Research

The Sales and Use Tax Report 2026: State Rates, Revenue, and the Post-Wayfair Landscape

By The Ledgerism Editorial Team · The Ledgerism Brief Editorial Team produces original, methodology-disclosed accounting and tax research—data trackers, databases, and reference guides built to be the most-cited source in the field. Every figure is verified against primary sources including FASB, the IRS, the PCAOB, NASBA, the AICPA, and state boards of accountancy.

A data profile of U.S. state and local sales taxes for 2026, built on U.S. Census Bureau tax-collection data, the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair (2018), the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, and state Department of Revenue rate schedules compiled by the Tax Foundation. Every figure is labeled with its year and geography. Rates are as of January 1, 2026 unless stated otherwise.

Executive summary

• 45 states and the District of Columbia levy a statewide general sales tax as of January 1, 2026; five states (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, Oregon) do not (Tax Foundation, compiling state DOR schedules, Jan. 1, 2026).
• The national population-weighted average combined state and local sales tax rate is 7.53% as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• Louisiana has the highest average combined state and local sales tax rate at 10.11% as of January 1, 2026; excluding the five no-sales-tax states, South Dakota’s 6.11% is among the lowest (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• U.S. state and local governments collected roughly $587 billion in general sales tax in calendar year 2024, about 28% of total state and local tax revenue of $2.095 trillion (U.S. Census Bureau, Quarterly Summary of State and Local Tax Revenue, CY 2024).
• The U.S. Supreme Court in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. overturned the physical-presence rule on June 21, 2018 by a 5-4 vote, authorizing states to require out-of-state sellers to collect sales tax based on economic activity alone (U.S. Supreme Court, No. 17-494, June 21, 2018).
• The South Dakota economic-nexus law upheld in Wayfair set thresholds of more than $100,000 in in-state sales or 200 or more separate transactions per year (U.S. Supreme Court, No. 17-494, June 21, 2018).
• The Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement has 24 full member states plus Tennessee as an associate member, coordinating simplified rules and remote-seller registration (Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, 2026).
• All states with a statewide sales tax have enacted economic-nexus and marketplace-facilitator collection laws; several states removed the 200-transaction test in 2025-2026 in favor of a dollar-only threshold (Avalara / Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, 2025-2026).

Key findings

• 45 states plus the District of Columbia impose a statewide general sales tax as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• Five states levy no statewide sales tax: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• Local sales taxes are levied in 38 states, including Alaska, which has local sales taxes despite having no statewide tax (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• The national population-weighted average combined rate is 7.53% as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• Louisiana holds the highest average combined rate, 10.11%, as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• California has the highest statewide sales tax rate, 7.25%, as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• Colorado has the lowest nonzero statewide rate, 2.90%, as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026).
• General sales tax generated about $587 billion for state and local governments in calendar year 2024 (U.S. Census Bureau QTAX, CY 2024, via NAHB summary).
• General sales tax was about 28% of total state and local tax revenue in calendar year 2024 (U.S. Census Bureau QTAX, CY 2024).
• Total state and local tax revenue reached $2.095 trillion in calendar year 2024, up 4.6% from $2.004 trillion in 2023 (U.S. Census Bureau QTAX, CY 2024).
• Property tax ($797 billion) exceeded general sales tax ($587 billion) as a state and local revenue source in calendar year 2024 (U.S. Census Bureau QTAX, CY 2024).
• The U.S. Supreme Court decided South Dakota v. Wayfair 5-4 on June 21, 2018, overruling Quill Corp. v. North Dakota (1992) and National Bellas Hess v. Illinois (1967) (U.S. Supreme Court, No. 17-494).
• The Wayfair economic-nexus thresholds were more than $100,000 in sales or 200 or more separate transactions annually (U.S. Supreme Court, No. 17-494, June 21, 2018).
• The U.S. Government Accountability Office estimated states could have gained roughly $13.7 billion in 2017 from taxing all remote sales, a figure cited in the Wayfair-era debate (GAO, 2017).
• The Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement counts 24 full member states plus Tennessee as an associate member as of 2026 (Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, 2026).

Section 1: How many states tax sales, and where the rates fall

45 states and the District of Columbia impose a statewide general sales tax as of January 1, 2026. Five states impose none: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon. Of the no-statewide-tax states, only Alaska permits local sales taxes, which is why 38 states in total have local-level sales taxes even though only 45 have statewide taxes.

Statewide rates in 2026 range from 2.90% (Colorado) to 7.25% (California) among states with a general sales tax. The combined figure, which adds the population-weighted average local rate to the state rate, is the more meaningful consumer-facing number, and it reorders the map substantially. Louisiana, whose statewide rate is a middling 5.00%, tops the combined ranking at 10.11% because its average local rate (5.11%) is the highest in the nation.

Source: Tax Foundation, State and Local Sales Tax Rates, 2026, data as of January 1, 2026, compiling official state Department of Revenue rate schedules.

Section 2: Combined state and local rates by state (2026)

The table below lists each state’s statewide rate, average local rate, combined rate, and national combined rank as of January 1, 2026. Ranks share ties; the five no-sales-tax states share rank 47.

Source: Tax Foundation, State and Local Sales Tax Rates, 2026, data as of January 1, 2026. New Jersey’s negative average local rate reflects Urban Enterprise Zones where the state rate is halved. Hawaii’s tax is a general excise tax; its economic burden is broader than a conventional retail sales tax.

Section 3: Sales tax revenue and its share of state and local budgets

General sales tax is the second-largest own-source revenue stream for U.S. state and local governments, behind property tax. In calendar year 2024, general sales tax produced about $587 billion, roughly 28% of the $2.095 trillion in total state and local tax revenue. Property tax led at $797 billion and individual income tax followed at $537.4 billion the same year.

Total state and local tax revenue grew 4.6% year over year, from $2.004 trillion in 2023 to $2.095 trillion in 2024. Sales tax revenue is closely tied to consumer spending and inflation, so nominal collections tend to track prices; the 2024 figures reflect a period of elevated consumer prices.

Note on scope: the “general sales tax” line excludes “selective sales taxes” (excise taxes on fuel, tobacco, alcohol, and similar goods), which the Census Bureau reports separately. Including selective sales taxes would raise the total sales-and-gross-receipts share.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Quarterly Summary of State and Local Tax Revenue, calendar year 2024, as summarized by the National Association of Home Builders (March 2025). Direct Census tables are available for verification at census.gov QTAX.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau QTAX, CY 2024 (shares are derived; see Methodology).

Section 4: The post-Wayfair economic-nexus landscape

Before 2018, a state could require a seller to collect its sales tax only if the seller had a physical presence in the state, a rule set by National Bellas Hess v. Illinois (1967) and reaffirmed by Quill Corp. v. North Dakota (1992). On June 21, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court decided South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. 5-4, holding the physical-presence rule “unsound and incorrect” and allowing states to impose collection duties based on a seller’s economic activity in the state.

The South Dakota statute upheld in Wayfair set two disjunctive thresholds: more than $100,000 in gross in-state sales, or 200 or more separate transactions delivered to the state, in the current or prior calendar year. That $100,000-or-200-transactions template became the most-copied economic-nexus standard nationwide, though thresholds and transaction counts vary by state.

Following Wayfair, every state with a statewide sales tax enacted an economic-nexus law, and all such states also adopted marketplace-facilitator laws that shift the collection duty onto platforms (such as online marketplaces) for their third-party sellers. A recent trend is the retirement of the 200-transaction test, which caught small-dollar high-volume sellers, in favor of a dollar-only threshold. Utah eliminated its 200-transaction test effective July 1, 2025, and Illinois removed its 200-transaction test effective January 1, 2026, each moving to a $100,000-in-sales-only standard.

Source: U.S. Supreme Court, South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., No. 17-494, June 21, 2018; state Department of Revenue rules as compiled by Avalara and the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, 2025-2026.

Common state economic-nexus threshold patterns (2025-2026)

Source: State DOR rules compiled by Avalara and Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, 2025-2026. Verify each state’s current threshold with its DOR before relying on it; thresholds change frequently.

Section 5: The Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement

The Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement (SSUTA) is a multistate compact to simplify and standardize sales tax administration, reducing the compliance burden that the Quill Court had cited as a reason to keep the physical-presence rule. As of 2026 the agreement has 24 full member states plus Tennessee as an associate member, governed by the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board.

Full member states as of 2026: Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Tennessee is an associate member.

Source: Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, streamlinedsalestax.org, 2026.

Original synthesis: three derived insights

Insight 1: The “local premium” ranking (which states add the most through local taxes)

Method: local premium = combined rate minus statewide rate, using Tax Foundation 2026 figures. This isolates how much of a state’s combined burden comes from local jurisdictions rather than the state itself.

Finding: Colorado, which has the lowest statewide rate in the nation (2.90%), ranks third in local premium, meaning its consumers face a combined burden driven almost entirely by local jurisdictions. Alabama and Louisiana top both the local-premium and combined-rate charts. Limitation: average local rates are population-weighted; individual localities can be far higher (Alabama’s maximum local rate is 7.00%). Inputs: Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026.

Insight 2: The state-rate vs. combined-rate divergence

Method: rank each state by statewide rate and by combined rate, then compute the rank change. This shows where the headline statewide rate misleads about true consumer burden.

• Louisiana: statewide rate 5.00% (mid-pack) but combined rank 1. Local taxes move it to the top.
• Colorado: statewide rate 2.90% (lowest nonzero) but combined rank 16. Local taxes nearly triple the burden.
• Mississippi: statewide rate 7.00% (tied highest nonzero) but combined rank 23. Almost no local add-on (0.06%).

Finding: statewide rate alone is a poor proxy for consumer burden. States cluster into “state-heavy, local-light” (Mississippi, Indiana, Rhode Island, Kentucky) and “state-light, local-heavy” (Colorado, Alabama, Louisiana, Oklahoma) models. Limitation: uses population-weighted averages; actual burden varies by locality and by taxable-goods mix. Inputs: Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026.

Insight 3: Revenue-reliance context (sales tax vs. property and income tax, CY 2024)

Method: express each major tax as a share of the $2.095 trillion CY 2024 total (Census QTAX).

• Property tax: $797 billion, about 38% of total.
• General sales tax: $587 billion, about 28% of total.
• Individual income tax: $537.4 billion, about 26% of total.

Finding: general sales tax is the second pillar of state and local finance, larger than individual income tax nationally in 2024 but below property tax. Because sales tax is consumption-based and inflation-sensitive, its collections rose alongside the 4.6% total-revenue growth from 2023 to 2024. Limitation: these are national aggregates; reliance varies sharply by state (the nine no-income-tax states lean far harder on sales and property taxes). Inputs: U.S. Census Bureau QTAX, CY 2024 (shares derived).

Charts to create

1. Title: “Combined Sales Tax Rate by State, 2026.” Data: combined rate per state from the Section 2 table. Source: Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026. Insight: a choropleth U.S. map showing the Deep South and Louisiana as the high-rate cluster. Citation-worthy because it is the single most-requested sales-tax visual by journalists.
2. Title: “State Rate vs. Local Premium, 2026.” Data: statewide rate and local premium (Insight 1) as a stacked bar per state. Source: Tax Foundation, Jan. 1, 2026. Insight: reveals the “state-light, local-heavy” states. Citation-worthy because it corrects the common error of ranking states by statewide rate alone.
3. Title: “State and Local Tax Revenue by Source, CY 2024.” Data: property $797B, general sales $587B, individual income $537.4B, total $2.095T. Source: U.S. Census Bureau QTAX, CY 2024. Insight: sales tax as the second pillar. Citation-worthy as a clean revenue-composition reference.
4. Title: “The Wayfair Timeline.” Data: 1967 Bellas Hess, 1992 Quill, June 21 2018 Wayfair, 2018-2019 state economic-nexus adoption, 2025-2026 transaction-test repeals. Source: U.S. Supreme Court and state DORs. Insight: how fast the collection regime changed. Citation-worthy for explainer and policy pieces.

Methodology

Source-selection criteria: Tier-1 primary sources were prioritized, defined as U.S. government databases and official bodies (U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. GAO/CRS, Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, and state Departments of Revenue). The Tax Foundation was used as a Tier-2 compiler because its rate tables aggregate official state DOR rate schedules and clearly label the effective date; the underlying rates are official even though the compilation is a secondary product.

Inclusion/exclusion rules: only figures with an identifiable source, year, and geography were included. Any figure that could not be tied to a primary or clearly-sourced secondary source was excluded. Projections and estimates are not presented as current values.

Handling conflicts: 2025 and 2026 Tax Foundation editions differ slightly (for example, Louisiana 10.12% at Jan. 1, 2025 vs. 10.11% at Jan. 1, 2026, and Washington rising to the No. 3 spot in 2026). This report uses the January 1, 2026 edition as the current figures and notes the 2025 comparison where relevant.

Derived figures: revenue shares in Sections 3 and 5 and the local-premium and rank-divergence rankings in the Original synthesis were computed by the author from the cited Census and Tax Foundation inputs. Formulas are stated inline.

Data limitations: Census QTAX general-sales figures here were obtained via a March 2025 NAHB summary of Census CY 2024 data; readers should confirm against the Census QTAX tables directly. The count of states with active marketplace-facilitator laws is stated as “all states with a statewide sales tax” per Avalara and Streamlined, not independently enumerated state by state in this report. Economic-nexus thresholds change frequently; verify each state with its DOR.

Date of last update: 2026-06-29.

Source quality ranking

Tier 1 (primary / government / official bodies):
– U.S. Census Bureau, Quarterly Summary of State and Local Tax Revenue (QTAX), CY 2023 and CY 2024.
– U.S. Supreme Court, South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., No. 17-494 (June 21, 2018).
– U.S. Government Accountability Office, remote-sales revenue estimate (2017), as cited in the Wayfair record.
– Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, member-state roster (2026).
– Congressional Research Service, “State Sales and Use Tax Nexus After South Dakota v. Wayfair” (IF11832).

Tier 2 (credible compiler of official data):
– Tax Foundation, State and Local Sales Tax Rates (Jan. 1, 2025 and Jan. 1, 2026 editions), compiling official state DOR rate schedules.
– Avalara, state-by-state marketplace-facilitator and economic-nexus guides (2025-2026), compiling state DOR rules.

Tier 3 (reputable secondary summary):
– National Association of Home Builders (March 2025), summarizing Census QTAX CY 2024 revenue figures.
– Sales Tax Institute, Wayfair FAQ and economic-nexus state chart.

Excluded: unsourced blog rate tables and any figure lacking a year or geography; single-locality anecdotal rates presented as state averages; projected future revenue figures.

Citation format (for major statistics)

• Source: Tax Foundation, State and Local Sales Tax Rates, data as of January 1, 2026.
• Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Quarterly Summary of State and Local Tax Revenue, calendar year 2024.
• Source: U.S. Supreme Court, South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., No. 17-494 (June 21, 2018).
• Source: Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, member-state roster, 2026.

Journalist-friendly additions

Most quotable statistics

• Louisiana has the highest average combined sales tax rate in the U.S. at 10.11% as of January 1, 2026.
• The national average combined sales tax rate is 7.53% as of January 1, 2026.
• Five states levy no statewide sales tax: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon.
• General sales tax raised about $587 billion for U.S. state and local governments in 2024, roughly 28% of all state and local tax revenue.
• The Supreme Court’s Wayfair decision (June 21, 2018, 5-4) ended the physical-presence rule and let states tax remote sales, using a $100,000-or-200-transactions threshold.

Data limitations

• Local rates are population-weighted averages; the rate at a specific address can be materially higher or lower.
• Census general-sales revenue here is via a secondary summary of the primary Census QTAX series; confirm against Census tables.
• Economic-nexus thresholds and marketplace-facilitator rules change often; always verify with the state DOR.
• Hawaii’s general excise tax and New Mexico’s gross receipts tax are not conventional retail sales taxes, which complicates strict comparisons.

Downloadable dataset (recommended fields)

state, state_sales_tax_rate_pct, avg_local_rate_pct, max_local_rate_pct, combined_rate_pct, combined_rank, local_premium_pts, has_statewide_sales_tax, has_local_sales_tax, economic_nexus_dollar_threshold, economic_nexus_transaction_threshold, marketplace_facilitator_law, sst_member_status, rate_effective_date, source.

Press summary (about 150 words)

As of January 1, 2026, 45 states and the District of Columbia levy a statewide general sales tax, while Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon do not. The national population-weighted average combined state and local rate is 7.53%. Louisiana carries the heaviest combined burden at 10.11%, followed by Tennessee (9.61%) and Washington (9.51%); the states with any tax but the lowest combined rates include Hawaii (4.50%) and, among the lower 48, South Dakota and several no-local-tax states near 6%. General sales tax generated roughly $587 billion for state and local governments in 2024, about 28% of the $2.095 trillion in total tax revenue. Since the Supreme Court’s 2018 South Dakota v. Wayfair decision ended the physical-presence rule, every sales-tax state has adopted economic-nexus and marketplace-facilitator collection laws, and several dropped the 200-transaction test in 2025 and 2026.

Suggested headlines

1. “The 2026 Sales Tax Map: Louisiana Tops 10%, Five States Still Charge Nothing”
2. “Where Your Sales Tax Really Comes From: The States Where Local Add-Ons Dominate”
3. “$587 Billion: How Much Sales Tax America Paid in 2024, and Who Relies on It Most”
4. “Eight Years After Wayfair: The 200-Transaction Test Is Quietly Dying”
5. “State Rate vs. Real Rate: Why Colorado’s 2.9% Is Misleading”

FAQs

1. How many states have a sales tax? 45 states plus the District of Columbia levy a statewide general sales tax as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation).
2. Which states have no sales tax? Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon have no statewide sales tax; Alaska allows local sales taxes (Tax Foundation, 2026).
3. What is the average combined sales tax rate in the U.S.? 7.53% (population-weighted) as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation).
4. Which state has the highest sales tax? Louisiana, at a 10.11% average combined rate as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation).
5. Which state has the highest statewide rate? California, at 7.25% as of January 1, 2026 (Tax Foundation).
6. How much revenue does sales tax generate? About $587 billion for state and local governments in calendar year 2024, roughly 28% of total tax revenue (U.S. Census Bureau QTAX).
7. What did South Dakota v. Wayfair decide? On June 21, 2018, the Supreme Court held 5-4 that states may require out-of-state sellers to collect sales tax based on economic activity, overruling the physical-presence rule (U.S. Supreme Court, No. 17-494).
8. What is economic nexus? The obligation to collect a state’s sales tax when a seller’s in-state sales or transaction count exceeds a threshold, commonly $100,000 in sales or 200 transactions (U.S. Supreme Court, No. 17-494).
9. What is a marketplace facilitator law? A law requiring platforms to collect and remit sales tax on behalf of their third-party sellers; all sales-tax states have adopted such laws (Avalara / Streamlined, 2025-2026).
10. What is the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement? A multistate compact to simplify sales tax administration, with 24 full member states plus Tennessee as an associate member as of 2026 (Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board).

Sources

1. Tax Foundation, State and Local Sales Tax Rates, 2026 (data as of Jan. 1, 2026). https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/sales-tax-rates/
2. Tax Foundation, 2025 Sales Tax Rates by State (data as of Jan. 1, 2025). https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/sales-tax-rates-2025/
3. U.S. Supreme Court, South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., No. 17-494 (June 21, 2018). https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/17pdf/17-494_j4el.pdf
4. U.S. Census Bureau, Quarterly Summary of State and Local Tax Revenue (QTAX), 2024 historical tables. https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2024/econ/qtax/historical.html
5. U.S. Census Bureau, QTAX 2023 historical tables. https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2023/econ/qtax/historical.html
6. National Association of Home Builders, “Total Property Tax Collections Hit Record High in 2024” (March 2025), summarizing Census QTAX CY 2024. https://www.nahb.org/blog/2025/03/state-local-property-tax-collection-2024
7. Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, member states. https://www.streamlinedsalestax.org/Shared-Pages/State-Detail
8. Congressional Research Service, “State Sales and Use Tax Nexus After South Dakota v. Wayfair,” IF11832. https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF11832
9. Avalara, State-by-state guide to marketplace facilitator laws (2025-2026). https://www.avalara.com/us/en/learn/guides/state-by-state-guide-to-marketplace-facilitator-laws.html
10. Sales Tax Institute, South Dakota v. Wayfair FAQ and economic-nexus state guide. https://www.salestaxinstitute.com/sales_tax_faqs/wayfair-economic-nexus

Related research

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• Corporate Tax Rate Database — Worldwide statutory and effective rates.