Florida does not charge a statewide property tax on cars. What you pay at the tax collector instead is sales tax on the purchase, plus title and tag fees. The statewide sales tax is 6 percent. On top of that, most of Florida’s 67 counties add a discretionary sales surtax. On a motor vehicle, that local surtax is not applied to the full price — it is generally limited to the first $5,000. That cap is why two neighboring counties can feel similar on a $40,000 SUV even when their surtax rates look different on paper, and why a jump from 0 percent in Collier to 2% in Hamilton still matters in dollars. This guide walks the state region by region, names every county, and keeps every local rate and every surtax dollar figure tied to current official rates so the comparisons stay current when a county changes its levy.
Why the county you title in changes the bill
A used Camry titled in Gainesville is not taxed the same way as the same Camry titled in Naples, even though both buyers pay Florida’s 6 percent state sales tax. Alachua County’s discretionary surtax is 1.5%; Collier County’s is 0%. On the first $5,000 of the vehicle’s taxable sales price, that is $75.00 in Alachua versus $0.00 in Collier. If you live in Alachua, you are paying $75.00 more in local surtax than a Collier buyer on that same capped base.
People move this gap around without meaning to. A Jacksonville (Duval) resident who buys from a dealer in St. Johns County still generally remits based on where the vehicle is registered, not where the lot sits. A snowbird who titles in Monroe County pays 1.5% locally; a neighbor who keeps the car in Miami-Dade pays 1%. The difference is 0.5% on the capped $5,000, or $25.00 in cash.
Florida has 67 counties. Every one of them appears below. The rates in this article are not typed in by hand. They are pulled from the same county table the calculator uses, so when Hamilton, Orange, or anyone else updates a levy, the sentences update with it.
- Florida Department of Revenue — Discretionary Sales Surtax Information (Form DR-15DSS and county rate publications)
- Florida Statutes § 212.05 — Sales, storage, and use tax; 6 percent statewide rate
- Florida Statutes §§ 212.054–212.055 — Discretionary sales surtax; motor-vehicle limitation
- Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles — title and registration procedures
How Florida taxes a car purchase
Three layers show up on a typical private-party or dealer deal. First is the 6 percent state sales tax on the taxable purchase price after any legally allowed trade-in credit. Second is the county discretionary sales surtax, which each county may levy under chapter 212 for schools, infrastructure, indigent care, or other authorized uses. Third are the fixed title and registration (tag) charges collected by the tax collector or license plate agency. This article’s live figures are the second layer — the county surtax — because that is what varies by county in the official rate data.
The 6 percent state piece does not change when you cross from Leon into Wakulla. The surtax does. Leon County’s surtax is 1.5%; Wakulla’s is 1.5%. Those two happen to match today, so a Tallahassee buyer and a Wakulla buyer pay the same local surtax on the first $5,000: $75.00 each. Drive east into Jefferson County and the surtax drops to 1%, which is $50.00 on that same $5,000. If you live in Leon instead of Jefferson, the local gap is $25.00.
Dealers collect tax at sale. Private-party buyers typically pay when they title at the county tax collector. Use tax applies when a vehicle is purchased out of state and first used in Florida; the state still wants its 6 percent, and the county still wants its surtax on the capped amount, with credit for tax legally paid to another jurisdiction in many cases. Always confirm credit rules with the tax collector — they are statutory, not in this official rates.
The $5,000 motor-vehicle surtax cap
Suppose two buyers each purchase a $28,000 car. State sales tax is 6 percent of $28,000, or $1,680.00, in both counties. Local surtax is not 6 percent of $28,000. It is the county rate times $5,000 (or the sales price, if the car costs less than $5,000).
Example 1: Same $28,000 car in Orange County and in Osceola County
Scenario: A family titles a $28,000 used SUV. They are deciding between living in Orange County (Orlando) and Osceola County (Kissimmee). Orange’s surtax is 0.5%; Osceola’s is 1.5%.
State sales tax (6% of $28,000): $1,680.00
Surtax base (first $5,000): $5,000.00
Orange County surtax (0.5%): $25.00
Osceola County surtax (1.5%): $75.00
If you live in Osceola, you pay $50.00 more in local surtax than in Orange on this purchase.
The state line is identical. The local line is not. That 1% gap is the entire county difference on the vehicle surtax.
Example 2: A $4,200 beater versus a $42,000 truck in Pinellas County
Scenario: Pinellas County’s surtax is 1%. One buyer pays $4,200 for a high-mileage sedan. Another pays $42,000 for a late-model truck. The cheap car is under the cap, so surtax applies to the full $4,200. The expensive truck is over the cap, so surtax applies only to $5,000.
$42.00
$42,000 truck, Pinellas surtax on the first $5,000 only:
$50.00
State tax on the $42,000 truck (6%): $2,520.00
State tax on the $4,200 car (6%): $252.00
Local surtax barely moves when the price climbs from $5,000 to $42,000. State tax scales with the full price. If you live in Pinellas and you are shopping “something nicer,” the county surtax is not the line that explodes — the 6 percent state tax is.
Highest and lowest counties right now
The current high is 2% in Hamilton. The current low is 0% in Citrus / Collier. If you live in the high county, the local surtax on the first $5,000 is $100.00. If you live in a zero-surtax county, it is $0.00. That spread is 2% , or $100.00 in cash, using Hamilton versus Collier as the named pair that currently sits at the extremes.
Those names are allowed to change. If a county raises or sunsets a surtax, Hamilton will follow the official rate data. Do not memorize “Hamilton is always highest.” Read the live name.
- Florida Statutes § 212.054(2) — application of discretionary surtax; motor vehicles
- Florida Department of Revenue — Discretionary Sales Surtax Rates by County
Panhandle: Escambia to Franklin
The western Panhandle is a string of beach and inland counties that do not share one surtax. Escambia County (Pensacola) is 1.5%. Cross into Santa Rosa County and it falls to 1%. If you live in Escambia instead of Santa Rosa, you pay $25.00 more on the capped $5,000. Okaloosa County (Fort Walton Beach, Destin) is 1%, matching Santa Rosa. Walton County (Santa Rosa Beach, DeFuniak Springs) is also 1%. Along U.S. 98, a move of a few miles can be a wash — or not, once you leave the 1 percent band.
Inland, Holmes County is 1.5% and Washington County is 1.5%. Bay County (Panama City) sits at 1%. If you live in Washington rather than Bay, the extra local surtax is $25.00. Jackson County is 1.5%; Calhoun County is 1.5%; Gulf County is 1%. Liberty County is 1.5%, and Franklin County (Apalachicola, St. George Island) is 1.5%. Franklin and Liberty match each other; Gulf does not. A St. George Island buyer in Franklin pays $75.00 locally, while a Port St. Joe buyer in Gulf pays $50.00.
Example 1: Pensacola (Escambia) versus Fort Walton Beach (Okaloosa)
Scenario: Two airmen buy identical $22,000 trucks. One titles in Escambia, the other in Okaloosa.
Escambia surtax (1.5%) on $5,000: $75.00
Okaloosa surtax (1%) on $5,000: $50.00
Gap if you live in Escambia: $25.00
Example 2: Panama City (Bay) versus Chipley (Washington)
Scenario: Same $18,500 sedan, titled either in Bay County or Washington County.
Washington surtax (1.5%): $75.00
If you live in Washington, you pay $25.00 more locally.
North Florida and the Big Bend
Leon County, home of Tallahassee, levies 1.5%. Gadsden County to the west is 1.5% — a match. Wakulla County to the south is also 1.5%. Jefferson County to the east drops to 1%. Madison County is 1.5%; Taylor County is 1%; Lafayette County is 1%. If you live in Madison rather than Lafayette, the extra surtax is $25.00.
Dixie County is 1%; Levy County is 1%; Gilchrist County is 1%. Those three sit together at the same local rate. Columbia County (Lake City) is 1.5%. Hamilton County, Florida’s current high in these official rates, is 2%. If you live in Hamilton instead of Columbia, you pay $25.00 more. Suwannee County is 1%; Baker County is 1%; Union County is 1%; Bradford County is 1%. Baker, Union, Bradford, and Suwannee currently share 1%, so a Macclenny title and a Starke title match on the local line.
Example 1: Jasper (Hamilton) versus Lake City (Columbia)
Scenario: A $15,000 pickup titled on either side of the Hamilton–Columbia line.
Columbia (1.5%): $75.00
If you live in Hamilton: $25.00 more in surtax.
Example 2: Tallahassee (Leon) versus Monticello (Jefferson)
Scenario: A $31,000 sedan. State tax is 6 percent of $31,000, or $1,860.00, in both counties. Only the surtax moves.
Jefferson (1%): $50.00
If you live in Leon: $25.00 more locally.
Northeast Florida
Nassau County (Fernandina Beach, Yulee) is 1%. Duval County (Jacksonville) is 1.5%. If you live in Duval rather than Nassau, the extra local surtax is $25.00. Clay County (Orange Park, Green Cove Springs) is 1.5%, matching Duval. St. Johns County (St. Augustine, Nocatee) drops to 0.5%. That is one of the sharper metro lines in Florida: Jacksonville at 1.5% versus St. Johns at 0.5%. If you live in Duval instead of St. Johns, you pay $50.00 more on the cap.
Putnam County (Palatka) is 1%. Flagler County (Palm Coast) is 1%. Volusia County (Daytona Beach, Deltona) is 0.5%. Flagler and Putnam currently sit above Volusia. If you live in Flagler rather than Volusia, the extra surtax is $25.00. A Daytona Beach title in Volusia is $25.00 locally; a Palatka title in Putnam is $50.00.
Example 1: Jacksonville (Duval) versus St. Augustine (St. Johns)
Scenario: Two $26,000 crossovers, one titled in Duval, one in St. Johns.
St. Johns (0.5%): $25.00
If you live in Duval: $50.00 more.
Example 2: Palm Coast (Flagler) versus Daytona Beach (Volusia)
Scenario: A $19,000 compact titled just north or just south of the county line.
Volusia (0.5%): $25.00
If you live in Flagler: $25.00 more.
I-4, Tampa Bay, and Central Florida
Marion County (Ocala) is 1.5%. Alachua County (Gainesville) is 1.5% — they match. Lake County (Leesburg, Tavares) is 1%. Sumter County (The Villages area) is 1%. If you live in Marion rather than Lake, you pay $25.00 more. Citrus County is 0%, one of the two current zeros. Hernando County (Brooksville) is 0.5%. A Citrus title costs $0.00 in local surtax; a Hernando title costs $25.00. If you live in Hernando instead of Citrus, that is $25.00 extra.
Pasco County is 1%. Hillsborough County (Tampa) is 1.5%. Pinellas County (St. Petersburg, Clearwater) is 1%. Crossing the bay from Pinellas into Hillsborough raises the local surtax by 0.5%, or $25.00. Polk County (Lakeland, Winter Haven) is 1%. Orange County is 0.5%. Seminole County is 1%. Osceola County is 1.5%. Brevard County (Melbourne, Cocoa, Titusville) is 1%. Orange is the odd one in that I-4 cluster: 0.5% versus Seminole at 1% and Osceola at 1.5%. If you live in Osceola instead of Orange, you pay $50.00 more locally.
Example 1: Tampa (Hillsborough) versus St. Petersburg (Pinellas)
Scenario: A $24,000 sedan titled on either side of Tampa Bay.
Pinellas (1%): $50.00
If you live in Hillsborough: $25.00 more.
Example 2: Orlando (Orange) versus Kissimmee (Osceola)
Scenario: A $33,000 minivan for a theme-park-area household.
Osceola (1.5%): $75.00
If you live in Osceola: $50.00 more.
Southwest Florida
Manatee County (Bradenton) is 1%. Sarasota County is 1% — a match. Charlotte County (Punta Gorda) is 1%. Lee County (Fort Myers, Cape Coral) drops to 0.5%. If you live in Sarasota instead of Lee, you pay $25.00 more. Collier County (Naples, Marco Island) is 0%, the other current zero alongside Citrus. A Naples title has $0.00 in county surtax; a Fort Myers title in Lee has $25.00. If you live in Lee rather than Collier, that is $25.00.
Inland, Hendry County is 1.5%. Glades County is 1%. DeSoto County is 1.5%. Hardee County is 1%. Highlands County (Sebring, Avon Park) is 1.5%. Okeechobee County is 1%. Hendry, DeSoto, and Highlands currently sit above Glades, Hardee, and Okeechobee. If you live in Hendry instead of Glades, you pay $25.00 more. A Sebring title in Highlands is $75.00 locally; an Okeechobee title is $50.00.
Example 1: Naples (Collier) versus Fort Myers (Lee)
Scenario: A $29,000 SUV titled in Collier or Lee.
Lee (0.5%): $25.00
If you live in Lee: $25.00 more than in Collier.
Example 2: Sebring (Highlands) versus Okeechobee
Scenario: A $16,800 pickup for ranch or lake use.
Okeechobee (1%): $50.00
If you live in Highlands: $25.00 more.
Treasure Coast, Miami-Dade, and the Keys
Indian River County (Vero Beach) is 1%. St. Lucie County (Port St. Lucie, Fort Pierce) is 1%. Martin County (Stuart) is 1%. Those three currently match. Palm Beach County is 1% as well. Broward County (Fort Lauderdale) is 1%. Miami-Dade County is 1%. Along the coastal strip from Vero Beach through Miami, the local surtax is 1% in these official rates — a $5,000 base times that rate, or $50.00.
Monroe County (Key West, Marathon, Key Largo) is 1.5%. If you live in the Keys rather than in Miami-Dade, you pay $25.00 more in local surtax. That is the opposite of the usual “rural is cheaper” story: Monroe is 1.5% and Miami-Dade is 1%. A Key West title is $75.00 locally; a Homestead or Miami title is $50.00.
Example 1: Miami-Dade versus Monroe County
Scenario: A $35,000 sedan titled in Miami or in Key West.
Monroe (1.5%): $75.00
If you live in Monroe: $25.00 more.
Example 2: West Palm Beach (Palm Beach) versus Fort Lauderdale (Broward)
Scenario: Two $27,400 crossovers on adjacent South Florida counties that currently share a rate.
Broward (1%): $50.00
Gap: $0.00
When neighboring counties match, moving across the line does not change the surtax. Confirm the live figures anyway — this pair is a match only as long as the official rate data says so.
Two complete purchase examples
These walk every tax line a buyer actually sees, using the $5,000 surtax cap and the live county rates. Title and tag amounts below are typical DHSMV-order-of-magnitude figures for a standard passenger car; your tax collector’s receipt is controlling.
Complete example 1: $28,000 used sedan titled in Alachua County
Scenario: Private-party purchase, no trade-in, Gainesville resident.
State sales tax (6% × $28,000): $1,680.00
Alachua discretionary surtax
(1.5% × $5,000): $75.00
Estimated original title fee (DHSMV): $75.25
Estimated registration / plate (varies): ~$30–$50 range by weight and plate type
Sales + surtax subtotal: $1,680.00 + $75.00
If this same buyer titled in Collier instead, state tax would still be $1,680.00, but local surtax would be $0.00. Living in Alachua costs $75.00 more on the surtax line.
Complete example 2: $41,500 new crossover titled in Hamilton versus in Orange
Scenario: Dealer sale, no trade-in. One buyer lives in Hamilton County, the other in Orange County.
State sales tax (6% × $41,500): $2,490.00 (same in both counties)
Hamilton surtax (2% × $5,000): $100.00
Orange surtax (0.5% × $5,000): $25.00
If you live in Hamilton, local surtax is $75.00 higher than in Orange.
The $41,500 price does not increase that gap. The cap already applied at $5,000.
A rural county can out-tax a big metro on this one line. Hamilton is 2%; Orange is 0.5%. The live high county is Hamilton at 2%.
Title, tag, and what the official rate data does not include
Florida title fees, registration by vehicle weight, and specialty-plate charges come from DHSMV schedules, not from this county surtax official rates. A passenger car’s original title fee and the annual license tax based on weight will look similar in Baker County and in Broward County. What will not look similar is the discretionary surtax: Baker is 1% and Broward is 1% — currently a match in the current official rates, so $50.00 in both. Compare that to Hillsborough at 1.5% or to Citrus at 0%, and the title clerk’s “sales tax” block is where the counties diverge.
Electric-vehicle additional registration fees, if any, are also outside this guide. So are parking permits, municipal business taxes, and tourist-development taxes that never appear on a title. Keep this article pointed at the county discretionary surtax, which is the number that changes when you say “I live in X County.”
- Florida DHSMV — Title Fees and Motor Vehicle Procedures Manual
- Florida Statutes § 320.08 — License taxes by vehicle weight and type
- Florida Statutes § 319.32 — Title fees
Common questions
Does the dealer in a cheaper county save me money if I live somewhere else? Generally no. Florida looks to where the vehicle is registered / the county of use for the discretionary surtax. A Collier dealer does not wipe a Duval resident’s 1.5% local rate.
What if my car costs $3,900? The surtax base is the sales price, because it is under $5,000. In Pasco County that is 1% of $3,900, or $39.00.
Do all 67 counties appear in this article? Yes. Panhandle through the Keys names them in the regional sections: Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington, Bay, Jackson, Calhoun, Gulf, Liberty, Franklin, Gadsden, Leon, Wakulla, Jefferson, Madison, Taylor, Lafayette, Dixie, Levy, Gilchrist, Columbia, Hamilton, Suwannee, Baker, Union, Bradford, Nassau, Duval, Clay, St. Johns, Putnam, Flagler, Volusia, Marion, Alachua, Lake, Sumter, Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Polk, Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Brevard, Manatee, Sarasota, Charlotte, Lee, Collier, Hendry, Glades, DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, Okeechobee, Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin, Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe.
Can a county be at 0 percent and still collect state tax? Yes. Citrus and whichever other counties currently show 0% still collect the 6 percent state tax. Zero is the local add-on, not a holiday from Florida.
What about trade-ins? Florida generally taxes the net price after a qualifying trade-in on a motor vehicle sale. The $5,000 surtax cap still applies to the taxable net, not to the gross “before trade” number. Confirm the math on your buyer’s order.
Why don’t the dollar examples use the full $28,000 for local tax? Because the statute does not. Using the full price would overstate county surtax on almost every new-car deal.
How these rates stay current
Every rate and dollar amount in this article is pulled live from current official data used by the Florida Department of Revenue and county tax collectors. When an official levy changes, the figures on this page update in real time. Highest and lowest locality names also update automatically.
This is an educational estimator, not a clerk’s receipt. Effective dates, exemptions, trade-in rules, and assessment fractions can be more precise than a single combined rate. When you title, the state’s collecting office is the authority.
Appendix: live county table
Use this as a lookup, not as a substitute for the comparisons above. Search by county name.
| County | Discretionary surtax |
|---|---|
| Alachua | 1.5% |
| Baker | 1% |
| Bay | 1% |
| Bradford | 1% |
| Brevard | 1% |
| Broward | 1% |
| Calhoun | 1.5% |
| Charlotte | 1% |
| Citrus | 0% |
| Clay | 1.5% |
| Collier | 0% |
| Columbia | 1.5% |
| Desoto | 1.5% |
| Dixie | 1% |
| Duval | 1.5% |
| Escambia | 1.5% |
| Flagler | 1% |
| Franklin | 1.5% |
| Gadsden | 1.5% |
| Gilchrist | 1% |
| Glades | 1% |
| Gulf | 1% |
| Hamilton | 2% |
| Hardee | 1% |
| Hendry | 1.5% |
| Hernando | 0.5% |
| Highlands | 1.5% |
| Hillsborough | 1.5% |
| Holmes | 1.5% |
| Indian River | 1% |
| Jackson | 1.5% |
| Jefferson | 1% |
| Lafayette | 1% |
| Lake | 1% |
| Lee | 0.5% |
| Leon | 1.5% |
| Levy | 1% |
| Liberty | 1.5% |
| Madison | 1.5% |
| Manatee | 1% |
| Marion | 1.5% |
| Martin | 1% |
| Miami-Dade | 1% |
| Monroe | 1.5% |
| Nassau | 1% |
| Okaloosa | 1% |
| Okeechobee | 1% |
| Orange | 0.5% |
| Osceola | 1.5% |
| Palm Beach | 1% |
| Pasco | 1% |
| Pinellas | 1% |
| Polk | 1% |
| Putnam | 1% |
| Santa Rosa | 1% |
| Sarasota | 1% |
| Seminole | 1% |
| St Johns | 0.5% |
| St Lucie | 1% |
| Sumter | 1% |
| Suwannee | 1% |
| Taylor | 1% |
| Union | 1% |
| Volusia | 0.5% |
| Wakulla | 1.5% |
| Walton | 1% |
| Washington | 1.5% |
Conclusion
Florida’s statewide 6 percent sales tax is the large line on a car deal. The county discretionary surtax is the line that changes when you move — and even then, only on the first $5,000 of the motor vehicle’s taxable price. That is why Orange at 0.5% versus Osceola at 1.5% is a real household difference of $50.00, and why Collier at 0% versus Hamilton at 2% is $100.00. If you live in the high county, you feel it; if you live in a zero county, you still pay Florida’s 6 percent. Walk the region that matches your address, then confirm the live rate in the appendix table before you sign.
- Florida Statutes Chapter 212 — Tax on Sales, Use, and Other Transactions
- Florida Statutes § 212.05 — 6 percent state sales tax
- Florida Statutes §§ 212.054, 212.055 — Discretionary sales surtaxes; motor-vehicle application
- Florida Department of Revenue — Discretionary Sales Surtax (DR-15DSS) and county rate tables
- Florida DHSMV — title fees, registration, and tax collector procedures
- Florida Statutes §§ 319.32, 320.08 — title and license tax
This guide is an educational estimator. It is not legal, tax, or DMV advice. Figures shown inline are sourced from the Florida Department of Revenue and county tax collectors and related official rate data, update in real time, and can change when a locality’s levy changes. Confirm amounts with the collecting agency cited above before you pay.