Who doesn’t love summer? Longer days, warmer weather, tax-free shopping.
States across the nation kick off sales tax holidays in July and August. Stroll into your favorite store during these windows of time, and you may be able to purchase items without being charged state sales tax.
Think of it as a way to boost your savings — and a rare opportunity to get an upper hand on the taxman.
During many of these summer sales tax holidays, back-to-school items are exempt, including everything from clothes to school supplies. Other states extend the savings to things like personal computers.
Holiday dates and the spending caps for exempt items also differ from state to state. So, check your state’s rules before heading to the store. For most of the states in the following list, you can click on the state name to learn more.
States with upcoming sales-tax holidays that relate to school supplies, clothing or both include:
- Alabama: July 21-23
- Arkansas: Aug. 5-6
- Florida: July 24-Aug. 6
- Iowa: Aug. 4-5
- Maryland: Aug. 13-19
- Mississippi: July 28-29
- Missouri: Aug. 4-6
- New Jersey: Aug. 26-Sept. 4
- New Mexico: Aug. 4-6
- Ohio: Aug. 4-6
- Oklahoma: Aug. 4-6
- South Carolina: Aug. 4-6
- Tennessee: July 28-30
- Texas: Aug. 11-13
- West Virginia: Aug 4-7
According to the Sales Tax Institute, statewide sales tax rates are as high as 7.25% in California — and 11.5% in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico — not counting any local sales taxes. So, you stand to save a nice bit of cash by taking advantage of sales tax holidays.
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