The Cass County sales tax rate starts at 5.85 percent in unincorporated areas and climbs as high as 11.1 percent at some retail locations inside Belton, depending on which city, fire district, and special taxing district the store sits in.1Missouri Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax Rate Table – January 2026 Two stores a mile apart in Cass County can charge noticeably different tax, so the address matters more than the county name.
How the Rate Is Built
Every taxable sale in Cass County begins with Missouri’s statewide 4.225 percent. That state portion is split among four funds: 3.0 percent to General Revenue, 1.0 percent to Education, 0.125 percent to Conservation, and 0.10 percent to Parks and Soils.2Missouri Department of Revenue. Sales/Use Tax Cass County adds its own local taxes for general revenue, road and bridge maintenance, the justice center, and law enforcement, which brings the combined rate for unincorporated areas to 5.85 percent.1Missouri Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax Rate Table – January 2026
Cities layer on another rate. Belton, Raymore, Harrisonville, and Pleasant Hill each levy municipal sales taxes for police, parks, streets, and general operations. On top of that, individual retail centers may sit inside a Community Improvement District (CID) or Transportation Development District (TDD), each of which can add roughly half a percent to a full percent to fund specific infrastructure like a road interchange or a commercial center. These overlays are the main reason the posted rate at the register can jump between neighboring parking lots.
Combined Rates by Location
Current combined rates for common Cass County locations:
- Unincorporated Cass County: 5.85 percent. Areas inside certain fire protection districts reach 6.35 percent.
- Harrisonville: 8.225 percent base, up to 9.225 percent inside a TDD.
- Raymore: 8.85 percent base, up to 9.85 percent where a CID or TDD overlay applies.
- Belton: 9.10 percent base, up to 11.10 percent where a TDD and CID overlap.
- Pleasant Hill: 9.10 percent.
The 11.10 percent rate in parts of Belton is among the highest in the Kansas City metro area.3Missouri Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax Rate Table – April 2025 For a precise rate at a specific address, the Missouri Department of Revenue publishes a lookup tool that returns the combined rate for any street address in the state.
Groceries Are Taxed at a Lower Rate
Qualifying food is taxed at a reduced rate. Missouri drops its state share from 4.225 percent to 1.225 percent on items eligible for purchase with food stamps, a 3 percent reduction.4Missouri Department of Revenue. Missouri Sales Tax Reduction on Food Local taxes still apply in full, so the combined food rate in unincorporated Cass County is 2.85 percent.1Missouri Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax Rate Table – January 2026 Inside city limits the food rate is higher because the municipal portion is added on top.
Hot prepared food, alcohol, and tobacco do not qualify and are taxed at the full combined rate.5Cornell Law Institute. 12 CSR 10-110.990 – Tax-Sales of Food A restaurant that gets more than 80 percent of its gross receipts from food and drink prepared for immediate consumption must charge the full rate on everything it sells.
Vehicle Purchases Work Differently
Buying a car in Cass County does not mean paying the dealer’s local tax rate. When you title a new or used vehicle, you owe the 4.225 percent state sales tax plus local sales tax based on where the vehicle will be registered, and you pay it at the Department of Revenue office during titling rather than at the dealership.6Missouri Department of Revenue. Buying a Vehicle Any trade-in value is subtracted from the purchase price before the tax is calculated.
What Is and Is Not Taxed
Missouri taxes retail sales of tangible personal property, meaning physical items you can carry out of a store: clothing, furniture, electronics, building materials, and so on.7Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 144.020 – Rate of Tax Leasing or renting tangible property is taxed the same way as an outright sale.8Cornell Law Institute. 12 CSR 10-113.200 – Determining Whether a Transaction is Subject to Sales Tax or Use Tax
Services are generally not taxed, with important exceptions. Utilities and admissions to entertainment venues are taxable. Repair labor that is separately stated on the invoice is not taxable, but fabrication labor (work that creates a new product) is taxable even when listed separately.9Missouri Department of Revenue. FAQs – Sales Tax Taxability and Exemptions
Several categories are exempt from sales tax in Missouri and therefore in Cass County:
- Agricultural inputs such as seed, fertilizer, limestone, and pesticides used in crop production, when the crop will be sold at retail or fed to livestock headed for retail sale.10Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 144.030 – Exemptions From State and Local Sales and Use Taxes
- Manufacturing machinery and parts used directly to make a product that will itself be subject to sales tax.
- Prescription medications and certain prosthetic devices.
- Sales to federal, state, and local government entities and qualifying nonprofits.
To buy tax-free, the purchaser hands the seller a completed Form 149 (Missouri Sales and Use Tax Exemption Certificate) at the time of purchase.11Missouri Department of Revenue. Form 149 – Sales and Use Tax Exemption Certificate The same form covers resale, so a retailer buying inventory from a wholesaler uses it to avoid tax on goods that will be resold to the end consumer.
Annual Sales Tax Holidays
Missouri runs two statewide tax holidays that suspend state and local tax on qualifying items. Neither cities nor counties can opt out.
- Show-Me Green (April 19–25, 2026): Energy Star certified appliances priced at $1,500 or less are exempt. For an appliance over $1,500, the first $1,500 is still exempt.
- Back-to-School (August 7–9, 2026): clothing up to $100 per item, school supplies up to $50 per purchase, graphing calculators up to $150, computer software up to $350, and personal computers or peripherals up to $1,500.12Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 144.049 – Sales Tax Holiday
The back-to-school weekend runs from 12:01 a.m. Friday through midnight Sunday. “Clothing” is defined broadly to include footwear, diapers, and fabric for school uniforms, but it excludes accessories like watches, jewelry, and handbags. “School supplies” covers notebooks, writing instruments, and backpacks, but not headphones, radios, or portable phones.
Online and Out-of-State Purchases
Out-of-state retailers that sell more than $100,000 in taxable goods delivered into Missouri in any rolling 12-month period must register and collect Missouri sales tax, including the applicable Cass County local rate.13Cornell Law Institute. 12 CSR 10-113.400 – Marketplace Facilitator Marketplaces like Amazon and eBay collect and remit for their third-party sellers once the platform itself crosses the threshold.14Missouri Department of Revenue. Remote Seller and Marketplace Facilitator FAQs
If a Cass County resident buys from an out-of-state seller that did not collect Missouri tax, the buyer owes consumer’s use tax at the same combined rate. Individuals whose untaxed out-of-state purchases reach $2,000 or more in a calendar year must file a use tax return by April 15 of the following year.15Missouri Department of Revenue. Individual Consumer’s Use Tax The $2,000 figure is a filing threshold, not an exemption. Once you cross it, the tax applies to every dollar of qualifying purchases that year, including the first $2,000.16Cornell Law Institute. 12 CSR 10-103.250 – Purchaser’s Responsibility for Paying Use Tax