Virginia sales tax, and who sets it
Tax year 2026
Set by the state
5.3%
Set locally
0.47%
statewide average
Combined
5.77%
Local share
8.15%
of what you pay
Work out the tax on a purchase in Virginia
Add the tax on
5.77% effectiveThe general rate applies here: 5.77%, 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 2023-01-01.
How Virginia's sales tax is put together
- Almost all of Virginia's sales tax is set in the state capital. The rate is about 5.3%. Counties can add a slice, and on average across Virginia that slice is about 0.47% — small enough that it will not change how you shop. Where you buy matters much less here than what you buy.
- Virginia charges less on groceries than on other things, but it does still charge. The food rate is about 1%, which comes to $10 per thousand dollars spent. It is a real reduction. It is not the exemption most people assume when they hear their state went easy on food.
- No apparel break in Virginia. Clothes carry the same sales tax as anything else, working out at $58 per thousand dollars spent. A few states exempt clothing; most, including this one, do not. Prescriptions are exempt, which is the near-universal rule.
- The locally-set share of Virginia's sales tax is minor. Against a state rate of about 5.3%, local jurisdictions add about 0.47% on average across Virginia, leaving the combined rate close to the state figure at essentially any address. Where a state delegates this little, address-level rate variation stops being a material input to a purchase decision, and the exemption schedule — what is taxed at all — becomes the larger source of variation in what a given basket actually costs.
- Virginia levies a reduced grocery rate of about 1% — $10 per thousand dollars of food spending — rather than exempting food outright. Reduced-rate states are systematically misclassified in aggregate comparisons, and the error runs in the expensive direction for a reader who assumes exemption. The multiplier model this site uses exists because of exactly this group of states.
- Clothing in Virginia is taxed at the general combined rate, or $58 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 Virginia, which is the standard treatment across the sales-taxing states.
Sales tax on this purchase
A $75,000 salary
| Tax added | $5.77 |
|---|---|
| Rate appliedStatewide average | 5.77% |
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 | 133 |
|---|---|
| Different rates among them | 4 |
| Lowest county rate | 5.3% |
| Highest county rate | 7% |
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 | $5.77 |
|---|---|
| You hand over | $105.77 |
| Rate here | 5.77% |
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 | $101.16 |
|---|---|
| Rate applied | 5.77% |
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 | 5.3% |
|---|---|
| Highest | 7% |
| Gap between them | 1.7% |
County floors only — city, transit and special-district taxes are excluded where applicable.
What gets taxed, in each
A $75,000 salary
Virginia
Statewide average
Texas
Harris County (Houston)
- Sales tax
- Fuel
- Tobacco
| Category | Virginia | Texas |
|---|---|---|
| Groceries | 1% | Exempt |
| Clothing at $100 | 5.77% | 8.25% |
| Fuel | 32.6¢ | 20¢ |
| Tobacco | $0.60 | $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 Virginia
A $75,000 salary
| Sales Tax Holiday | 2026-08-01 to 2026-08-03 |
|---|
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 Virginia. 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 | 5.3% | 0.47% | 5.77% |
| Fairfax County (Northern Virginia) | same | 0.7% | 6% |
| Virginia Beach (Hampton Roads) | same | 0.7% | 6% |
What it costs on a thousand dollars
The same purchase in four categories, priced on average across Virginia. A flat thousand dollars is used deliberately — this is Virginia'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 | 5.77% | $58 |
| Groceries | 1% | $10 |
| Prescription drugs | 0% | $0 |
| Clothing | 5.77% | $58 |
Every county in Virginia
This is the whole state, not a sample — 133 counties, from 5.3% in Accomack County up to 7% in York 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 Virginia: 133 counties spanning 5.3% (Accomack County) to 7% (York County), across 4 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. Virginia layers regional overlays on its state base, so the state portion differs by locality and is carried per row rather than per state.
| County | State portion | County levy | Floor (state + county) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accomack County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Albemarle County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Alexandria City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Alleghany County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Amelia County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Amherst County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Appomattox County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Arlington County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Augusta County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Bath County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Bedford County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Bland County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Botetourt County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Bristol City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Brunswick County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Buchanan County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Buckingham County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Buena Vista City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Campbell County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Caroline County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Carroll County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Charles City County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Charlotte County | 4.3% | 2% | 6.3% |
| Charlottesville City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Chesapeake City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Chesterfield County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Clarke County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Colonial Heights City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Covington City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Craig County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Culpeper County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Cumberland County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Danville City | 4.3% | 2% | 6.3% |
| Dickenson County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Dinwiddie County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Emporia City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Essex County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Fairfax City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Fairfax County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Falls Church City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Fauquier County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Floyd County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Fluvanna County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Franklin City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Franklin County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Frederick County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Fredericksburg City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Galax City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Giles County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Gloucester County | 4.3% | 2% | 6.3% |
| Goochland County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Grayson County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Greene County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Greensville County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Halifax County | 4.3% | 2% | 6.3% |
| Hampton City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Hanover County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Harrisonburg City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Henrico County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Henry County | 4.3% | 2% | 6.3% |
| Highland County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Hopewell City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Isle of Wight County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| James City County | 6% | 1% | 7% |
| King and Queen County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| King George County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| King William County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Lancaster County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Lee County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Lexington City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Loudoun County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Louisa County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Lunenburg County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Lynchburg City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Madison County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Manassas City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Manassas Park City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Martinsville City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Mathews County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Mecklenburg County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Middlesex County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Montgomery County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Nelson County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| New Kent County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Newport News City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Norfolk City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Northampton County | 4.3% | 2% | 6.3% |
| Northumberland County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Norton City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Nottoway County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Orange County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Page County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Patrick County | 4.3% | 2% | 6.3% |
| Petersburg City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Pittsylvania County | 4.3% | 2% | 6.3% |
| Poquoson City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Portsmouth City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Powhatan County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Prince Edward County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Prince George County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Prince William County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Pulaski County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Radford City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Rappahannock County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Richmond City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Richmond County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Roanoke City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Roanoke County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Rockbridge County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Rockingham County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Russell County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Salem City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Scott County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Shenandoah County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Smyth County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Southampton County | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Spotsylvania County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Stafford County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Staunton City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Suffolk City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Surry County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Sussex County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Tazewell County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Virginia Beach City | 5% | 1% | 6% |
| Warren County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Washington County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Waynesboro City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Westmoreland County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Williamsburg City | 6% | 1% | 7% |
| Winchester City | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Wise County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| Wythe County | 4.3% | 1% | 5.3% |
| York County | 6% | 1% | 7% |
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
- The first county table and calculator location list for Virginia are a sample, not a complete address lookup. They were chosen to show the range rather than to cover every address, so your own county may sit outside what you see. If you have a receipt to hand, the rate printed on it beats any figure on this page.
- Virginia 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. Virginia 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.
- The first county table and calculator location list for Virginia are representative rather than exhaustive. The listed jurisdictions illustrate the spread of local rates; they are not a complete enumeration, and an address outside them may carry a rate above or below anything shown. Where a complete county-floor table appears separately below, it covers counties but still excludes additional city and district taxes. Prefer the state revenue authority’s address lookup for a specific purchase.
- Virginia'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 Virginia 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?
Because the state rate is only the first layer. Counties, cities and special districts add their own on top, which takes about 5.3% up to about 5.77% — and it changes as you cross town lines rather than staying put.
Is food taxed at a lower rate here?
Not exempt, but not full rate either. Virginia applies a reduced rate to groceries, so food is taxed more lightly than other goods rather than not at all.
Is clothing exempt here?
No. A handful of states exempt clothing and Virginia is not one of them, so a coat is taxed exactly like a television. The exemption is unusual enough that assuming it is the common mistake.
Will the rate change if I shop in the next town?
A little, but the state sets the bulk of it. With just about 8.15% decided locally, crossing a boundary changes the total only slightly.
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. Virginia sets about 5.3%; the representative combined rate is about 5.77%, of which about 8.15% is decided locally. A single statewide figure is therefore an approximation.
What reduced rate applies to groceries in this state?
Virginia applies a preferential reduced rate to groceries rather than a full exemption. Local add-ons may or may not follow the reduced rate depending on state law, so the effective grocery rate is not always the state reduced rate alone.
How is apparel classified for sales tax in this state?
Virginia 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 8.15% 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.