The Dallas County sales tax rate is 8.25% across nearly every city in the county. That total combines Texas’s 6.25% state sales and use tax with 2% in local taxes collected by the city and other local taxing entities where you’re shopping.1Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Sales and Use Tax2Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas Sales and Use Tax Rates – April 2026
How the 8.25% Breaks Down
The state portion is 6.25%, applied to most retail sales of goods and taxable services anywhere in Texas.1Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Sales and Use Tax That piece goes straight to the state treasury.
The remaining 2% is local. State law caps combined local sales tax at 2% for any given location, so no matter how many local entities have taxing authority over an area, their rates together cannot push past that ceiling.3Legal Information Institute. 34 Texas Administrative Code 3.334 – Local Sales and Use Taxes Most cities in Dallas County have allocated the full 2%, which is why the total you see on receipts is 8.25% nearly everywhere in the county.
Where the Local 2% Goes in Your City
The receipt total looks the same across Dallas County, but the money behind that 2% flows to very different places depending on where you shop.
DART Member Cities
Thirteen cities in the Dallas area belong to Dallas Area Rapid Transit, including Dallas, Irving, Garland, Richardson, Carrollton, and University Park. DART was created by voter approval in 1983 and is funded by a dedicated one-cent sales tax from each member city.4Dallas Area Rapid Transit. About DART In those cities, 1% of what you pay goes to transit and the other 1% to the city’s general revenue.5Dallas Area Rapid Transit. DART Board Pushes for No Change in Dallas Sales Tax Payment
Non-DART Cities
Cities within Dallas County that are not DART members still reach 8.25%, but they distribute the local 2% differently. A common pattern is 1% to the general fund, 0.5% toward property tax relief, and 0.5% for economic development. Mesquite, Lancaster, DeSoto, and Duncanville follow variations of this model, directing sales tax revenue toward infrastructure, public safety, or development programs instead of regional transit.
Crime Control Districts
Some areas within Dallas County have crime control and prevention districts that can levy up to 0.5% in sales tax, subject to voter approval, with revenue used exclusively for law enforcement and public safety within the district.6State of Texas. Texas Tax Code TAX 323.105 – Crime Control District Tax That rate counts toward the 2% cap, so any city with such a district has to leave room for it in the overall local allocation.
What the 8.25% Applies To
The rate hits most tangible personal property sold at retail: electronics, furniture, clothing, household goods. Texas also taxes certain services that other states leave alone, including data processing, web hosting, and telecommunications.7Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Taxable Services The Comptroller’s office keeps a detailed list of covered services.
What’s Exempt
Groceries
Most food bought for home consumption is exempt. That covers meat, dairy, eggs, produce, cereals, snack items, and frozen foods. It does not cover prepared food sold ready to eat by restaurants, delis, food trucks, or vending machines, and soft drinks, candy, and individual-sized snacks from vending machines are taxable.8Texas Public Law. Texas Tax Code Section 151.314 – Food and Food Products A sandwich you build from deli ingredients is exempt; the same sandwich made to order behind the counter is taxable.
Medicine and Medical Supplies
Prescription drugs, insulin, and over-the-counter medicines with a “Drug Facts” label are exempt, as are hearing aids, prosthetic devices, hospital beds, blood glucose test strips, wound care dressings, and diapers for both adults and children.9Texas Public Law. Texas Tax Code Section 151.313 – Health Care Supplies
Occasional Personal Sales
Selling personal belongings at a garage sale or through an online listing generally does not trigger sales tax. Texas exempts “occasional sales,” meaning one or two retail sales within a 12-month period by someone who isn’t in the business of selling. There’s also a safe harbor for individuals selling personal property: as long as the items were originally bought for personal or family use, you don’t use a broker (other than an online auction platform), and your total receipts stay at or under $3,000 in a calendar year, the sales are exempt.10State of Texas. Texas Tax Code TAX 151.304 – Occasional Sales
The Annual Sales Tax Holiday
Once a year, Texas waives state and local sales tax on qualifying back-to-school items for a weekend. In 2026, the holiday runs August 7 through August 9. Qualifying items and limits:11Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Sales Tax Holiday
- Clothing and footwear under $100 per item
- Backpacks for students under $100 each
- School supplies under $100 per item (specific supplies only, such as notebooks, pens, crayons, and calculators)
Shipping and handling count toward the item’s price, so a $95 pair of shoes with $6 shipping crosses the $100 threshold and loses the exemption. The holiday applies at every retailer in Dallas County, in-store or online, as long as the seller collects Texas tax.
What You Owe on Out-of-State Purchases
If you buy something from an out-of-state seller that doesn’t collect Texas tax, you technically owe the equivalent amount as “use tax” at the same 8.25% rate. This commonly applies to purchases from smaller online retailers or items bought while traveling. Texas doesn’t have a separate individual use tax return the way some states do, and enforcement against consumers for small purchases is rare, but businesses are expected to self-report use tax on their regular sales tax returns.
If You’re the One Collecting the Tax
Any business selling taxable goods or services in Texas must hold a sales tax permit from the Comptroller’s office before collecting tax.1Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Sales and Use Tax You can apply online through the Comptroller’s website, and the permit is free. Collecting without a permit, or collecting and failing to remit, carries serious penalties.
Out-of-state online sellers have to register and collect once their total Texas revenue exceeds $500,000 in the preceding 12 calendar months. That threshold includes taxable and nontaxable sales plus shipping and handling. After you cross it, you have until the first day of the fourth month after the month you exceeded the threshold to get a permit and start collecting.12Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Remote Sellers
Marketplace platforms like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy are treated as the seller for third-party sales and have been collecting and remitting Texas sales and use tax on behalf of their sellers since October 2019. If you sell exclusively through a qualifying marketplace, the platform handles the Texas obligation. Direct sales through your own site remain your responsibility once you cross the $500,000 threshold.
Late filing gets expensive quickly. Texas charges 5% on tax paid 1 to 30 days late and 10% after 30 days, with another 10% added if the tax stays unpaid after a formal notice. A $50 penalty applies for each late return, even one reporting no tax due, and interest starts on the 61st day after the original due date.13Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Penalties for Past Due Taxes Filing a zero return on time is always better than skipping the filing.