GST on Electronics: Mobiles, Laptops, TVs and ACs

The GST on a mobile phone is 18%, and that is also the rate on a laptop, an air conditioner, a large television, a fridge and a washing machine. That last part is new. Until 21 September 2025, ACs, big TVs and dishwashers sat in the 28% slab. The GST 2.0 rate reform that took effect on 22 September 2025 moved them down to 18%, which puts nearly all the electronics a household buys in one slab.

This post covers the rates as a buyer sees them: what you pay on a phone, a laptop or an appliance, how the tax appears on the bill, and what a business can claim back. If you sell or import these goods and need to classify them, the HSN posts linked below cover that in detail.

GST rates on electronics at a glance

Since the reform, GST on goods runs on four rates: 0%, 5%, 18% and a 40% de-merit rate for a short list of luxury and sin goods. Our guide to the 2026 GST rate slabs explains how the old 12% and 28% slabs were folded in. For consumer electronics the result is simple, because almost everything has ended up at 18%.

Treat the table as a guide for buyers. In law, a rate attaches to an HSN tariff line, not to a product name, and a few products sit near the edge of a heading. A seller should check the line for each model it stocks. Accessories such as chargers, earphones and power banks have their own HSN codes and their own rate entries. They do not automatically take the phone's rate.

GST on mobile phones and iPhones

GST on mobile phones is 18%. It was 18% before the reform and it stayed 18% after it, so searches for "GST on mobile phones after 22 September" have a short answer: nothing changed. If a phone got cheaper around that date, the cause was a sale or a price cut by the brand, not a change in tax.

A ₹20,000 phone shows how this works. Phone prices in India are quoted inclusive of GST, so the ₹20,000 already contains the tax. To find the GST portion, divide by 1.18: the value before tax is ₹16,949.15 and the GST is ₹3,050.85. In a shop in your own state that GST is split into ₹1,525.42 CGST and ₹1,525.43 SGST. On an online order shipped from a warehouse in another state, the whole ₹3,050.85 is charged as IGST. The total is the same either way; only the label on the invoice changes. Our CGST, SGST and IGST guide explains the split.

iPhones are mobile phones for GST purposes and carry the same 18%. Many people expect a higher rate because iPhones cost more in India than abroad. Part of that gap is customs duty, not GST. When a phone is imported, the importer pays basic customs duty plus IGST at the border, and recovers that cost through the selling price. The IGST paid on import is normally credited back to the importer and then charged again on the domestic sale, so you are not taxed at 18% twice. Customs duty is a separate levy with its own rates, which the Union Budget changes from time to time. It is not covered here. Phones assembled in India do not carry customs duty on the finished handset, but the GST on the retail sale is still 18%.

For classification detail (why a phone is heading 8517, and why the charger in the box is treated differently from one sold on its own), see our post on the HSN code for mobile phones.

GST on laptops and computers

GST on laptops is 18%, and the same rate applies to desktops and most computer hardware. Like phones, laptops were already in the 18% slab, so the reform left them where they were. "GST on laptop after 22 September" has the same answer as the phone question.

A laptop billed at ₹60,000 plus GST carries ₹10,800 of tax, for a total of ₹70,800. If the ₹70,800 is quoted inclusive, the value before tax is ₹60,000 and the GST is ₹10,800. Our GST calculation guide has the formulas for both directions.

Computer catalogues cover more HSN headings than people expect. Monitors and printers are not classified with laptops, and a mixed IT invoice needs a separate code on each line. The HSN code for computers and laptops post covers those distinctions.

GST on ACs, TVs, fridges and washing machines

Appliances are where GST 2.0 made the biggest difference to buyers.

• Air conditioners moved from 28% to 18%. Split, window and inverter ACs are all covered. ACs were the most visible item in the 28% slab for years, and the cut was widely reported as one of the main consumer gains of the reform. An evaporative air cooler is a different product with a different HSN heading. Our HSN code for air conditioners post explains why.
• Televisions larger than 32 inches moved from 28% to 18%. Smaller sets were already at 18%, so every TV now carries the same rate and the screen-size distinction no longer matters for GST.
• Dishwashers made the same move from 28% to 18%.
• Refrigerators and washing machines are at 18%. They were not part of the 28%-to-18% group in this reform, because they were already in the 18% slab.

Here is what the change means in rupees. An AC with a pre-tax value of ₹40,000 carried ₹11,200 of GST at 28%, for a bill of ₹51,200. At 18% the GST is ₹7,200 and the bill is ₹47,200, which is ₹4,000 less. The size of the saving you actually see depends on whether the brand passed the full cut through to its MRP. Most large brands announced revised prices around the effective date, but the tax rate does not set the shelf price.

How the GST shows up on your bill

A proper tax invoice for an electronics purchase shows the seller's GSTIN, the HSN code, the value before tax, the GST rate and the tax amount (as CGST and SGST, or as IGST). A few things are worth checking:

• The rate. An AC, large TV or dishwasher billed at 28% on or after 22 September 2025 means the seller's rate master is stale. Ask for a corrected invoice.
• The seller's GSTIN. If the bill charges GST, the GSTIN on it should be active and belong to the business that sold to you. You can check it on our free GSTIN verification page. Our guide on whether the GST on your bill is real covers the warning signs.
• Your GSTIN, if you are a business. Without it on the invoice, you cannot claim the credit described below.

Buying electronics for a business: ITC

For a GST-registered business, the 18% on a laptop or phone is usually recoverable rather than a cost. Electronics used in the course of business are eligible for input tax credit. Phones and laptops are not on the Section 17(5) list of blocked credits, which covers items such as motor vehicles, food and goods for personal consumption.

Three conditions matter in practice. First, the invoice must carry your GSTIN and appear in your GSTR-2B. Second, the device must actually be used for the business; a phone bought for a family member is personal consumption and its credit is blocked. Third, where a device is used partly for business and partly for personal purposes, the credit has to be apportioned. Our guides to blocked credits and ITC on capital goods go further. The second covers the common case of laptops capitalised in the fixed asset register.

When you buy at scale, for example a batch of laptops for new hires or ACs for a new office, it is worth checking the vendor's GSTIN and its recent return filing before you pay. Credit depends on the supplier reporting the invoice, and a supplier with a cancelled registration or unfiled returns can leave your ITC stuck.

Rates follow HSN codes, not product names

Everything above is the consumer view: what a buyer pays on a phone, a laptop or an AC. For sellers, importers and anyone maintaining an ERP rate master, the rate is attached to an HSN code, and the code is what the GST Council's rate notifications list. Product names on a shop shelf are not rate entries. That matters at the edges, where a smart speaker, a monitor, a power bank or a commercial refrigeration unit may sit under a different heading from the product it resembles.

For classification, start with the HSN posts: mobile phones, computers and laptops, air conditioners and electrical items. Confirm the rate against the current notification on the CBIC GST portal before billing.

Frequently asked questions