Tax is the part of e-commerce nobody enjoys, but getting the basics right protects your margins and keeps you compliant. Here's the plain-English version.
Every market handles consumption tax a little differently, and how you display it changes what customers expect to pay. Here's a simple map so your prices and receipts look right everywhere you sell.
Tax-inclusive vs tax-exclusive, the big one
In the UK (VAT) and Australia (GST), the displayed price normally includes tax, the sticker price is what the customer pays. In the US and Canada, prices are usually shown before tax, which is added at checkout. Getting this wrong makes your totals look incorrect to local shoppers.
How the regions differ
- United Kingdom: VAT, a single national rate, shown inclusive.
- Australia: GST, a single national rate, shown inclusive.
- United States: sales tax varies by state (and sometimes city), added at checkout.
- Canada: GST/HST/PST varies by province, added at checkout.
Keep clean records
Whatever your region, your store should record the tax rate and amount on every order. That makes filing painless and keeps you audit-ready.
Stores Lift supports both tax-inclusive and tax-exclusive pricing and applies the right behaviour for your store's country automatically, so you can focus on selling, not spreadsheets.