Calculators
Compare sales tax and property tax between two states
Moving, or choosing where to buy? The two taxes that follow a household every year, in one view.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
States raise money in different mixes, and a low rate on one tax often comes with a high rate on another. This comparison adds the two that every household pays wherever it lives: the state sales tax on a year of taxable purchases, and the property tax on a home, at the typical rate of each state from the Census Bureau's 2024 survey. On $30,000 of taxable spending and a $400,000 home, California comes to about $5,003 a year at the state level and Texas to $7,123, because Texas's higher property tax more than offsets its lower sales tax rate. Between Washington and Oregon, two neighbors with opposite systems, a $450,000 home and the same spending leave Oregon about $1,959 a year cheaper at the state level. Local sales taxes are left out on purpose, since they depend on the exact address; add them on each state's page.
California
$5,003
| State sales tax · 7.25% | $2,175 |
| Property tax · 0.71% | $2,828 |
Texas
$7,123
| State sales tax · 6.25% | $1,875 |
| Property tax · 1.31% | $5,248 |
California costs $2,120 less a year on these figures. Local sales taxes are not included (they depend on the address); property tax uses each state's median effective rate, Census ACS 2024.
What the comparison counts
For each state: the statewide sales tax rate (7.25% in California, 6.25% in Texas) applied to the purchases you enter, and the median effective property tax rate (0.71% and 1.31%) applied to the home value. Groceries are not included in the spending figure, because most states exempt them and the rest tax them at different rates; enter only what would be taxed at the general rate, such as furniture, electronics, cars in most states, household goods and clothing outside the exempt states.
What it leaves out on purpose
State income tax is the third large piece and is not part of this site, which deals with consumption and property only. Local sales taxes can add several points in some states and nothing in others; on each state page, the calculator lets you add the local rate of an address. Vehicle registration fees, excise taxes on fuel and utilities, and local income taxes in a few states are also out of scope. The result is therefore a comparison of two specific taxes, not a full cost of living.
How to read a large gap
Property tax dominates for most owners: a one-point difference in the effective rate is $4,000 a year on a $400,000 home, while a one-point difference in the sales tax rate is $300 on $30,000 of purchases. Renters pay property tax indirectly through their rent, which the comparison cannot measure. And the typical rate is a statewide median: before deciding on a move, check the levy of the county you are considering with the property tax calculator.