State guide · NH
New Hampshire sales tax and property tax
Nothing is added at the store counter, a tax on meals and rooms stands in for it, and towns carry the rest on the property tax bill.
Facts read on official New Hampshire pages on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- State sales tax
- None
- Local sales taxes
- None
- Groceries
- No state tax
- Clothing
- No state tax
- Median property tax
- $6,707
- Effective property rate
- 1.46% · #4 of 51
New Hampshire has no general sales tax and no use tax: furniture, electronics, clothing and groceries are sold at the ticket price, and no city or town adds a local sales tax. The tax that takes its place is the 8.5% Meals and Rooms (Rentals) Tax, charged on restaurant meals of $0.36 or more, on hotel rooms and short-term rentals, and on motor vehicle rentals; booking platforms must collect it like any innkeeper. Two-way communications services carry a separate 7% tax. The weight shifts to property: with no sales or income tax, municipalities assess, levy and collect property tax for the town, the county and the schools. The median owner paid $6,707 in 2024 on a home worth $458,800 (Census ACS), which ranks 2 of 51 for the size of the bill and 4 of 51 for the effective rate of 1.46%. There is no general homestead exemption; income-tested relief is claimed from the Department of Revenue Administration.
Total to pay
$100.00
Sales tax $0.00 · 0% of the price · New Hampshire has no statewide sales tax
| Price before tax | $100.00 |
| State tax · 0% | $0.00 |
| Local tax · not charged on this item | $0.00 |
| Total | $100.00 |
Rule applied: New Hampshire has no statewide sales tax. How this is calculated.
Sales tax in New Hampshire
For a buyer, the absence of a sales tax in New Hampshire is total. The Department of Revenue Administration lists no sales tax, no use tax and no local sales or meals tax among the state's taxes, so a $2,000 refrigerator costs $2,000 at the register and nothing is owed later on an online order shipped to a New Hampshire address. There is no tax holiday because there is nothing to suspend.
The money comes from a tax on hospitality. At 8.5%, the Meals and Rooms (Rentals) Tax applies to food served by restaurants and other meal sellers, to hotel rooms and any place with sleeping accommodations, and to car rentals. A $120 dinner for two adds $10.20; three nights in a $220 room add $56.10. The tax only starts at $0.36, and the bakery rule is a local curiosity: from a bakery that also acts as a restaurant, baked goods bought by the half dozen or more stay untaxed, while fewer than six count as a meal. Groceries bought to cook at home are never covered.
Short-term rental platforms and car-sharing sites count as operators, hold a Meals and Rentals license and collect the tax for their hosts. The rate has been 8.5% for periods beginning October 1, 2021. Separately, a 7% Communications Services Tax is added to two-way phone and data bills, so a $90 monthly plan carries $6.30. Visitors from Massachusetts or Maine who shop here should check their own state's use tax rules, since New Hampshire will not collect anything at the counter.
What the state charges, item by item
| Item | State rate | Local tax | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most goods | none | no | No general sales tax. Instead, an 8.5% Meals and Rooms (Rentals) Tax is charged to patrons of restaurants and lodging and on motor vehicle rentals. |
| Groceries (food for home) | none | no | No sales tax applies to groceries; only meals served by restaurants (including bakery items sold in quantities under six by a bakery that acts as a restaurant) fall under the 8.5% Meals and Rooms Tax. |
| Clothing | none | no | No sales tax in New Hampshire. |
| Prescription drugs | none | no | |
| Meals (restaurants and other taxable meal sellers) | 8.5% | Meals and Rooms (Rentals) Tax on meals costing $0.36 or more; paid by the consumer, remitted by the operator by the 15th of the following month. | |
| Rooms (hotels, short-term rentals and any facility with sleeping accommodations) | 8.5% | Same Meals and Rooms (Rentals) Tax; room and motor vehicle rental facilitators (platforms) count as operators and must collect it. | |
| Motor vehicle rentals | 8.5% | Meals and Rooms (Rentals) Tax also applies to motor vehicle rentals. | |
| Two-way communications services | 7% | Communications Services Tax on the gross charge for two-way communications services, collected by providers. |
Local sales taxes
New Hampshire has no local sales taxes.
Sales tax holidays in 2026
Not applicable: New Hampshire has no sales tax.
Worth knowing about New Hampshire sales tax
- The Meals and Rooms (Rentals) Tax rate is 8.5% for taxable periods beginning October 1, 2021. source
- The Meals and Rooms Tax applies only to meals and rooms costing $0.36 or more. source
- Short-term rental platforms ('room and motor vehicle rental facilitators') must hold a Meals and Rentals license and collect the tax. source
- The Interest and Dividends Tax was repealed for taxable periods beginning after December 31, 2024 (it had been cut from 5% to 4% and then 3%), leaving no tax on individual income. source
- Real estate transfers are taxed at $0.75 per $100 of price, charged to both the buyer and the seller. source
Property tax in New Hampshire
Property tax in New Hampshire is a town affair from start to finish. Local assessors value each home, and the municipality sets one tax rate that bundles the town, county and school shares and the State Education Property Tax, known as SWEPT. That last piece is set at a uniform state rate but still billed and collected by the town. Because towns revalue on different schedules, the Department of Revenue Administration runs equalization and ratio studies every year to compute each municipality's total equalized value, which is used to apportion county taxes, cooperative school taxes and the education tax.
At the Census median ratio of 1.46%, a $450,000 house pays about $6,579 a year. The DRA publishes the municipal, village district and education tax rates of every town each year, which is where to compare two towns before buying. Billing schedules are local, so the due dates are the ones printed on your town's bill.
There is no statewide homestead exemption. Relief takes two forms. Towns choose their own elderly, blind and disabled exemptions and veterans' tax credits, so the same retiree can get a different deduction in two adjacent towns. The state's Low and Moderate Income Homeowners Property Tax Relief refunds part of the State Education Property Tax to owners who lived in the home on April 1 with household income of $37,000 or less (single) or $47,000 or less (married or head of household), claimed on Form DP-8 or Granite Tax Connect between May 1 and June 30. An owner who thinks the assessment is wrong asks the local assessors for an abatement first, then appeals to the Board of Tax and Land Appeals or Superior Court.
Property tax on a home in New Hampshire
Typical bill per year
$6,708
| Per month | $559 |
| Median effective rate in New Hampshire | 1.46% |
| Median bill paid | $6,707 |
Census median ratio; your county, city and school district set the real levy.
| Census figure | New Hampshire |
|---|---|
| Median home value (owner-occupied) | $458,800 |
| Median real estate taxes paid | $6,707 |
| with a mortgage | $6,909 |
| without a mortgage | $6,333 |
| Effective rate (tax ÷ value) | 1.46% |
| Rank by effective rate (1 = highest) | 4 of 51 |
| Rank by median bill | 2 of 51 |
How the taxable value is set
Property is taxed on assessed valuation set by local assessing officials (RSA 76, Rev 600). Each year DRA's equalization and ratio studies determine each municipality's total equalized value, used to apportion county taxes, cooperative school taxes and the state education property tax. Who levies the tax: Local: municipalities assess, levy and collect property taxes, including county and school portions, plus the State Education Property Tax (SWEPT), which is set at a uniform state rate but assessed and collected by municipalities.
Other property tax relief
- Local exemptions and veterans' tax credits. Elderly, blind, disabled and other exemptions and veterans' tax credits are adopted and granted town by town; DRA publishes a summary of what each municipality offers. source
- Abatement. Owners can ask local assessing officials for an abatement (description errors, damage, value disagreement), then appeal to the Board of Tax and Land Appeals or Superior Court. source
Worth knowing about New Hampshire property tax
- Each municipality's share of the State Education Property Tax is its tax base multiplied by the uniform education tax rate (RSA 76:3 and 76:8); DRA has already posted 2027 education tax warrants. source
- With no sales or income tax, local property taxes are assessed, levied and collected by municipalities, under oversight of DRA's Property Bureau. source
- DRA publishes municipal, village district and education tax rate reports each year. source
- For low and moderate income relief, the net assessed value used is after exemptions such as elderly or blind, but before any veterans' credit. source