States with no property tax: there are none, so here are the lowest property tax states

No US state has no property tax. All 50 states and the District of Columbia tax real estate, because the tax is levied by counties, cities and school districts rather than the state. What varies is the rate.

The lowest property tax states are Hawaii at 0.27 percent of home value and Alabama at 0.38 percent, and the highest is New Jersey at 2.23 percent. Every low-tax state makes up the difference somewhere else, usually at the checkout.

Lowest property tax states, ranked

Effective rate is the median annual bill divided by the median owner-occupied home value, from the Census Bureau’s 2023 five-year survey. It is the only fair way to compare states, because nominal rates apply to different fractions of value in different states.

State	Effective rate	Median annual bill	Median home value
Hawaii	0.27%	$2,183	$808,200
Alabama	0.38%	$738	$195,100
Colorado	0.49%	$2,448	$502,200
Nevada	0.49%	$1,970	$406,100
South Carolina	0.51%	$1,199	$236,700
Arizona	0.52%	$1,858	$358,900
Delaware	0.53%	$1,731	$326,800
Idaho	0.53%	$2,006	$376,000
Utah	0.53%	$2,412	$455,000
West Virginia	0.54%	$835	$155,600
Louisiana	0.55%	$1,146	$208,700
Tennessee	0.55%	$1,400	$256,800

The national median is 0.98 percent, with a median bill of $2,969. Every state is ranked here, and the estimator turns any rate into a bill for your purchase price.

What state has no property tax? Why the answer is none

Property tax is a local tax. State legislatures write the rules, meaning assessment ratios, caps and exemptions, but the money is levied and spent locally on schools, police, fire and roads. A state can abolish its income tax and its school districts still need funding, so the property tax stays.

That is why the no-income-tax states all tax property, and some heavily. Texas has no income tax and ranks seventh highest at 1.58 percent. New Hampshire has no tax on wages and ranks fourth at 1.77 percent, raising close to 60 percent of all state and local revenue from property.

What do low property tax states charge instead?

State	Property tax rate	What fills the gap
Hawaii	0.27%	A 4 percent general excise tax on nearly every transaction including services and rent, plus a 0.5 percent county surcharge, and the highest top income tax rate in the country at 11 percent
Alabama	0.38%	Combined state and local sales tax averaging about 9.5 percent, among the highest anywhere
Louisiana	0.55%	The highest combined sales tax rate in the country at about 10.1 percent
Tennessee	0.55%	No wage tax, combined sales tax around 9.6 percent
Nevada	0.49%	No income tax; sales tax around 8.2 percent plus gaming and tourism taxes
Delaware	0.53%	No sales tax, but business and corporate franchise taxes supply close to half of collections
Colorado, Utah, Idaho	0.49 to 0.53%	Flat income taxes of 4.4 to 5.3 percent

Revenue shares are from Tax Foundation fiscal year 2023 collections. A household that spends heavily in Tennessee or Louisiana pays some of its property tax saving back at the register.

States with the lowest property taxes are not always the lowest bills

The bill is the rate times the value. Hawaii’s rate is the lowest in the country and its median bill is still nearly three times Alabama’s, because the median Hawaii home costs four times as much. Colorado’s 0.49 percent lands on $502,200 homes and produces a $2,448 bill, above the national median.

Rates also move more inside a state than between states. Illinois averages 2.07 percent, but its counties range well above and below that. Texas averages 1.58 percent, and Harris County sits at 1.72 percent. The county page for the address is the number that matters.

How to compare property taxes when choosing where to live

Use effective rates, not millage. A 40 mill rate on 10 percent of value is cheaper than 15 mills on full value.
Open the county page, because school district and city levies drive most of the difference inside a state.
Subtract the exemptions you will actually qualify for. Texas homeowners get $140,000 off school district value; Florida homeowners get up to $50,000 off most levies. Renters and second-home owners get neither.
Ask what happens after you buy. In California, Florida and Texas the seller’s capped value disappears at closing. Our guide on why property taxes go up after a purchase works the numbers.
Add the taxes the state charges instead, from the table above.

This is general information, not tax or legal advice. Confirm current rates with the county assessor before making a decision.

Frequently asked questions

What states have no property tax?

None. All 50 states and the District of Columbia tax real estate, because property tax is levied by counties, cities and school districts rather than the state itself. States that are famous for having no income tax, such as Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Nevada and Wyoming, all bill homeowners every year. Delaware, the one state with no sales tax on consumers, taxes property too.

What state has the lowest property tax?

Hawaii, at a median effective rate of 0.27 percent of home value, followed by Alabama at 0.38 percent, then Colorado and Nevada at 0.49 percent. These are Census figures: the median annual bill divided by the median owner-occupied home value in each state. Hawaii's low rate sits on very expensive housing, so its median bill of $2,183 is not unusually small.

Which states have the highest property taxes?

New Jersey at 2.23 percent, Illinois at 2.07 percent, Connecticut at 1.92 percent, New Hampshire at 1.77 percent and Vermont at 1.71 percent. New Jersey's median bill is $9,541 a year. Texas ranks seventh at 1.58 percent.

Why do states with no income tax still have property tax?

Because the two taxes fund different governments. Income tax is a state tax. Property tax is local, and it pays for schools, police, fire and roads through counties, cities and school districts. A state can drop its income tax and its local governments still need the property tax. New Hampshire raises about 60 percent of all state and local revenue from property tax, and Texas about 41 percent.

Is a low property tax rate the same as a low property tax bill?

No. The bill is the rate multiplied by your home's value. Hawaii's 0.27 percent produces a $2,183 median bill because the median home is worth $808,200, while Alabama's 0.38 percent produces a $738 bill on a $195,100 home. Compare median bills, not just rates, and then check the county, because rates vary more inside a state than between states.