Percent Off Calculator

Enter the original price and the sale price. The calculator tells you the exact percentage off and the amount saved.

The formula

percent off = (original − sale price) ÷ original × 100

amount saved = original − sale price

For example: an item originally $120, on sale for $84 —

($120 − $84) ÷ $120 × 100 = 30% off Saved: $36

Percent off vs. discount calculator

These two calculators are inverses of each other:

You know	You want	Use
Original price + % off	Sale price + amount saved	Discount calculator
Original price + sale price	What % off that is	This calculator

The math is identical — both use saved = original × percent ÷ 100. The difference is which variable you’re solving for.

Worked examples

A $120 jacket is on sale for $84. What percent off is that?

($120 − $84) ÷ $120 × 100 = $36 ÷ $120 × 100 = 30% off

A $60 pair of shoes costs $51 on sale. What % off?

($60 − $51) ÷ $60 × 100 = $9 ÷ $60 × 100 = 15% off

You see “30% off” on a $120 item. What do you actually pay?

Sale price = $120 × (1 − 30 ÷ 100) = $120 × 0.70 = $84

Spotting misleading deals

Not all “sales” are what they appear. A common retail tactic is to inflate the “original” price before applying a discount. Use this calculator to sanity-check: if a $50 clearance item was “originally $52”, that’s only a 3.8% discount despite the big markdown sticker.

When comparison shopping, knowing the actual percentage off (rather than the dollar savings) lets you compare deals across items of different original prices fairly.

Mental math shortcuts

• 10% off: move the decimal one place left ($120 → $12 saved).
• 20% off: double the 10% figure ($120 → $24 saved, pay $96).
• 25% off: divide by 4 ($120 → $30 saved, pay $90).
• 50% off: divide by 2 ($120 → $60 saved, pay $60).
• For other percentages, combine these: 30% = 10% + 20%.