Topic: U.S - How does your sale tax work?

Wasn't sure where to post this but I think it should be fine here.

I'm due to fly to the U.S tomorrow and I intend to purchase some Switch games, particularly ones that got a physical release Stateside but not in the UK like Revelations etc.

Here in the UK and EU, the price advertised is exactly what you pay as it includes tax i.e £39.99 would be £39.99 at the checkout. I know the U.S does this differently so I was wondering how exactly this works? Do you yourself have to work out the sales tax before going to pay?

As a side note, any recommended retailers for Switch games? Going to New York first if that helps.

Thanks all.

You pretty much learn the real price at the counter unless you count it yourself. Just check the tax on google because i believe it is state dependant. I believe it is something around 10%. Or at least it used to be few years back

Yep, you just get into the habit of figuring out the sales tax before you go to the counter. It's different in every state, and can even depend on the counties and municipalities, but they're generally within the 8-9% range. NYC is definitely a shade under 9, so a good rule of thumb is to just plan on the easy math of 10% and enjoy anything under that.

P. S., I'm a bartender. This is totally off topic, but if you go drinking, coins are not considered a proper tip in the states. Tip your servers ideally around 20% at restaurants (anything over 15 is 'acceptable', anything under is a slap in the face). There's no restaurant tax that goes straight to the servers like in the UK, they generally make $2.13 an hour and rely solely on tips. It might be a silly system, but it's what we got. Enjoy your trip!

@Flammy It's a terrible system

Yeah it is, I for one never tip
(walks out of restaurant in slow motion)
(music plays)

@TheMadPolarBear
Depends on what state you're going to be in. I pay 6% in PA. NY is almost 9%. And there are some states with ZERO sales tax!

They will tell you the final total at the register, it won't be marked on the actual product, so you just have to compute in your head if you absolutely need to know the final amount before shelling out the money.

The tipping at restaurants thing is true, too, though nobody's going to arrest you if only tip 10%. Just claim ignorance and walk out quickly lol

Oh, and GameStop is our retailer over here. You also have BestBuy, Walmart, Target, etc., but in terms of specialized it's GameStop.

Thanks for the replies everyone. So general rule of thumb for big shops is to try and keep track but the checkout will still say the actual price, excellent.

As for retailers, I've heard Gamestop is the shop to go to but they also apparently are quite bad with their practice/prices, much like our Game in the UK (in my opinion).

I was going to see if I could pickup some old retro games but I completely forgot that back in our old days we had region locks. I'll have to settle for some hardware, maybe some controllers or N64 transfer packs etc.

Thanks again for the advice, appreciate it. We definitely have a great community here.

When I go to the United States, I always forget forget about the taxes and end up scrambling for more money whenever I go to checkout.

Just try to keep in mind: have some extra at hand for the taxes.

I've always found the sales tax odd on digital sales. PSN and Steam both charge nothing for sales tax but Nintendo does at 12 percent. I'd be fine with it if it were consistent but I've always wondered why Nintendo charges and other platforms don't.

@TheMadPolarBear
I've found my experiences at GameStop vary wildly simply depending on the employee that helps me. Some are the horror stories you read about online that hound you for every little pre-order and add-on, making you feel bad if you don't say yes to anything and all but blocking you from buying new. Others are pretty chill people who just give you what you want with no hassle or guilt tripping or insistence on buying used. As far as prices go, if you buy new, you're going to pay full price. They don't upcharge or anything, but they certainly don't discount new stuff.

I wouldn't avoid the stores if those are some of your concerns, but that's just me. If you're moreso against them on a corporate level, then more power to you, my man.

You can check out the Nintendo World Store in New York. It's on west 48th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue.

@TheMadPolarBear Sales tax differs by US state, so you would need to confirm the sales tax for where ever you intend to travel to. (a simple Google search like "sales tax in Michigan") Then add that to the sticker price. If a state has a 10% sales tax on a product that is 10 dollars, you will pay 11 dollars at the counter. But most stores list the price before tax so the label would say 10 dollars.

@Flammy Funny, I tip to exact percentages in coins. Always have, always will. Never heard that's not common until your post. Then again "back in my day" 20% was unheard of. I consider 20% "someone that was amazing despite adverse circumstances." 12%-16% was the norm. 20% is this new thing. I love how they change things and then it becomes the norm. Than again I'm thinking food, not bars.

I always try to give 10% tips.

And that's out of my heart because I don't think it's some sort of official rule in this country

@NEStalgia
Yea, I remember that 15% was the norm when I was growing up. 10% was still totally acceptable, too.

But 10% these days at a sit-down restaurant? Yea, that's a slap in the face to the waiter/waitress. But 10% if you're just getting drinks at a bar is fine. I usually leave a buck no matter what I get, but that's usually way more than 10% haha

@rallydefault Funny, the food costs go up so 10% of it is more actual money that it was 30 years ago. I wonder what restaurant food would cost if they paid employees front of house, and the back of house had actual documented citizens as employees..... The tipping system is a kind of joke. Restauraunts used to have $10-15 meals and $10 tips. Now they have $20-30 meals and %20 tips. One could say "inflation" but the food price is already inflated, and with stagflation the customers have less to spend, not more, than they did in the 10% days.

I'll get my own darned food from the kitchen, buzz off, servers! I'd rather tip the chef than the server. I don't actually want the service, they're just kind of forced on you. Never have been comfortable with being doted upon....I'll do it my own darned self!

@NEStalgia I hear that. I will occassionally go out for lunch or dinner with my close friends or another exec at work, but even then it's local places (nice rural SE georgia:)), so service is typically great. But if a waiter or waitress actually treats us in an engaging manner that's not overbearing, or has helpful suggestions, that's when they get a tip. and i somehow manage frugal priced meals, so can leave $3-4 no problem.

On topic for sales tax, ours is just state tax at 7%, no added local. So a $59.99 game is $64.19 after tax.

@HobbitGamer Yeah, the costs around here are kind of extreme. So a complete dinner, no booze, for two you're generally up to $60+....at 20%, once the tip gets to $12 just to run over and fill coffee and deliver two plates that at a different place they'd get a few dollars.... I know servers will say "oh but they have to learn the menu, and all the work, etc, etc" If I could get $12 for 10-15 minutes of total work (on one customer) I'd be ecstatic. A dear friend of mine, ages ago, who happened to be extremely attractive used to boast about how much money she'd make doing that....the sound of my gnashing teeth could be heard for miles. Just for a few hours no less! People were leaving her $50 and $100 tips. I'll give her the benefit of the doubt and assume beer and steaks were all she was serving.....

Attractive women get larger tips in general, even from other women.

They don't need to much, besides being nice and effective at their work.

So far, day 1 of New York has been interesting. Apart from the usual tourist stuff, I managed to find a Gamestop, which had a fairly small Switch section. Unfortunately, luck was not with me as they did not have REvelations. Tomorrow, i’ll try the Nintendo Store, hopefully will have better luck there.

Other than the above, i’m trying to make sure I tip at bars/restaurants as recommended by everyone here. I had a very rude taxi drive on transfer who immediately said before getting in $59 from JFK + tip. With that, he was doing eye drops whilst driving, refused to speak to us and took us to the wrong address twice. He then demanded a good tip, to which I have to say did not feel right. I understand that some people like those that work at restaurants and bars rely on tips but surely a degree of leway based on quality of service comes into play as well?

Thanks again for the help.