Which state has the lowest property tax rate?

Hawaii, at 0.29 percent. Alabama follows at 0.37 percent, then Arizona and Utah at 0.48 percent and South Carolina at 0.49 percent. A low rate does not always mean a low bill: Hawaii's home values are high enough that the dollar amount stays substantial.

Is the effective rate the same as my mill rate?

No. A mill rate is applied to assessed value, and in many states assessed value is a fraction of market value. The effective rate folds the assessment ratio, the exemptions and every overlapping levy into one number, which is why it can be compared across states when millage cannot.

Why is my bill different from the rate times my home value?

The figures here are statewide averages. Your assessment may lag the market by several years, growth caps may limit how fast the taxable value can rise, and county and school levies differ from the state average in both directions.

Property tax rates by state

Q: Which state has the highest property tax rate?

New Jersey and Illinois both show a 1.88 percent effective rate on owner-occupied housing in the 2024 data, with New Jersey ranked first. Connecticut follows at 1.54 percent, then Vermont at 1.51 percent and New Hampshire at 1.50 percent.

Q: Does this include rental or commercial property?

No. The rates cover owner-occupied housing only. Taxes paid by businesses, by renters indirectly, and on second homes are excluded, which is why a state with heavy commercial property can look cheaper here than its overall tax burden suggests.

The effective rate is the share of home value paid in property tax each year. It is the only figure that can be compared across state lines, because mill rates are applied to assessed values that states define differently.

Highest

1.88%

New Jersey & Illinois

Lowest

0.29%

Hawaii

Median state

0.79%

Georgia, Oklahoma

On a $400k home

$3,160

At the median rate

The ranking, 2024

Sorted by effective rate. The dollar column is the rate applied to a $400,000 home — arithmetic, not a quote, since the rate that applies to any single house depends on its assessment.

Effective property tax rate on owner-occupied housing, 2024 Source: Tax Foundation, *Property Taxes by State and County* (March 2026), from U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 5-year estimates, tables B25082 and B25090 · reviewed November 2026
Rank	State	Effective rate	Tax on $400k	Change vs 2023
1	New Jersey	1.88%	7,520	−0.10
2	Illinois	1.88%	7,520	−0.03
3	Connecticut	1.54%	6,160	−0.08
4	Vermont	1.51%	6,040	−0.07
5	New Hampshire	1.50%	6,000	−0.12
6	Nebraska	1.44%	5,760	−0.04
7	Texas	1.40%	5,600	−0.07
8	Ohio	1.36%	5,440	−0.05
9	Iowa	1.33%	5,320	−0.03
10	Wisconsin	1.32%	5,280	−0.07
11	New York	1.30%	5,200	−0.01
12	Pennsylvania	1.26%	5,040	−0.05
13	Kansas	1.21%	4,840	−0.01
14	Michigan	1.19%	4,760	−0.04
15	Rhode Island	1.12%	4,480	−0.07
16	Massachusetts	1.00%	4,000	−0.03
17	Minnesota	1.00%	4,000	−0.01
18	South Dakota	1.00%	4,000	−0.03
19	Maine	0.98%	3,920	−0.06
20	Alaska	0.94%	3,760	−0.01
21	Maryland	0.92%	3,680	−0.03
22	North Dakota	0.92%	3,680	0.00
23	Missouri	0.89%	3,560	−0.02
24	Oregon	0.81%	3,240	−0.02
25	Georgia	0.79%	3,160	−0.03
26	Oklahoma	0.79%	3,160	−0.01
27	Florida	0.78%	3,120	−0.02
28	Virginia	0.78%	3,120	−0.01
29	Indiana	0.76%	3,040	−0.01
30	Washington	0.75%	3,000	−0.02
31	Kentucky	0.74%	2,960	−0.02
32	California	0.70%	2,800	0.00
33	North Carolina	0.66%	2,640	−0.03
34	New Mexico	0.63%	2,520	+0.01
35	Montana	0.61%	2,440	−0.03
9	District of Columbia	0.60%	2,400	0.00
36	Mississippi	0.58%	2,320	−0.02
37	Arkansas	0.56%	2,240	−0.01
38	Louisiana	0.55%	2,200	+0.01
39	Delaware	0.54%	2,160	−0.01
40	Wyoming	0.53%	2,120	+0.01
41	Tennessee	0.52%	2,080	−0.04
42	West Virginia	0.51%	2,040	0.00
43	Nevada	0.50%	2,000	−0.01
44	Colorado	0.50%	2,000	0.00
45	Idaho	0.50%	2,000	−0.03
46	South Carolina	0.49%	1,960	−0.02
47	Arizona	0.48%	1,920	−0.03
48	Utah	0.48%	1,920	−0.02
49	Alabama	0.37%	1,480	0.00
50	Hawaii	0.29%	1,160	−0.01

District of Columbia is shown at 0.60%, which would rank ninth among the states. Its rank is not counted in the state ordering.

What an effective rate is — and what it is not

The number is total residential property tax paid divided by total home value, for owner-occupied housing. It is not a mill rate, and it is not the rate printed on your tax bill. Millage applies to assessed value, and states set assessed value in wildly different ways: South Carolina assesses owner-occupied homes at 4 percent of market value, while about two dozen states assess at the full 100 percent. A 100-mill levy on a 4 percent assessment and a 4-mill levy on a full assessment can produce the same bill.

Because the effective rate divides the actual dollars by the actual value, it absorbs the assessment ratio, the homestead exemptions and every overlapping levy — county, city, school district, fire district — into a single comparable figure. That is why it is the right column to sort by, and why a state with a low mill rate can still land high on this list.

Three states show why the rate alone misleads

New Jersey tops the table at 1.88 percent, and its home values are high, so the dollar consequence compounds: the same $400,000 house that carries $2,800 of tax in California carries $7,520 there.

Hawaii sits at the bottom with 0.29 percent, but its median home value is the highest in the country. The low rate does not produce a low bill; it produces a bill that looks reasonable only because the rate is applied to a very large number.

Alabama is the genuine outlier: 0.37 percent against a median home value well below the national figure, so both the rate and the bill are low. That combination is rare — most low-rate states are low-rate because their values are high.

Turning the rate into your own number

A statewide average is a starting point, not an answer. Your county sets its own levy, your assessment may lag the market by years, and growth caps in states like California and Florida can hold taxable value far below market value for long-time owners.

If you have your assessed value and your local rate, the property tax calculator turns them into a monthly escrow figure and shows what the bill does to your total housing cost. If you are still working out the purchase, the mortgage payment calculator folds tax, insurance and PMI into one number.

Frequently asked questions

Which state has the highest property tax rate?

New Jersey and Illinois both show 1.88 percent in the 2024 data, with New Jersey ranked first. Connecticut follows at 1.54 percent, then Vermont at 1.51 percent and New Hampshire at 1.50 percent.

Which state has the lowest?

Hawaii at 0.29 percent, then Alabama at 0.37 percent, Arizona and Utah at 0.48 percent, and South Carolina at 0.49 percent.

Is this the same as my mill rate?

No. Millage applies to assessed value, which in many states is a fraction of market value. The effective rate folds the assessment ratio, exemptions and all overlapping levies into one comparable number.

Why is my bill different from rate × my home value?

These are statewide averages. Your assessment may lag the market, growth caps may limit the taxable value, and county and school levies differ from the state average in both directions.

Does this include rental or commercial property?

No — owner-occupied housing only. Business property, rental property and second homes are excluded.

Rates are statewide averages for owner-occupied housing and cannot predict an individual bill. Assessment practices, exemptions and local levies vary by county and change between reassessments. Confirm your own figure with your county assessor before budgeting.