State Sales Taxes and Tax Rates

A sales tax is a tax on consumption, which is displayed as a percentage of the sale price.

Sales taxes in the United States are taxes added onto the price of goods or services that are purchased in the United States. A sales tax is a tax on consumption, which is displayed as a percentage of the sale price.

Sales taxes are assessed by every state except Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon.

Hawaii has a similar tax although it is charged to businesses instead of consumers. In some cases, sales taxes are also assessed at the county or municipal level.

The sales tax is the responsibility of the merchant to collect and remand to the state, and stated separately (or implicitly added at the time of sale) to the consumer.

Consumers are generally charged the tax, resellers are exempt if they do not use of the goods. This is in contrast to a value added tax (VAT), where resellers are also taxed (resellers may then claim the VAT paid on their purchases from the applicable authority).

The Constitution of the United States limits the power of the states to subjects within their jurisdiction. Jurisdiction over interstate commerce is reserved to the federal government. Nevertheless, a resident of a state with a sales tax who purchases goods from a place with no sales tax might be subject to pay a "use tax" (often at the same rate as the state sales tax) for non-exempt purchases.

Sales taxes in the United States are taxes added onto the price of goods or services that are purchased in the United States.

State Sales Tax Rates

Sales taxes are assessed by every state except Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon. Hawaii has a similar tax although it is charged to businesses instead of consumers. In some cases, sales taxes are also assessed at the county or municipal level.