Ohio sales tax, and who sets it
Tax year 2026
Set by the state
5.75%
Set locally
1.54%
statewide average
Combined
7.29%
Local share
21.12%
of what you pay
Work out the tax on a purchase in Ohio
Add the tax on
7.29% effectiveThe general rate applies here: 7.29%, state and local combined. “Statewide average” is a comparison estimate. Named locations use the stored local rate; city and special-district coverage varies, so an address may differ. Rate source · as of 2026-07-01.
How Ohio's sales tax is put together
- Ohio splits this with your county. The state's share is about 5.75%. The local share, on average across Ohio, is about 1.54%. What you actually pay is both of them at once, about 7.29%, and the second half changes depending on where in Ohio you are standing when you buy.
- No sales tax on groceries in Ohio. Unprepared food is exempt outright, so what you save depends on how much of your shopping is raw ingredients rather than ready meals. That boundary is where the money actually is, and it catches people out constantly at the deli counter.
- No apparel break in Ohio. Clothes carry the same sales tax as anything else, working out at $73 per thousand dollars spent. A few states exempt clothing; most, including this one, do not. Prescriptions are exempt, which is the near-universal rule.
- Rate-setting in Ohio is shared between the state and its localities. The state component is about 5.75% and the local component on average across Ohio is about 1.54%, producing about 7.29%. Because the local half is set independently and varies across the state, the combined rate is a property of the transaction's location rather than of Ohio as a whole — the reason this site prices purchases against a named county instead of a statewide average.
- Grocery purchases are exempt from sales tax in Ohio. Because the exemption is complete rather than reduced, the practical question for a shopper is classification rather than rate: prepared and heated foods generally fall outside the exemption and are taxed at the full combined rate. States drawing that boundary differently produce noticeably different effective rates on identical shopping baskets, which is why a grocery exemption is a weaker predictor of household sales tax burden than it first appears.
- Clothing in Ohio is taxed at the general combined rate, or $73 per thousand dollars of apparel spending. Only a small minority of states exempt clothing, and where they do the effect on a household's effective rate is larger than most rate-based comparisons imply. Prescription medication is exempt in Ohio, which is the standard treatment across the sales-taxing states.
Sales tax on this purchase
A $75,000 salary
| Tax added | $7.29 |
|---|---|
| Rate appliedStatewide average | 7.29% |
Uses this location’s stored combined rate and category rule. Clothing is one item; address-level coverage varies.
Rates across this state
A $75,000 salary
| Counties in this state | 88 |
|---|---|
| Different rates among them | 6 |
| Lowest county rate | 6.25% |
| Highest county rate | 7.75% |
Most counties here share a rate with many others. The county line rarely changes what you pay.
County floors only — city, transit and special-district taxes are excluded where applicable.
At the register
A $75,000 salary
| Tax added | $7.29 |
|---|---|
| You hand over | $107.29 |
| Rate here | 7.29% |
Uses this location’s stored combined rate and category rule. Clothing is one item; address-level coverage varies.
How much of that was tax
A $75,000 salary
| Goods before tax | $99.73 |
|---|---|
| Rate applied | 7.29% |
Uses the selected combined rate for ordinary goods. Exempt items or a mixed receipt change the split.
Every county here
A $75,000 salary
| Lowest | 6.25% |
|---|---|
| Highest | 7.75% |
| Gap between them | 1.5% |
County floors only — city, transit and special-district taxes are excluded where applicable.
What gets taxed, in each
A $75,000 salary
Ohio
Statewide average
Texas
Harris County (Houston)
- Sales tax
- Fuel
- Tobacco
| Category | Ohio | Texas |
|---|---|---|
| Groceries | Exempt | Exempt |
| Clothing at $100 | 7.29% | 8.25% |
| Fuel | 38.5¢ | 20¢ |
| Tobacco | $1.60 | $1.41 |
Grocery and general rates use the locations named here. Clothing is one item priced at $100; a more expensive garment may be taxed differently. Fuel and tobacco have separate units and scales.
Tax-free days in Ohio
A $75,000 salary
| Sales Tax Holiday | 2026-08-07 to 2026-08-09 |
|---|
Dates come from statute, so they move with the legislature rather than with a data refresh.
The split, county by county
The state rate is the same everywhere in Ohio. Anything beyond it was decided by a county or a city. These counties are a sample chosen to show the range, not a complete list.
| County | State | Local | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Statewide average | 5.75% | 1.54% | 7.29% |
| Franklin County (Columbus) | same | 2.25% | 8% |
| Cuyahoga County (Cleveland) | same | 2.25% | 8% |
What it costs on a thousand dollars
The same purchase in four categories, priced on average across Ohio. A flat thousand dollars is used deliberately — this is Ohio's own rate restated in money, not a claim about what anyone spends.
| What you're buying | Tax as share of price | Tax on $1,000 |
|---|---|---|
| General goods | 7.29% | $73 |
| Groceries | 0% | $0 |
| Prescription drugs | 0% | $0 |
| Clothing | 7.29% | $73 |
Every county in Ohio
This is the whole state, not a sample — 88 counties, from 6.25% in Stark County up to 7.75% in Coshocton County. These are county floors. City, transit and special-district taxes can add to them, so an address may pay more.
Complete county coverage for Ohio: 88 counties spanning 6.25% (Stark County) to 7.75% (Coshocton County), across 6 distinct rates. Figures are county floors: the state rate plus the county's own levy, excluding municipal, transit and special-district taxes. The representative location figures earlier in the page may include additional local layers.
| County | State portion | County levy | Floor (state + county) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adams County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Allen County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Ashland County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Ashtabula County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Athens County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Auglaize County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Belmont County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Brown County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Butler County | 5.75% | 0.75% | 6.5% |
| Carroll County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Champaign County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Clark County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Clermont County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Clinton County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Columbiana County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Coshocton County | 5.75% | 2% | 7.75% |
| Crawford County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Cuyahoga County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Darke County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Defiance County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Delaware County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Erie County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Fairfield County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Fayette County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Franklin County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Fulton County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Gallia County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Geauga County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Greene County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Guernsey County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Hamilton County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Hancock County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Hardin County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Harrison County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Henry County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Highland County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Hocking County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Holmes County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Huron County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Jackson County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Jefferson County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Knox County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Lake County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Lawrence County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Licking County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Logan County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Lorain County | 5.75% | 0.75% | 6.5% |
| Lucas County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Madison County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Mahoning County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Marion County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Medina County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Meigs County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Mercer County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Miami County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Monroe County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Montgomery County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Morgan County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Morrow County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Muskingum County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Noble County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Ottawa County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Paulding County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Perry County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Pickaway County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Pike County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Portage County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Preble County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Putnam County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Richland County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Ross County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Sandusky County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Scioto County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Seneca County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Shelby County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Stark County | 5.75% | 0.5% | 6.25% |
| Summit County | 5.75% | 0.5% | 6.25% |
| Trumbull County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Tuscarawas County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Union County | 5.75% | 1.25% | 7% |
| Van Wert County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Vinton County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Warren County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Washington County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Wayne County | 5.75% | 0.75% | 6.5% |
| Williams County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
| Wood County | 5.75% | 1% | 6.75% |
| Wyandot County | 5.75% | 1.5% | 7.25% |
Streamlined Sales Tax member rate files plus individual state Department of Revenue rate tables — county-level rows only; city, transit and special-district levies excluded — as of 2026-01-01, last verified 2026-08-29.
What this page does not cover
- Only sampled locations appear in the first Ohio county table and calculator list. Covering every one would mean maintaining thousands of rates that change on their own local timetables, so this site samples instead. The consequence is simple: treat the figures as the shape of the thing, and your receipt as the truth.
- Ohio taxes some things through this general rate and other things through taxes of their own. Fuel, alcohol and tobacco fall in the second group, and those charges sit inside the price rather than on the receipt. Vehicle purchases, hotel stays and eating out often add their own charges as well.
- Exemptions are broader on paper than in a shop. Ohio draws its own lines inside each category — what counts as a grocery rather than a prepared meal, what counts as clothing rather than an accessory. Those lines decide the tax on a real basket, and they are where two states with identical rates stop agreeing.
- Ohio's first county table and calculator location list are curated samples rather than an exhaustive address dataset, a deliberate trade against maintaining several thousand independently-revised local rates. The figures characterise the distribution of local add-ons; they do not establish a minimum or maximum for the state. Address-level accuracy requires either the state revenue authority's lookup or a recent transaction record.
- Ohio's general sales tax is one of several consumption taxes it levies, and the only one modeled on this page. Motor fuel, alcoholic beverages and tobacco are taxed under separate excise schedules, normally price-inclusive and therefore not visible as a line item. Lodging, prepared meals and vehicle transfers are frequently subject to additional dedicated rates at state or local level.
- The exemption classes shown for Ohio are broad categories, and the statutory boundaries inside each one govern the actual charge. Prepared and heated food routinely falls outside a grocery exemption; footwear, athletic wear and accessories are commonly carved out of a clothing exemption. Because these definitions differ between states, two jurisdictions with matching rates and matching exemption lists can produce materially different tax on an identical basket.
Questions people ask
Why is the tax at the register higher than the state rate?
What the statute says and what the register charges are different numbers. about 5.75% is the state's share; local layers carry it to about 7.29%, varying street by street.
Is food taxed the same as everything else?
No — groceries are exempt in Ohio, which is why a basket of raw ingredients can leave a shop untaxed while a sandwich from the same shop does not. The line is drawn at preparation, not at the food itself.
Is clothing exempt here?
Clothing is ordinary taxable goods in Ohio. The states that exempt it are the exception rather than the rule, which catches people moving between them.
Will the rate change if I shop in the next town?
Barely. The local portion is about 21.12% of the combined rate, so a statewide figure is close to right almost everywhere in Ohio.
What composes the combined rate in this state?
The combined rate is the state levy plus every local levy sourced to the point of sale. Ohio sets about 5.75%; the representative combined rate is about 7.29%, of which about 21.12% is decided locally. A single statewide figure is therefore an approximation.
How are groceries classified for sales tax here?
Ohio exempts groceries from general sales tax. The exemption typically excludes prepared food, and definitional boundaries — utensils supplied, heating, or a seller's prepared-food share — determine which side a specific item falls on. Those tests vary by state and are not uniform.
How is apparel classified for sales tax in this state?
Ohio applies the standard rate to apparel with no general exemption. Only a small minority of states exempt clothing, and among those several impose per-item caps or exclude athletic and formal wear, so cross-state assumptions about apparel are unreliable.
How much intra-state variation is there in the combined rate?
Locally determined levies account for about 21.12% of the representative combined rate, so intra-state dispersion is limited and the statewide figure approximates most locations closely. Rates remain sourced to the point of sale.