Step by step
The question
Question: A camera costs $219.99.
The sales tax is 7%.
What is the total cost?
1 Find the tax
Percent means out of 100.
So 7% is 7 divided by 100: 0.07.
The point moves 2 places to the left.
The tax is 7% of $219.99.
"Of" means times: 0.07 times $219.99.
That is about $15.40, to the nearest cent.
To multiply decimals: first 7 times 21999, as whole numbers.
That is 153993.
Then count the decimal places: 4.
So it is 15.3993.
Money goes to the cent: 2 decimal places.
15.3993 rounds to 15.40.
Careful!
7% is not $7.
It is 7% of the price.
2 Add it on
The tax is added to the price.
$219.99 plus $15.40 is $235.39.
So the total is $235.39.
3 Check
Let's check another way: we pay 100% plus 7%: 107% of the price.
1.07 times $219.99 is $235.39.
The same.
So the answer is right!
Let's look back.
First: find the tax.
Then: add it on.
Last: check.