Sales Tax Calculator 2026 — All 50 States
The sticker price is never the checkout price — except in four lucky states.
Add sales tax at your state's real combined state + local rate (July 2026 data), or reverse any receipt total back to the pre-tax price. From 0% in Delaware to a 10.13% average in Louisiana — with an exact local-rate override for to-the-cent results.
July 2026 combined averages — your city's exact rate may differ.
One country, 13,000+ tax rates
Why the register decides
The US has no national sales tax. Each state sets a base rate (0% to 7.25%), then cities, counties and special districts stack their own on top — over 13,000 jurisdictions in all. That's why this calculator pairs each state's rate with its population-weighted average local rate, and lets you override with your exact local figure.
The two calculations
Adding tax: price × rate. $100 in Texas at the 8.20% average → $8.20 tax, $108.20 total. Reversing a receipt: total ÷ (1 + rate). $216.40 ÷ 1.082 = $200.00 pre-tax — the mistake to avoid is multiplying the total by the rate, which overstates the tax.
Highest, lowest, and the quirks between
| Group | States | Combined avg |
|---|---|---|
| Highest | Louisiana · Tennessee · Washington | 10.13% · 9.61% · 9.57% |
| Highest state base | California | 7.25% state + 1.78% local |
| Local does the work | Colorado · Alabama | 2.9%+4.99% · 4%+5.46% |
| Flat statewide | CT · IN · KY · MD · MA · MI | No local additions |
| Zero | DE · MT · NH · OR (AK local only) | 0.00% |
The US population-weighted average is 7.53%. Louisiana's 2025 reform raised its state rate to 5%, which combined with the country's second-highest local average pushed it to #1. Colorado is the oddity — the lowest non-zero state rate (2.9%) but nearly 5% of local tax on top.
Wayfair changed everything
Until 2018, out-of-state online sellers with no physical presence didn't have to collect your state's tax. South Dakota v. Wayfair ended that: states may now require collection once a seller passes an economic-nexus threshold (typically $100,000 of in-state sales), and marketplace-facilitator laws make Amazon, eBay and Etsy collect on their sellers' behalf. Tax is charged at the delivery address — the destination rate, not the seller's location.
Buy something genuinely untaxed (a small out-of-state seller, a private purchase) and you technically owe use tax at your home rate, self-reported on your state return — widely ignored for small amounts, but enforced on vehicles, boats and big-ticket items, which get caught at registration.
Groceries, prescriptions, and tax holidays
Groceries: most states exempt unprepared food; about ten still tax it statewide in 2026 (Idaho at the full 6% with an offsetting credit; Mississippi 5%; South Dakota 4.2%; Tennessee 4%; Alabama and Utah 3%). The trend is one-way — Kansas finished its phase-out in 2025, and Arkansas plus the Illinois state portion ended in January 2026. Prescription drugs are exempt everywhere except Illinois's 1% rate. Clothing is exempt in Minnesota, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and under $110 in New York. Many states also run sales-tax holidays — short windows (often back-to-school season) when clothing, computers or emergency supplies go tax-free.
❓ Frequently asked Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate sales tax?
Price × rate. $100 at the 7.53% US average adds $7.53. To reverse a receipt, divide the total by (1 + rate): $216.40 at 8.20% → $200.00 pre-tax.
Which state has the highest sales tax?
Louisiana — 10.13% average combined (5.00% state + 5.13% local), ahead of Tennessee (9.61%) and Washington (9.57%). California has the highest state base at 7.25%.
Which states have no sales tax?
Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon. Alaska has no state rate, but localities average 1.82%.
Why isn't tax on the sticker price?
With 13,000+ jurisdictions setting different rates, retailers advertise pre-tax prices and the register applies the local rate — unlike countries where a value-added tax is baked into the shelf price.
Do online orders get taxed?
Almost always since Wayfair (2018) — at your delivery address rate. Marketplaces collect automatically; anything untaxed technically owes use tax.
Are groceries taxed?
Mostly no. About ten states still tax groceries statewide in 2026; Arkansas and Illinois's state 1% ended in January 2026.
Where these figures come from
Rates come from the Tax Foundation's midyear-2026 compilation and state revenue departments.
- State + local combined rates — Tax Foundation — State and Local Sales Tax Rates, Midyear 2026 (population-weighted local averages, July 1, 2026).
- Economic nexus / marketplace rules — South Dakota v. Wayfair (2018) and state revenue departments.
- SALT deduction — IRS — Deductible taxes (Topic 503).
- Exact local rates — your state revenue department's rate-lookup tool.
Last checked: July 2026. Local averages are population-weighted — your city's exact rate may sit above or below the state average shown.
Select the question that matches where you are right now.
Your result is the checkout total at your state's average combined rate — or, in reverse mode, the pre-tax price hiding inside a receipt.
Budgeting a big purchase, itemizing a receipt for an expense report, or pricing products as a seller — the tax line is exact once the rate is right.
An average is not your exact rate. Cities add their own percentages — enter your local rate at the Detailed level for to-the-cent numbers.
Tax Foundation midyear-2026 table, population-weighted. All calculations run in your browser.
Three things set what you actually pay.
The store's jurisdiction (or your delivery address online) picks the rate — crossing a county line can move it a full percentage point.
Groceries, prescriptions and clothing escape tax in many states; prepared food, alcohol and lodging often carry extra rates.
Colorado charges 2.9% at the state level but locals add ~5%; Connecticut's 6.35% is the whole story. The combined figure is the only one your wallet feels.
Sales tax is avoidable at the margins — legally.
Back-to-school and emergency-prep tax holidays make clothing, computers and supplies tax-free for a weekend in many states.
Itemizers in no-income-tax states (TX, FL, TN, WA, NV) should deduct sales tax instead of income tax — up to the $40,000 SALT cap.
Vehicles are taxed where registered, not bought — but for most goods, buying in a 0% state genuinely saves the full rate.
Sales tax is one line in the bigger picture.