The sales tax in Alachua County is 7.5%, made up of Florida’s 6% state sales tax plus a 1.5% local discretionary surtax.1Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax2Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax Rate Table That rate applies to most retail purchases anywhere in the county, from a Gainesville checkout line to a High Springs gas station. On a $200 purchase, you pay $12 in state tax and $3 in county surtax, for $15 total.
What the Local 1.5% Pays For
The county portion is two separate voter-approved levies stacked together. The larger piece is a 1.0% Local Government Infrastructure Surtax that took effect January 1, 2023 after voters approved it in November 2022, replacing an earlier 0.5% version.3Florida Department of Revenue. Alachua County Local Government Infrastructure Surtax Rate Increases Half of its revenue funds the Wild Spaces & Public Places program for conservation land and parks; the other half pays for road repairs, fire station construction, affordable housing, and economic development.4Alachua County. Alachua County Ordinance 2022-08 – Local Government Infrastructure Sales Surtax It expires December 31, 2032.
The remaining 0.5% has been in place since January 1, 2019 and runs through December 31, 2030.5Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax Information for Calendar Year 2025 Unless voters renew either levy, the local surtax will step down when each one sunsets.
The $5,000 Cap on Big-Ticket Items
The 1.5% county surtax only applies to the first $5,000 of the price of any single item of tangible personal property.6Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax This matters for vehicles, boats, aircraft, and mobile homes. Buy a $30,000 car in Alachua County and the county surtax maxes out at $75 (1.5% of $5,000), even though the full 6% state tax still applies to the entire $30,000.
When several items are sold together, the cap can apply to each item individually if they are normally sold as a set or as component parts of a single working unit.6Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax
The cap does not apply to these, where the full 1.5% hits the entire amount:7Florida Dept. of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax
- Taxable services such as pest control, detective, and security services
- Admissions and event tickets
- Short-term rentals and transient accommodations
- Parking, boat docking, and aircraft tie-down charges
What’s Taxed and What Isn’t
The 7.5% rate applies to tangible personal property, which covers most physical goods you can take out of a store.8The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 21205 – Sales, Storage, Use Tax Some of the taxable services catch people off guard. Only nonresidential pest control is taxable; an exterminator for your home or apartment doesn’t charge sales tax, but pest control for a commercial building does.9Legal Information Institute. Florida Admin Code 12A-1009 – Nonresidential Pest Control Services Detective, burglar protection, and private investigation services are taxable whether the client is a business or an individual.10Legal Information Institute. Florida Admin Code 12A-10092 – Detective, Burglar Protection, and Other Protection Services
Several everyday categories are completely exempt. Groceries for home consumption pay no sales tax, including meat, produce, dairy, canned goods, cereal, baked goods, coffee, and frozen foods.11Florida Senate. Florida Code 21208 – Sales, Rental, Use, Consumption, Distribution, and Storage Tax; Specified Exemptions Prepared food sold for immediate consumption, such as a restaurant meal or a deli sandwich eaten on-site, does not qualify, though bakery items from a shop without eat-in seating remain exempt.
Prescription medications and medical supplies dispensed by a licensed practitioner are exempt, along with prosthetics, crutches, and hearing aids.12Legal Information Institute. Florida Code 12A-1020 – Licensed Practitioners; Drugs, Medical Products and Supplies Over-the-counter medications remain taxable unless prescribed. Qualifying nonprofits and government entities can obtain a Consumer’s Certificate of Exemption from the Florida Department of Revenue to buy free of state and local tax.13Florida Department of Revenue. Sales Tax Exemption Certificates Power farm equipment used exclusively for agricultural production is also exempt when the buyer gives the seller a written certificate.
Commercial Rent No Longer Taxable
Florida repealed the sales tax on rent and license fees for commercial real property effective October 1, 2025. No state sales tax or county surtax applies to rental periods that begin on or after that date.14Florida Department of Revenue. Tax Information Publication 25A01-04 – Sales Tax on Commercial Rentals Repealed Effective October 1, 2025 Businesses leasing office, retail, or warehouse space in Alachua County no longer owe this tax.
Short-Term Rentals: 12.5% Total
Renting out a home, condo, or room in Alachua County for less than six months carries more than the standard 7.5%. The county also imposes a 5% tourist development tax on short-term accommodations, bringing the combined burden to 12.5%. Depending on the arrangement, platforms such as Airbnb and Vrbo may collect and remit these taxes automatically, but hosts should confirm which taxes the platform handles and which fall to them.
Online and Out-of-State Purchases
When no sales tax is collected on an online or out-of-state purchase, Florida expects you to pay use tax at the same combined rate. Use tax applies when you buy a taxable item outside Florida and bring it into the state, or when you take something you bought tax-free for resale and use it yourself.15Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax Sales tax paid to another state credits against the Florida liability, but tax paid to a foreign country does not. Items you bought and used in another state for six months or more before bringing them into Florida are not subject to use tax.16Florida Department of Revenue. Out-of-State Purchase Return Individuals report use tax quarterly on Form DR-15MO, with payment due by the 20th of the month after each quarter.
Most major online retailers already collect the full 7.5% on deliveries to Alachua County. Since July 2021, out-of-state sellers with more than $100,000 in annual Florida sales must register and collect, using the delivery address to determine the county surtax.17The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 2120596 – Remote Sales When a third-party seller sells through Amazon, Walmart, Etsy, or a similar platform, the marketplace itself collects and remits the tax on the seller’s behalf.18Florida Senate. Florida Code 21205965 – Marketplace Providers
If You’re the Business Collecting the Tax
Any business selling taxable goods or services in Alachua County must register with the Florida Department of Revenue before opening.19Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Department of Revenue – Account Management and Registration Registration is free and online. The business then collects 7.5% at the point of sale and holds those funds in trust for the state. Failing to collect the tax does not erase the liability; the business still owes it.
Filing frequency depends on how much tax you collect in a year:15Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
- More than $1,000 per year: monthly
- $501 to $1,000: quarterly
- $101 to $500: semiannual
- $100 or less: annual
Returns are due on the 1st of the month after the reporting period and are late after the 20th. You have to file for every period you’re registered, even if you had no sales.
File and pay on time electronically and you earn a small collection allowance: 2.5% of the first $1,200 in tax due, capped at $30 per period. Miss the deadline and the penalty is 10% of the tax owed with a $50 minimum, climbing by another 10% every 30 days up to a 50% ceiling.20Florida Senate. Florida Code 21212 – Dealer’s Credit for Collecting Tax; Penalties for Noncompliance Interest runs on top of penalties at a floating rate the state resets every six months; for January through June 2026 it is 11%.21Florida Dept. of Revenue. Tax Information Publications