Final answer:
To calculate the total amount paid after sales tax and tip, add the sales tax to the gross sales, and then add the tip on the total. For a $65 item with 5% sales tax and 20% tip, the total paid is $81.90.
Step-by-step explanation:
To calculate the total amount paid for an item after including sales tax and a tip, we first add any sales tax to the gross sales amount, and then add the tip based on the new total.
Let's look at an example where the gross sales are $65.00, with a 5% sales tax assessed. The first step is to find the amount of sales tax:
$65.00 × 0.05 = $3.25
Next, we add the sales tax to the gross sales to find the total cost before tipping:
$65.00 + $3.25 = $68.25
Assuming a 20% tip is appropriate, we then calculate the tip amount:
$68.25 × 0.20 = $13.65
Finally, we add the tip to the total cost to find the total amount paid:
$68.25 + $13.65 = $81.90
The total amount paid, including sales tax and tip, would be $81.90.