Introduction
The United States is one of the largest vehicle markets in the world. The U.S. has also historically had a long relationship with the automobile with many cities being designed around roads and the use of cars. Also, the U.S. is home to the “Big Three” in vehicle manufacturing: Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Chrysler.
There are many costs associated with motor ownership, and when purchasing a vehicle one must take into account the tax on its sale. Each state has its own sales tax on a vehicle, resulting in often unexpected higher costs than the listed selling prices and turning into a nasty surprise for many buyers. For instance, if you purchase a car for US$10,000 in a state where the sales tax is 10%, you would have to pay an additional US$1,000 on top of other costs such as car insurance or DMV registration fees. Therefore, it is important to learn in which states it is easier and/or cheaper to buy a car beforehand.
Many states have websites that list additional costs such as registration fees and insurance costs, but if you want to know more about car sales taxes by state, you can refer to the data in the charts.
| # | State | Car Sales Tax | Car Dealer Fee | Vehicle Registration Fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | 0% | $200 | $100 |
| 2 | Delaware | 0% | $292 | $40 |
| 3 | Montana | 0% | $299 | $217 |
| 4 | New Hampshire | 0% | $372 | $31.2 |
| 5 | Oregon | 0% | $115 | $43 |
| 6 | Alabama | 2% | $485 | $23 |
| 7 | Colorado | 2.9% | $490 | |
| 8 | North Carolina | 3% | $599 | $36 |
| 9 | Oklahoma | 3.2% | $299 | $85 |
| 10 | Hawaii | 4% | $250 | $45 |
| 11 | New Mexico | 4% | $339 | $27 |
| 12 | New York | 4% | $175 | $26 |
| 13 | South Dakota | 4% | $115 | $36 |
| 14 | Wyoming | 4% | $500 | $30 |
| 15 | Missouri | 4.2% | $500 | $21 |
| 16 | Virginia | 4.2% | $599 | $40.75 |
| 17 | Louisiana | 4.4% | $200 | |
| 18 | Iowa | 5% | $135 | |
| 19 | Mississippi | 5% | $425 | $15 |
| 20 | North Dakota | 5% | $299 | $49 |
| 21 | South Carolina | 5% | $350 | $40 |
| 22 | Wisconsin | 5% | $299 | $75 |
| 23 | Maine | 5.5% | $499 | $35 |
| 24 | Nebraska | 5.5% | $299 | $15 |
| 25 | Arizona | 5.6% | $410 | $9.5 |
| 26 | Ohio | 5.8% | $250 | $34.5 |
| 27 | Florida | 6% | $995 | $225 |
| 28 | Idaho | 6% | $265 | $69 |
| 29 | Kentucky | 6% | $450 | $21 |
| 30 | Maryland | 6% | $500 | $135 |
| 31 | Michigan | 6% | $230 | |
| 32 | Pennsylvania | 6% | $389 | $36 |
| 33 | Vermont | 6% | $180 | $76 |
| 34 | West Virginia | 6% | $175 | $30 |
| 35 | Illinois | 6.2% | $303 | $101 |
| 36 | Massachusetts | 6.2% | $396 | $60 |
| 37 | Texas | 6.2% | $150 | $50.75 |
| 38 | Connecticut | 6.3% | $415 | $80 |
| 39 | Arkansas | 6.5% | $110 | $17 |
| 40 | Minnesota | 6.5% | $75 | |
| 41 | Georgia | 6.6% | $545 | $20 |
| 42 | New Jersey | 6.6% | $399 | $33.5 |
| 43 | Washington | 6.8% | $150 | $30 |
| 44 | Nevada | 6.9% | $499 | $33 |
| 45 | Indiana | 7% | $150 | $36.35 |
| 46 | Rhode Island | 7% | $220 | $30 |
| 47 | Tennessee | 7% | $500 | $23.75 |
| 48 | Utah | 7% | $299 | $43 |
| 49 | California | 7.2% | $85 | $46 |
| 50 | Kansas | 7.5% | $399 | $30 |
Car Sales Tax by State
Alabama
Car Sales Tax
2%
Ranked in the US
#6
$485
Ranked in the US
#12
Ranked in the US
#8
Alaska
Car Sales Tax
0%
Ranked in the US
#1
$200
Ranked in the US
#38
Ranked in the US
#42
Arizona
Car Sales Tax
5.6%
Ranked in the US
#25
$410
Ranked in the US
#16
Ranked in the US
#1
Arkansas
Car Sales Tax
6.5%
Ranked in the US
#39
$110
Ranked in the US
#49
Ranked in the US
#4
California
Car Sales Tax
7.2%
Ranked in the US
#49
Ranked in the US
#50
Ranked in the US
#32
Colorado
Car Sales Tax
2.9%
Ranked in the US
#7
$490
Ranked in the US
#11
Connecticut
Car Sales Tax
6.3%
Ranked in the US
#38
$415
Ranked in the US
#15
Ranked in the US
#40
Delaware
Car Sales Tax
0%
Ranked in the US
#2
$292
Ranked in the US
#32
Ranked in the US
#26
Florida
Car Sales Tax
6%
Ranked in the US
#27
$995
Ranked in the US
#1
Ranked in the US
#46
Georgia
Car Sales Tax
6.6%
Ranked in the US
#41
$545
Ranked in the US
#4
Ranked in the US
#5
Hawaii
Car Sales Tax
4%
Ranked in the US
#10
$250
Ranked in the US
#34
Ranked in the US
#31
Idaho
Car Sales Tax
6%
Ranked in the US
#28
$265
Ranked in the US
#33
Ranked in the US
#36
Illinois
Car Sales Tax
6.2%
Ranked in the US
#35
$303
Ranked in the US
#24
Ranked in the US
#43
Indiana
Car Sales Tax
7%
Ranked in the US
#45
$150
Ranked in the US
#43
Ranked in the US
#25
Iowa
Car Sales Tax
5%
Ranked in the US
#18
$135
Ranked in the US
#46
Kansas
Car Sales Tax
7.5%
Ranked in the US
#50
$399
Ranked in the US
#17
Ranked in the US
#12
Kentucky
Car Sales Tax
6%
Ranked in the US
#29
$450
Ranked in the US
#13
Ranked in the US
#6
Louisiana
Car Sales Tax
4.4%
Ranked in the US
#17
$200
Ranked in the US
#39
Maine
Car Sales Tax
5.5%
Ranked in the US
#23
$499
Ranked in the US
#9
Ranked in the US
#21
Maryland
Car Sales Tax
6%
Ranked in the US
#30
$500
Ranked in the US
#5
Ranked in the US
#44
Massachusetts
Car Sales Tax
6.2%
Ranked in the US
#36
$396
Ranked in the US
#19
Ranked in the US
#35
Michigan
Car Sales Tax
6%
Ranked in the US
#31
$230
Ranked in the US
#36
Minnesota
Car Sales Tax
6.5%
Ranked in the US
#40
Ranked in the US
#51
Mississippi
Car Sales Tax
5%
Ranked in the US
#19
$425
Ranked in the US
#14
Ranked in the US
#2
Missouri
Car Sales Tax
4.2%
Ranked in the US
#15
$500
Ranked in the US
#6
Ranked in the US
#7
Montana
Car Sales Tax
0%
Ranked in the US
#3
$299
Ranked in the US
#26
Ranked in the US
#45
Nebraska
Car Sales Tax
5.5%
Ranked in the US
#24
$299
Ranked in the US
#27
Ranked in the US
#3
Nevada
Car Sales Tax
6.9%
Ranked in the US
#44
$499
Ranked in the US
#10
Ranked in the US
#18
New Hampshire
Car Sales Tax
0%
Ranked in the US
#4
$372
Ranked in the US
#21
Ranked in the US
#17
New Jersey
Car Sales Tax
6.6%
Ranked in the US
#42
$399
Ranked in the US
#18
Ranked in the US
#19
New Mexico
Car Sales Tax
4%
Ranked in the US
#11
$339
Ranked in the US
#23
Ranked in the US
#11
New York
Car Sales Tax
4%
Ranked in the US
#12
$175
Ranked in the US
#41
Ranked in the US
#10
North Carolina
Car Sales Tax
3%
Ranked in the US
#8
$599
Ranked in the US
#2
Ranked in the US
#22
North Dakota
Car Sales Tax
5%
Ranked in the US
#20
$299
Ranked in the US
#28
Ranked in the US
#33
Ohio
Car Sales Tax
5.8%
Ranked in the US
#26
$250
Ranked in the US
#35
Ranked in the US
#20
Oklahoma
Car Sales Tax
3.2%
Ranked in the US
#9
$299
Ranked in the US
#29
Ranked in the US
#41
Oregon
Car Sales Tax
0%
Ranked in the US
#5
$115
Ranked in the US
#47
Ranked in the US
#29
Pennsylvania
Car Sales Tax
6%
Ranked in the US
#32
$389
Ranked in the US
#20
Ranked in the US
#23
Rhode Island
Car Sales Tax
7%
Ranked in the US
#46
$220
Ranked in the US
#37
Ranked in the US
#13
South Carolina
Car Sales Tax
5%
Ranked in the US
#21
$350
Ranked in the US
#22
Ranked in the US
#27
South Dakota
Car Sales Tax
4%
Ranked in the US
#13
$115
Ranked in the US
#48
Ranked in the US
#24
Tennessee
Car Sales Tax
7%
Ranked in the US
#47
$500
Ranked in the US
#7
Ranked in the US
#9
Texas
Car Sales Tax
6.2%
Ranked in the US
#37
$150
Ranked in the US
#44
Ranked in the US
#34
Utah
Car Sales Tax
7%
Ranked in the US
#48
$299
Ranked in the US
#30
Ranked in the US
#30
Vermont
Car Sales Tax
6%
Ranked in the US
#33
$180
Ranked in the US
#40
Ranked in the US
#39
Virginia
Car Sales Tax
4.2%
Ranked in the US
#16
$599
Ranked in the US
#3
Ranked in the US
#28
Washington
Car Sales Tax
6.8%
Ranked in the US
#43
$150
Ranked in the US
#45
Ranked in the US
#14
West Virginia
Car Sales Tax
6%
Ranked in the US
#34
$175
Ranked in the US
#42
Ranked in the US
#15
Wisconsin
Car Sales Tax
5%
Ranked in the US
#22
$299
Ranked in the US
#31
Ranked in the US
#38
Wyoming
Car Sales Tax
4%
Ranked in the US
#14
$500
Ranked in the US
#8
Ranked in the US
#16