Many people, including myself, bitch about the much higher prices on gear like cameras and iPad in Europe/UK compared to USA.
But a TidBITS article made me realize that we tend to overlook that prices in the US are usually given without sales tax, and in Europe they are usually given including sales tax. If we include this factor, then the markup on the iPad in UK over US is actually less than ten percent.
Your comments are correct, but only tell part of the story.
ReplyDeleteUnless the seller has a B&M outlet (bricks & mortar) in the state where the buyer resides, then there is no sales tax to be paid on sales shipped out of state. Vermont has tax holiday days. The are other wrinkles, and tax rates very from state to state.
I am neither a qualified tax consultant or a qualified business or personal accountant, and my comments should not be taken as advice, or depended upon in any material decision.
The most important thing outsiders need to know about the United States is that they are only very loosely united, and sometimes it seems that uncivil war is about to break out again.