What does a new laptop or phone really cost you?How much does a new laptop or phone really cost?
Example price
$1,200
Example all in
$1,299
tax included
Example earn first
$1,846
Single filer on $75,000 in Harris County, Texas. Your calculator below uses your settings.
No state gives electronics a tax break — you pay full sales tax, every time.
Electronics get no exemption anywhere — full sales tax, every time.
A $1,200 laptop isn't just a $1,200 decision. Every state taxes it at the regular rate, and the money you spend on it could have grown a lot if you'd invested it instead — the same way it would for a car or anything else you buy outright.
A $1,200 laptop is taxed at the standard rate in every state that has one, and the money spent on it could have grown substantially if invested instead — the 'or invested' framing applies just as much to a discretionary electronics purchase as to a car.
- We use the standard sales tax rate. No state gives electronics a special tax break.Sales tax applies at the standard rate — no state exempts general electronics.
- The invested-instead figure assumes you invest the purchase price itself, not monthly payments. It grows at the long-run market return. You choose how many years.The opportunity-cost comparison assumes the purchase price, not payments, is invested for the stated number of years at the long-run market return.
Adjust assumptions
to cover a laptop or phone purchase
$1,299 invested upfront, assuming 7% a year. Includes your starting money and its growth. An illustration, not a forecast; investment growth is separate from the purchase cost above.
- Income tax (federal, FICA, state)30%$547
- Sales tax5%$99
- Laptop or phone purchase65%$1,200
- Income tax (federal, FICA, state)
- Sales tax
- Laptop or phone purchase
Data for nerds — sources, confidence and assumptions
Data for nerdssources, confidence, assumptions
Where each number comes from
| Component | Amount | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| Item price | $1,200.00 | Your figureHigh confidence. You supplied this, so it is exact by definition. |
| Sales tax | $99.00 | JurisdictionalMedium confidence. The right jurisdiction, but special districts within it can vary — bounded, and we know the range. |
| Income tax to earn it | $547.47 | StatutoryHigh confidence. This number is the law — federal, FICA and state tax rates are published rates, so the only real risk is staleness. |
Jurisdiction applied
- State:
TX - Sales tax county:
Harris County (Houston) - Local income tax: none selected
Assumptions
- We use the standard sales tax rate. No state gives electronics a special tax break.
- The invested-instead figure assumes you invest the purchase price itself, not monthly payments. It grows at the long-run market return. You choose how many years.
- Sales tax applies at the standard rate — no state exempts general electronics.
- The opportunity-cost comparison assumes the purchase price, not payments, is invested for the stated number of years at the long-run market return.
Sources
Your position in the tax system
29.65% on the next dollarEvery extra dollar you earn is taxed at your marginal rate, not your average one — which is why a purchase costs more to fund than a paycheck stub suggests.
Marginal rates are read in gross-income terms: below the standard deduction an extra dollar of pay adds nothing to taxable income, so the true rate there is 0%, not the lowest bracket's. Excludes pre-tax deductions (401(k), HSA), which would lower all three.
Same purchase, different state
TX is #7 of 51The purchase inputs and income stay the same. Your row uses your calculator settings; other states use example counties and omit local income tax. Spread across all 51: $416, from New Hampshire to California.
- $1,706
- Texasyou$1,846
- $2,122
Choose a state name to compare against somewhere else.
Where every dollar goes
30% never reaches youThe $1,846.47 you must earn, followed to where it lands. Select a band to isolate it.
- Federal income tax$406.22
- FICA (Social Security + Medicare)$141.25
- Laptop or phone purchase$1,200.00
- Sales tax$99.00
Each tax layer is the extra tax this purchase causes — that layer's tax at your income subtracted from its tax at your income plus the gross-up — so bracket boundaries the purchase straddles are handled correctly rather than smoothed over with an average rate.
Is a raise actually a raise?
you keep 70%A raise arrives on top of everything you already earn, so it is taxed at your marginal rate — not the average rate on your whole salary.
Federal, FICA, state and any local income tax — no pre-tax deductions, benefit changes, or payroll withholding quirks, all of which move the real figure. Moving into a higher bracket never taxes the income below the threshold: only the dollars above it pay the higher rate.
Keep going
What you must earn to buy it
A $75,000 Texas salary
| Sticker price | $1,200 |
|---|---|
| Sales taxHarris County (Houston) | $99.00 |
| Out of pocket | $1,299 |
| Income tax on earning it | $547 |
| Hours of work | 6.4 work days |
29.65% of that pay never reaches the purchase.
Sales tax on this purchase
A $75,000 Texas salary
| Tax added | $99.00 |
|---|---|
| Rate appliedHarris County (Houston) | 8.25% |
Uses this location’s stored combined rate and category rule. Clothing is one item; address-level coverage varies.
If the money stayed put
A $75,000 Texas salary
| Spent today | $1,299 |
|---|---|
| Growth given up | $1,027 |
| Pay needed to buy it | $1,846 |
Assumes a 6% annual return that you can edit.