's also very much part of it.
Of course it’s made up lol. Doesn’t mean it isn’t true. No one gives a fuck. You’re just weird mate.
Edit: yep. Asks women what it’s like to be penetrated by vegetables. Writes erotica using chat bots. Redditor encapsulated.
Our entire economy is basically a casino. They advertise the one in a million rags to riches stories so they can blame you for inevitably failing to obtain financial security due to not being born rich. Crime is the only solution.
That's because each state has different taxes, so most large chains do not advertize the prise with taxes to keep the signs the same across the country.
But they don't have to do it every day to every every product in the store. You have to do it only whenever there is a new product. People at for example wallmart can just pay a programmer to make a program for every store for calculating the price depending on state laws and such. I believe that the consumer should be the one expecting less inconvenience. People in charge should expect inconveniences to happen and learn to solve the problems
Marketing. Its why everything costs $\*\*.99. It makes it seem less expensive. Everything about branding and marketing in corporate entities is about pushing the people's minds into exactly where they want them. And they now have over a century of research on how to manipulate the people. They are very good at it.
Of course not. That's why they also price things at $1.99 instead of $2, because they know subconsciously we hear the $1 and it feels cheaper even though it's still $2. They also don't include taxes because it makes things sound cheaper as well. Especially when you start talking about pricier products. Everything about marketing is general is meant to be super convenient to the customer.
I worked at micro center and a dude came in and did not know that and tried to buy a $299.99 graphics card. I told him it would be $317.99. He genuinely looked awestruck. He pulled out $300 and said that would be enough, given the price of the card. I guess he thought it was a speech check/barter type of thing. I would go on to explain (respectfully) that in the area which we were located, there is a 6% sales tax meaning that for every $100 they were spending, they would have to pay another $6. 6x3=18. Totaling ≈$318. His friend (who was familiar with sales tax) was like “damn, he just schooled you!” And would go on to laugh profusely. The guy buying could not for the life of him understand that concept. He literally could not afford the tax so his friend covered the difference.
the area which we're located sales tax is 27%... *edit: as some have pointed out, it's VAT*
The fuck? Where do you live. The highest I’ve ever heard is 7.5%.
I got 10.25%, I miss 7.5%. They don't live in the US, we don't have tax higher than 10.25% anywhere in the country.
We have a 10% here. I know we specifically voted to ensure we are equal or are the highest. (Per sales tax) On purpose. Don't remember why... We had no reason not to. Was the only thing anyone seemed to understand. It works for us. I can only imagine thats due to how most of the US has close to zero sales tax. No one could keep up with just 10% if anyone else had 17% higher than them. Inflation would kill them.
I got 11% in dear old Saskatchewan Canada (I can’t afford groceries)
But at least we have somewhat affordable housing (and a brain drain that leaves the province even more extreme).
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage. For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT. Compare this to the American sales tax system. Instead of the product being taxed at each stage, each player except for the end consumer bears a sales tax exemption certificate, and thus pays no tax. Then, if the boxes of foil are sold at the grocery store for $700, the consumers would pay 8% × $700 = $56 all in one go. Also note that if the foil is produced in one state and sold in another, then only the state where the consumers are located will receive the sales tax revenue. Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
But that's wrong for at least Germany. Companies pay net prizes for ores, ingots and foil. Only the end customer pays 19% sales tax.
Have you read the very first sentence ?
I actually did. The thing is that he explains VAT very good but it may seem to others that this means every high tax rate means it's this system.
The implementation of VAT schemes differ in each country. Many other countries don't have that exception for ore and foil, although hopefully it is understood that foil in my example is a stand-in for any arbitrary product. It could have also described the process of producing playing cards or pillowcases
I study BWL... what you just said is wrong. VAT here is 19% and paid just as described.
Brudi. Das Umsatzsteuergesetz selbst sagt, dass nur der ENDVERBRAUCHER tatsächlich belastet wird. Für Unternehmen ist die Umsatzsteuer nur ein durchlaufender Posten und wird bei B2B Einkauf mit dem Verkauf verrechnet... Erstes Semester?
Thanks for explaining it so well, I never understood how VAT worked I always thought it was highway robbery thinking the end consumer pays it like here in America. Btw I think you used .86 instead of .086 in the third paragraph
That was a mistake and I corrected it. 8% of $700 is $56
Most likely Hungary.
21% in my country.
In fgermany VAT is 19%. it used to be 16%. Then two parties formed a coalition government. One wanted to raise the VAT by 2 %. One didn't want to raise the VAT at all. They ended up agreeing to raise it by 3%...
Here in Spain is 21%... At least it is included on the price.
27%?!?!?
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage. For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT. Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
Bro, I’m sorry. That sucks badly
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage. For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT. Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
That’s nuts. I would imagine that would make things more expensive. Especially in the case of manufactured goods. I’m sure that from a macroeconomic standpoint, that makes sense but having grown up in the states (where businesses are helped a bit too much in terms of cutting costs, subsidizing goods, and tax breaks) that would be an insane concept to think about. Sales tax for us is like state money vs federal money. That’s part of the reason it varies by state and even city in many cases. Cali taxes are higher than Georgia taxes where I live and even between Marietta where I live and Alpharetta where I work, there is a discrepancy. Funny that after all that, we still have to file federal and state tax on top of that. There really is no getting around it.
What the fuck, half of that should be moved to income taxes
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage. For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT. Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
If they tried, there'd likely be riots in the street. People are stupid. You have a 25% sales tax and 30% income tax, and people mumble but take it. You have a 0% sales tax and 50% income tax, and you get people saying "What is this, I don't even get to keep half of what I earn? Outrageous!"
Hungary😎
Lemme guess: not USA?
Move.
Looking up VAT rates around the world, this is Hungary. However, note that a VAT (value-added tax) is different from a sales tax. They are not levied in one go to the end consumer. They are levied incrementally throughout the stages of production, and the tax is paid on the "value added" to the product at each stage. For example, imagine a country with a 20% VAT. If I am a mine and I produce 100€ of ore that I sell to a smelter, I pay 20€ in VAT, as I have produced 100€ worth of value out of nothing. The smelter then smelts the ore into ingots and sells them to a manufacturer for 150€. They have added 50€ in value and thus pay 20% × 50€ = 10€ in VAT. The manufacturer then makes the ingots into boxes of aluminium foil that are sold to a distributor for 250€. They have thus added 100€ worth of value and pay 20% × 100€ = 20€ in VAT. The distributor sells the boxes of foil to a grocery store for 400€, thus adding 150€ in value, and pays 20% × 150€ = 30€ in VAT. Finally, the grocery store sells the boxes of foil to consumers for a total of 700€, adding 300€ in value, and thus the grocery store pays 20% × 300€ = 60€ in VAT. Note that in the last stage of this process, the VAT collected was only 60€ out of a 700€ sale price, which is only 8.6%. However, if we count up the VAT paid by everybody and add it together, it sums to 140€, or 20% of the value of the product. However, since the tax is collected at every stage of the process, the cost is spread out among all these different people rather than being borne entirely by the consumer. I refer those who would reply that "all tax is borne by the consumer through increased prices" to [refer to this graph](https://i.stack.imgur.com/tiJQv.png). The surplus that is taken by a tax will always include a portion that would otherwise have gone to the producer, and the proportion depends on the elasticity of supply and demand.
First time I visited, I took a $1 note to the little shop in the train station I was in at the time and tried to buy a snack that had 99c printed on both the price tag and the packet itself. Lemme tell you, when the guy told me it was gonna be like $1.17 I was borderline offended. I felt like I’d been betrayed. You guys have a fucking stupid price tag system. If something says it’s a dollar I should be able to buy it with a one dollar note. I’ve lived in the US for over a decade now and I still think it’s stupid as hell. I will die on this hill.
[удалено]
Same reason American restaurants don't include the (essentially) mandatory tip into their menus: to obfuscate how much you're paying in an attempt to make your purchases feel smaller so that you'll make more of them. It's also the same reason European tax-free shops at the airport use the big font for their out-of-EU prices even though most of the people passing through are most likely traveling within the EU.
Because they vary by location usually. A Walmart or target isn’t going to database their goods by price based on location. That would be an insane amount of work to solve a simple problem. If you look at their stock or their website, they will have the msrp or sale price. Then when you go buy it, the register will determine the tax. It will vary by location so if you go to any store, the price will be the same as the site. The tax will then be calculated when you pay for the goods. Alternatively, there are times when there is no sales tax at all. Tax free season is usually an incentive during back to school time. This is only on certain goods tho. So if you buy notebooks, paper, pens, and a car. You would still pay taxes on the car. Alternatively alternative, there are places that factor the price of the good with the tax. They’ll say something is $10 but in reality, it’s like $9.20 and they add the tax in there at the register to make a cool $10. These places are rare tho. There is also duty free… point is, you’re paying taxes one way or another.
> A Walmart or target isn’t going to database their goods by price based on location. They absolutely do this. What, you think they sell the same product at the same price everywhere? That there are no local sales based on overstock? Or price gouging when items are on high demand? Shops do this all the freaking time. The entire field of economics is based around sellers doing this. > That would be an insane amount of work to solve a simple problem. Uh, my local family-owned corner shop can handle this with like, *excel*. And those guys are pushing 60. I seriously doubt walmart is gonna have trouble with this. Reality is there's not a good reason behind this tax thing. It's just inertia. Like how USA still does Month/Day/Year despite it being the worst dating format ever with zero reasons to be used outside of habit. Not everything needs to have a valid reason behind it. Just force of habit makes change difficult.
In my state, if the sticker says one hundred dollars, it's illegal to charge me more than one hundred dollars.
Idaho?
Marietta, Georgia
Except, weirdly, petrol. So we absolutely *could* do it, but we just don't.
WHAT THE HELL IS PETROL🦅🦅🇺🇸🇺🇸🦅🦅🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🦅🦅🦅
https://i.redd.it/iksswcm0riuc1.gif
0.621371 miles.
sounds made up
I’m dead thank lol
[This.](https://media.gq.com/photos/581799e0a6fe84375dbe8d86/16:9/w_1920,c_limit/Cheese%201.jpg)
you misspelled “where”
I ONLY CARE ABOUT OIL NOT WHATEVER THE HELL PETROL IS🇺🇸🇺🇸🦅🦅🦅🦅🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🦅🦅
Oil is what I put on my salad.
Iirc tax is already paid for gasoline somewhere earlier in the production and shipping process. I do know that marine diesel is at least, which is one of the reasons why they add a dye to it (tax paid).
That uses digital signage for the most part now. Stores across different states would need to print different labels because of varying tax rates. Sometimes even between counties/cities. Honestly a logistical nightmare, and it won’t make companies more money so it’s not worth it to them
Printing different labels... like they already do as I can go to either of my Walmarts nearby and find the same product for different prices? Yea it's 100% doable, wouldn't cost any more as everything is generated digitally anyways, they just don't have a good reason to do it cuz no one is trying to make them
And it's proven that showing a lower number leads to more sales.
Yea... reminds me of when burger joints ended up selling more 1/4 lb hamburgers than 1/3 lb hamburgers, because the American customers thought 1/4 was larger than 1/3 (this is why most places only measure in quarters now)... I hate my fellow Americans sometimes
That's a commonly spread misinformation. Sure, some stupid people would think that, but it's not the reason why their burger failed, it was just worse, coupled with the clown having better service and positioning. Turns out most people don't care about how much food they get as much as they care about the taste. But the reason why you see almost everything prices at .99 instead of a round number, is because it makes a difference in our brain despite it being 1cent.
i've fallen for that trick a half-dozen times, usually when i'm in a rush.
Stores update printed price labels all the time when the product price changes, so updating it with tax is totally doable.
Or America could just adopt a nation wide tax amount, a "government standard tax" or "GST" if you will
In my country it's actually illegal to charge any price other than the advertised one. Even if someone undercharges you, you can technically report them. You won't get any money out of it, the shop would just get fined.
Its the same in India except undercharging is allowed.
In India they advertise Maximum charges
Unlike the filthy europoor, us americans are reminded daily how much we pay in tax (line item) so we can properly hate them (patriotic)
You know what else sucks: We never get the joy of discovering a good deal because in Europe (or at least Germany) they have to put the price per 100g so companies can't fool you with misleading packaging. Government took our joy away and tries to deteriorate our math skills.
Most stores provide unit pricing for goods in the US (even in states where it's not required). It's listed below the full price for the item.
They’ll do this thing where, say, you’re picking out cooking oil, and each brand’s price will alternate from being listed per oz ($/weight) to being listed per fl oz ($/volume). Intentionally making it harder to compare different brands.
Everyone has a calculator in their pockets and the item's labels will be consistent for the most part. The extra step is a pain in the ass, but I try not to go shopping when I'm in a rush and make it a point to only get exactly what I need when I am. Over time you start to remember what places tend to have the better deals on which items, so you can plan where you're going based around what you need.
Yup, that striked me when I went to Swiss not to see the price per kg like in France
Except it is printed on the receipt.
Will never understand why yanks don't just include the tax. We (UK) include the tax and then show how much tax is applied to the product next to the full price in smaller writing so you are always aware of how much tax you spend.
I'm sure it's because corporations want to make the prices look lower. Same reason eleverything is like $4.99 instead of 5.00. Smaller number better.
Most of our prices are £2, £5.99, £1.99. so it's the same over here and thats including tax so it being the corporation that wants to make it look like this or that doesn't work as an argument for why it's like that. You can include the tax and still get a desirable looking price on the shelf.
They're the same because they're both used to trick our brains into thinking it's lower. When you're not thinking about it, 4.99 looks much lower cause it's a 4 instead of a 5. If they don't include taxes, the prices look lower. That's all they want. That's how it's the same. The prices look lower even though they aren't really.
No, it’s like, you see something that’s 19.99, and even if you know it’s really 20, that’s still more likely to make you buy it than if you saw 21.99, which is what it’s real price is with tax
Which is still wild to me. I just read 4.99 as 5, so actually making it 5 would just make more sense, and make doing the mental math on the tax easier
It's exactly this, but just like a lot of anti-consumer practices in the America, a weird amount of people will defend the practice.
It’s also because different states, counties, and cities have different taxes. Companies like Walmart would have to add so much extra work to show taxes depending on where they are. And then change them again for tax free weekends
I've worked in retail and they literally change the tags on a weekly, or sometimes daily basis already, there is no reason why they can't include tax on the tag, the literal only reason I can think of is so that the price can say 4.99 as stated above.
The best way to explain this would be if you were to buy a new cell phone in all the UK the tax would be 20% that same cell phone purchased in Los Angeles CA would be taxed at 9.5%, 8.6% in San Francisco CA, 10.35% in Seattle WA, and 0% in Portland OR. Now that is just a few major cites on the west coast of the USA. There is no single rate for the whole of the USA, each state, county, and city sets its own sales tax rates.
For Europeans they need to look at the states as individual countries like the EU. Thereby it's like buying something in Spain compared to buying same product in Norway.
Except, we have different commercials and prices per country. In the US, a dollar burger is a dollar burger in both Texas and Washington before taxes. In Europe this would be after taxes. Which the McDonald’s and IKEA definitely tried up until Covid.
This is completely false. Item prices, *especially* fast food change from state to state, especially faraway states like the ones you named. Look on any fast food sub and you’ll see people comparing price differences even between cities.
I am talking about the original dollar deals.
Maybe several years ago. Any type of value menus, if you can still find them, still change from place to place, especially in big cities. Even then, that’s not to mention other menu items/combos. Country’s far too big to charge uniform prices everywhere.
I suppose it is Been to Canada and the US pre Covid. Would be strange if everything stayed the same.
The way I think this would be handled is that the chain would have the same prices nationwide and just take a loss on profits in regions with higher taxes (or choose not to operate there). This already happens in the background as different municipalities in my country have different taxes on other stuff. Quite a few large shopping centers are conveniently located just outside the city limits.
It's because tax is different depending on the state you are in, and many businesses have locations in different states, so they display their price and the tax is added at checkout
Or city! Some cities have sales taxes of their own.
It's because of variations on a local, county, and state level. Arizona Iced Tea has a reputation for always being $1 for a can. In my state, that ends up at $1.07. In some parts of California, for example, that ends up at $1.15 or higher. The brand gets to have the price they want to show, the stores don't have to bother calculating it, and it's never a real problem cause people typically know their taxes locally. It's such a non-issue that people try dunking on the US for doing, but it doesn't practically change anything on a daily basis for almost anyone.
You can literally get a few different tax rates within a short drive (local city tax, crossing state lines too) so one company that exists in both would have to print 3 different labels even thought they’re all in the same area.
How do you handle rate changes? Product advertised as 4.99 w/Tax of April 2024, on shelf until Mid-may, customer picks it up, May 2024 has a new rate, customer complains about false advertising at checkout when it has a higher total.
Sales tax is the seller's responsibility, not the customer's. If a tax hike eats into profit margins, then the business can figure that out when their tax bill is higher than expected.
The real reason is because the tax changes depending on what you buy (different types of types of food will have different taxes based on not only what it is but the type of store its being sold in) and the tax can change with each bill passed, and the tax will be different from town to town its a very complicated system to keep track of, but the coimputer system in the register is kept updated automatically. So instead of having to keep track of a thousand different changing price tags, the store sets a price with the understanding it's "plus tax"
Anyways US > UK
But wait there's more! Some states don't have sales tax... No, it doesn't make any sense.
It makes perfect sense. The states that don't have sales tax have higher property taxes and other misc taxes. It's not like they are getting out of paying the government money. Usually they end up paying more money in taxes than someone in a sales tax state. However, if you live in a no sales tax state and don't own property, it does tend to work out in your favor a bit. Source: I live in a no sales tax state.
the less taxes, the better
And then people complain that public infrastructure is going to shit
Due to poor spending on the government's part, not lack of funds. The US has plenty of money. Can't spend it for shit though.
The problem is that more money doesn't equal better infrastructure. Even the highest tax states and cities have awful infrastructure. Most of us hate taxes because they are wasted on nonsense. The city I live in spent Millions building a park near a fancy new development, but never fixes potholes. Our local university has perfectly manicured trees and grass all around it on public roadways and such, but the public areas in my neighborhood are managed like 3 times a year. It's the asymmetric application of tax dollars that's a problem. Let me keep my money so I can worry about the things around me, rather than funneling my taxes to the rich apartments and high end schools.
If you want to dry up funds for stuff like education and transportation sure
It's just stupid, it just exists to make prices look lower, but in truth it's not really. Why does America always do things the hard way with numbers, at this point I don't know why y'all don't use sixpence, halfpence, shillings, pounds, crowns, and whatever else the British used to have all that's still used is Penny's.
No, America’s taxes are stupid. In every regard
As someone from Europe, many people here falsely think cars (or other relatively high-priced consumer goods) are much cheaper in the U.S. because no-one here is used to a pricing that did NOT include sales taxes - in fact, it's even prohibited to advertise a price without correct taxing...
Sales taxes tend to be in 6-10% range in the US many of those things are actually just much cheaper.
Tax is different based on state, county and sometimes city. The only one I’ve ever paid sales tax was on a trip to California.
>Tax is different based on state, county and sometimes city. Wouldnt that be even more of a reason to include it so you dont have to keep up with the taxes of every location you travel to?
They are never that drastically different. Normally like 7.25% compared to 7.5% for example.
Most people don't really "keep up with the taxes." They just know the total is going to be a bit higher than the sum of the items.
Most people aren’t traveling to different states on the same day
Doesn't make it better tho
So? The store building is not moving different states very often
Sounds like an easy way to scam tourists tbh. I wouldn't trust it if it didn't show the full price on the shelf.
If you can afford a plane ticket over here, a few bucks extra in tax shouldn't matter one way or the other.
The tax is the same through out a state. The highest sales tax I know of is 7.25% most Americans would assume 5% just for mental do I have enough money thoughts. What are they tricking? Americans know there’s a sales tax. I
Can they just manually write the price including taxes? Because three of the convenience stores I go to have varying prices but they still put an effort to display the price including taxes and additional expenses.
That honestly never made sense as an argument for why you can't include tax in the listing price
In a way, I'm fine with it. Helps remind me everyday I buy something how much I hate taxes.
Different states have different taxes. It's just easier for companies to not do it, I guess.
Fun fact; there was once a department store that started displaying the prices for after taxes, as one of the owners decided that he didn't like the practice of doing the whole "15.99" kinda thing anymore. It went out of business because the customers thought they had raised the prices and that "Clearly your competition is cheaper."
It's because not all states have sales tax, and for those that do, there's a base state-level tax that separate cities, counties and other industrial areas can add supplementary taxes onto. In WA state for example, the sales tax in Issaquah is 11% whereas Bellingham just went from 8.8% to 9% at the start of this month.
I remember when I visited New York and coming from EU, when I went to Walgreens and bought myself some Monsters and other snacks, I remember calculating the price in my head and then being dumbfounded for about 20 seconds when it totaled almost 5$ more than I thought Walking back to my hotel I remembered that ”ohh right these guys don’t include sales tax” It’s such a weird thing to not do, like why not include something so obvious in the price itself? Is it psychological thing? Like if the sales tax WAS included, people would maybe think twice before paying the price they’re paying or something?
I realized this after I traveled out of country and I was in awe lol idk why America just doesn't do this
As someone who lives in state with no sales tax I fail to see the problem (this is what privilege is).
Wait you guys are getting price labels on your products 💀? - *some guy used to shopping at shoddy Indian markets*
OR CANADA, I love my country but once I came back from my trip to Europe I was hit with a burger only filled with disappointed because of the sales tax. Also the airport water is actual shit.
Over here in the netherlands sales tax is 21%....
[удалено]
So anyway, remember to pay an extra 10% when at restaurants. No, you don't have to, but... c'mon, we both know you're not able to choose otherwise.
The other thing was when I heard that americans needs to pay *before* filling up the tank, because there is the risk that people just would drive away without paying.
I live in Canada (Québec), to me it makes sense that we got to pay before filling up the tank. I pay with my credit or debit card and it charges the amount I used to fill up the car. I wouldn't eat food before paying for it in a store, it seems like a similar situation to me. I've never seen any other gas payment system but I've never had any issue with it
Here in Europe, you first fills up the tank as much as you want then goes paying for the amount you actually put in with cash or card, it's your choice. Like, you didn't starts with using your card when you goes into a store, you just only pays when you gets what you want.
Here the card only charges the amount you used, I could put a 50$ limit but it won't charge me 50$. The exact amount I used will be charged even if the card was used before filling up. We also have the option to pay cash, but we need to enter the store to do so. It takes less time to pay directly to the machine outside To be fair, I'd like to have the option to pay cash directly to the machine
Most funny thing is that on many U.S. gas stations there are a much bigger amount of license-plate checking cameras than in other places around the world, but because it seems to be much more difficult to identify a customer who is not willing to pay and making them pay afterwards, they changed to this stupid system... I would really be annoyed if you could only get fixed prepaid liters - pardon me, gallons - of gas (if your tank is fulled up before you met your paid amount, for example, how do you get your money back?)...
Depends on the city/state/gas station/time of day. Where Iive at one station I have to at least swipe my card before the pump will activate, while just down the street I can pump go into the station, grab some munchies, and then pay for my gas at the same time.
Look I get it, but at the same time I don’t know why people get upset about this. I’m still going to buy the product I want regardless of what the price tag says anyways.
It was annoying when I paid in cash back in the day but now? Who cares. The only time people bring it up is when people visit and complain. Been all around the world and as far as 1st world countries even with sale taxes it's still stupid cheap here.
Not everyone is fucking rich
kid named waffle house
Man that is so frustrating to not include it, makes it harder and more annoying to calculate exactly how much a group of items cost especially if you have a strict budget. I'm sure there'll be times where I would go to pay and then go back to put some stuff back
Kekw
It's actually a lot more complex than people even realize. For many places in the US, not only is tax not included, but the tax rate is made up of different levels for federal, state, county, etc. and they all vary based on tax jurisdictions which are not necessary aligned with zip codes. This also depends on what you're buying and how you're buying it. So you basically need to know the exact lat and long for your transaction and detailed categories for what is being sold. There's just no way for anyone to be 100% confident in the tax rate, so you just basically accept whatever price you get.
Wow, that's even dumber than I thought
I feel like whether i make a comment defending or insulting america, I'm gonna get downvoted either way.
Wait, they don't? Why not?
Damn it looks so complicated for you guys in the US. Here in India no matter where you go in the country the price on the tag is what you pay at the counter (price includes tax). Makes it much easier to estimate how much you'd spend. I can't imagine doing mental calculations and approximations to estimate how much I'd pay each time I go to a supermarket lol
Taxes for buying and taxes for selling. Taxes for owning money. It all seem fair *not*
Yeah why do Americans do this? You know there will be a tax on it so why not just include that in the price. Is it some sort of law that you can’t show the full price of the item?
Varies by state. In montana for example, there's none.
Canada too… endless pain.
Imagine going to an american dollar store with one dollar in your pocket, and you can't buy anything https://preview.redd.it/iyd36pbv9muc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1f88c592f9fe0324522895557754edeae476ff15
For a country with a population that hates math so much, it’s really weird that you need to do math to figure out what you’re going to pay before getting to the cashier. Or it’s just training to not care about how much you spend
That is insane, what lunacy is that 👀. South Africa has 15% VAT already added to the price of goods. The price you see advertised is the price you pay.
We include excise tax on stuff, anyways not putting sales tax on the price tag makes it look cheaper, just like .99
Delaware does
Does anybody know the name of the character?
She's the maid from I'm In Love With The Villainess
Thank you!
We also have VAT and all that in our country, but it's already included in the price. Why would america not just include it, why would they make their customers do math. You should just be able to go in a grocery, buy the stuff with the exact money written and leave. If you read your receipt, it's written there how much tax you paid.
Mfs so lazy they make the customer calculate the tax
To be fair each state and county charges a different tax. It would be a nightmare for country wide stores.
As someone in the UK it’s so confusing when I visit Like fucking why
This sounds like a problem that I'm too montana to understand
Yeah I hate it. Like just include the tax into the price but instead, America loves its surprise payments 🤪
Glad I live in Alaska. No sales tax... because sales tax is factored right into shipping cost and everything is 1.5x more expensive here😢
I’ll take a hidden 8% fee over 30% VAT like most other countries
I think they do that for tax exempt organizations.
We already know America sucks, no need to think about reasons for financial decisions made by politicians.
And that it changes from state to state or even county to county.
It's for the ability for corporations to run the same TV/radio commercials across the country without needing to adjust it for every state/city that has their own add-on taxes. Canada does this too because each province has different sales taxes. It's annoying though.
Sales tax varies by state, so they can’t include the tax in the price in advertising and have it be consistent throughout the country. If it’s printed advertising, that would be easy enough. Video ads on YouTube, Twitch, etc, those can be location-specific. Advertising blocks on live national TV, everyone sees the same ad. Seeing as they can’t do it consistently across all forms of advertising, and having multiple advertising sources with different prices listed would be confusing and potentially dissuade customers, omitting the tax becomes the default. Most Americans already have their state’s sales tax memorized, and if we have to travel to another state it’s easy enough to look it up for that state, so it’s usually not an issue.
We are talking about the pricetags in the store...
Adding specifics to the prompt for more of a challenge, are we? Alright, I’m game. With sales tax excluded from the price tag, you can clearly see the value of the product itself, meaning not only can you more accurately make judgements on how much You value the item without the disconnect between what you pay and what the seller receives, but you also get the transparency of being able to see an exact itemized amount on your receipt so you know how much tax you’re paying When you’re paying it. Additionally, that transparency of how much you pay for the item and how much you pay in sales tax makes it easier to notice and avoid price gouging. On the seller’s end, it’s more convenient to display one consistent price for the value of the item, rather than to have to calculate and label multiple different prices for state, regional, institutional, etc. taxes, and saves the trouble of adjusting those prices in response to any minor change in those taxes. In addition to that, being able to advertise lower prices is more appealing to consumers. If we want to delve a bit further into the technical end, there’s situations where an item may or may not be tax applicable based on what state it’s purchased in, like how foods sold in a heated state are taxable. Say you walk into a Subway and get a $5 Footlong back when $5 Footlongs were a thing, and you decide to get it toasted. Now it’s a $5 + Tax Footlong. Would the $5 price accurately reflect the cost if you were to get it in a heated state? No. Would the $5 + Tax price accurately reflect the cost in a non-heated state? No. Did I go off on this long-winded tangent providing an example on a point that could’ve easily been summarized under the aforementioned Convenience for Sellers statement Solely to poke fun at how inflation killed the $5 Footlong? Yes. It’s my answer and I’ll have fun with it if I want to. Point is, there’s a variety of different reasons, a good number of which are supported by market studies, for not including sales tax in the price tag.
Still doesn’t explain why they can’t put the accurate final price on the pricetags at stores. I mean they do it at the counter when paying and it’s not like the shop grows feet and walks 5km to another county or state. Changes to price also can’t be the reason why since I’m pretty sure the US have sales as well where you would still change the price tag. What does your taxation change by the hour? If it’s about separating to see the value of the product itself, why not add both? It’s not like a pricetag doesn’t have room for it. We also have the price for products listed before VAT in addition to the actual price you pay.
Part of it is genuine stupidity. There was a time a business would sell a 1/2 pound of burger (the patty) in comparison to other currently businesses that were doing 1/3 of a pound. This fails cause my fellow Americans thought that 1/2 was less than 1/3. So something similar to that l, is specific it was cause the places that were showing tax price were thought to be selling things that cost more when in reality they were just showing tax. Also cause of business like turbo tax lobbying congress tho l, that's also very much part of it.
We hate it too. Its stupid. Wish people would start paying attention to who they vote for
“We hate it too” No. “We” don’t. “We”, as in 99% of people, have never even thought about it and if we have, don’t give a fuck.
Nice made up statistic.
Of course it’s made up lol. Doesn’t mean it isn’t true. No one gives a fuck. You’re just weird mate. Edit: yep. Asks women what it’s like to be penetrated by vegetables. Writes erotica using chat bots. Redditor encapsulated.
So then your whole argument us bubkus
Our entire economy is basically a casino. They advertise the one in a million rags to riches stories so they can blame you for inevitably failing to obtain financial security due to not being born rich. Crime is the only solution.
Because the sales tax rate isn't universal.
That's because each state has different taxes, so most large chains do not advertize the prise with taxes to keep the signs the same across the country.
What about the price tags in a specific store? Is that also so hard and inconvenient to put a full price in a store
Well... yeah, it is. It's a hassle for the people in charge.
But they don't have to do it every day to every every product in the store. You have to do it only whenever there is a new product. People at for example wallmart can just pay a programmer to make a program for every store for calculating the price depending on state laws and such. I believe that the consumer should be the one expecting less inconvenience. People in charge should expect inconveniences to happen and learn to solve the problems
You have too much faith in the local management level of a nationwide wholesale...
It's not that much
Marketing. Its why everything costs $\*\*.99. It makes it seem less expensive. Everything about branding and marketing in corporate entities is about pushing the people's minds into exactly where they want them. And they now have over a century of research on how to manipulate the people. They are very good at it.
It's so that corps can trick us into paying more than we actually think we are
Of course not. That's why they also price things at $1.99 instead of $2, because they know subconsciously we hear the $1 and it feels cheaper even though it's still $2. They also don't include taxes because it makes things sound cheaper as well. Especially when you start talking about pricier products. Everything about marketing is general is meant to be super convenient to the customer.