Question

Mick paid 2.94 in sales tax on an item that costs 42 dollars before tax. At that rate how much would he pay in sales tax for an item that costs 58.00

Answer 1

Mick would pay $4.06 in sales tax for an item that costs $58.00.

This can be found by working backwards in the problem. By dividing that sales tax paid (2.94) by the dollars before tax (42), you get a percentage that should equal the percentage of the total paid for tax.

2.94 ÷ 42 = 0.07

This means that the sales tax is 7% of the total prior to tax. So we'd then multiply our dollars (58) with the sales tax in decimal form (0.07)

58.00 × 0.07 = 4.06

Hope I could help!

Answer 2

Find Sales Tax Rate:

$\text {Sales Tax Rate} = \dfrac{\text{Sales Tax}}{\text{Original}} \times 100$

$\text {Sales Tax Rate} = \dfrac{2.94}{42} \times 100 = 7\%$

Find tax for an item that cost $58:

$\text {Sales Tax Rate} = 7\% \text{ of } \ 58 = \dfrac{7}{100} \times 58 = \ 4.06$

Answer: Sales Tax = $4.06