15 States With the Highest Tax Rates: 2024
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Although the average U.S. household pays some $11,000 in federal income taxes, how much more households have to come up with in state and local taxes differs dramatically.
Taxpayers in the most tax-expensive states pay more than double the amount those in the least tax-expensive states pay, according to a new study from WalletHub, a personal finance website. The study found that even residents in states with low or no income taxes may still get a hefty tax bill.
For example, Texans pay no state income tax but spend 1.63% of their income on real estate taxes, among the highest rates in the United States. Washington citizens also do not pay state income tax but put out more than 8% of their annual income on sales and excise taxes.
To find out where taxpayers pay the most and least, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia against national medians. Researchers looked at these types of taxation:
Real estate tax: They first divided the median real estate tax amount paid by the median home price in each state, then applied the resulting rates to a house worth $281,900, the median value for a U.S. home, to determine the dollar amount paid as real-estate tax per household.
Vehicle property tax: Researchers examined data for cities and counties that collectively account for at least 50% of the state’s population and extrapolated this to the state level using weighted averages based on population size. For each state, they assumed that all residents own the same vehicle: a Toyota Camry LE four-door sedan, 2023’s top-selling car, valued at $26,420, as of January.
Income tax: They used the percentage of income (middle income rate) spent on income tax from recent WalletHub research. “Income” refers to the mean third quintile U.S. income amount of $75,586.
Sales and excise tax: Researchers used the percentage of income (middle income rate) from the same research report to determine the amount spent on sales and excise taxes. Again, “income” refers to the mean third quintile U.S. income amount of $75,586.
See the accompanying gallery for the 15 states with the highest taxes, according to WalletHub.
Washington
Effective total tax rate: 11.99%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 3.28%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0%
Individual income tax rate: 0%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 8.72%
Wisconsin
Effective total tax rate: 12.14%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 5.92%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0%
Individual income tax rate: 2.16%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 4.06%
Mississippi
Effective total tax rate: 12.21%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 2.83%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 1.21%
Individual income tax rate: 1.76%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 6.42%
Hawaii
Effective total tax rate: 12.27%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 1%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0%
Individual income tax rate: 3.71%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 7.55%
Louisiana
Effective total tax rate: 12.36%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 2.04%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0.03%
Individual income tax rate: 2.27%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 8.01%
Texas
Effective total tax rate: 12.55%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 6.07%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0%
Individual income tax rate: 0%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 6.48%
Ohio
Effective total tax rate: 12.85%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 5.33%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0%
Individual income tax rate: 2.58%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 4.95%
Nebraska
Effective total tax rate: 12.94%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 5.74%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0.56%
Individual income tax rate: 1.77%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 4.86%
Iowa
Effective total tax rate: 13.2%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 5.55%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0.35%
Individual income tax rate: 2.09%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 5.21%
Kansas
Effective total tax rate: 13.76%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 5%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0.71%
Individual income tax rate: 2.7%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 5.35%
Pennsylvania
Effective total tax rate: 14.02%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 5.25%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0%
Individual income tax rate: 4.11%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 4.65%
New Jersey
Effective total tax rate: 14.09%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 8.68%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0%
Individual income tax rate: 1.11%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 4.3%
Connecticut
Effective total tax rate: 14.62%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 7.47%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0.73%
Individual income tax rate: 1.4%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 5.02%
New York
Effective total tax rate: 14.71%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 6.12%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0%
Individual income tax rate: 3.8%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 4.79%
Illinois
Effective total tax rate: 16.51%
Effective property tax rate (as share of annual income): 7.88%
Effective vehicle tax rate: 0 %
Individual income tax rate: 3.43%
Effective total sales and excise tax rate: 5.19%
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