Comparing Georgia versus Florida taxes comes down to one big fact and several smaller ones: Florida has no state income tax, and Georgia charges a flat 5.19% for tax year 2025. That single line settles the question for most workers and high earners. But if you’re retired, buying a home, or running a small business, the full picture is more balanced than it first looks, and in some cases Georgia comes out ahead.
Income Tax
Florida’s constitution prohibits a state income tax on individuals. Article VII, Section 5 bars any tax on the personal income of natural persons, and that ban has been effectively permanent since 1981. Wages, interest, dividends, and capital gains all escape state taxation.
Georgia moved to a flat income tax in 2024. The rate was 5.39% that year and dropped to 5.19% for 2025. Under the Tax Reduction and Reform Act of 2022, the rate is scheduled to fall by another tenth of a percent each year until it reaches 4.99%, though each cut only takes effect if the state hits specific revenue benchmarks.1Georgia House of Representatives. Summary of Georgia State Income Tax Changes From 2018 Through 2030
Georgia offers a substantial standard deduction to soften the flat rate. Married couples filing jointly deduct $24,000; single filers, heads of household, and married-filing-separately taxpayers each get $12,000.2Department of Revenue. Georgia Standard Deductions Increases A per-dependent exemption applies on top of that.
The practical effect for a working household: a single earner making $80,000 with no special deductions owes about $3,500 in Georgia and $0 in Florida. That gap scales with income, since Georgia’s flat rate hits every dollar above the standard deduction.
Retirement Income
Georgia narrows most of that gap for retirees. Social Security benefits are fully exempt from Georgia income tax. On top of that, the state provides a retirement income exclusion: taxpayers 65 and older can exclude up to $65,000 per person from Georgia taxable income, covering pensions, annuities, interest, dividends, rental income, capital gains, and up to $4,000 of earned income. Taxpayers between 62 and 64 get a $35,000 exclusion per person.3Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts. Tax Incentive Evaluation – Retirement Income Exclusion
For a married couple over 65, that means a combined $130,000 shielded from state tax before you count the separate Social Security exemption. A couple drawing $40,000 in Social Security and $100,000 in pension and investment income would owe zero to Georgia. Florida still wins for wealthier retirees whose non-Social Security income runs well above the exclusion, because every dollar is untaxed there, but for moderate retirement budgets the two states can tie.
Military retirees under 62 can exclude up to $17,500 per year of military retirement pay in Georgia; older veterans use the general $35,000 or $65,000 exclusion.4Georgia General Assembly. Fiscal Note for Senate Bill 31
Property Tax
Property tax rates in the two states end up nearly identical on average — around 0.78% of market value in Florida and 0.79% in Georgia — but the systems behind those numbers behave very differently over time.
Georgia’s Approach
Georgia assesses residential property at 40% of fair market value. The basic statewide homestead exemption knocks $2,000 off that assessed value for a primary residence.5Department of Revenue. Property Tax Homestead Exemptions Many counties layer on more generous local homestead exemptions, especially for school taxes and homeowners over 65, and those vary widely by jurisdiction.6Department of Revenue. Property Tax – Real and Personal Property – FAQ
Florida’s Approach
Florida’s homestead exemption is larger and comes in two layers. The first $25,000 applies to all property taxes including school district levies; a second $25,000 applies to assessed value above $50,000 and excludes school taxes.7Florida Department of Revenue. Property Tax Information for Homestead Exemption
The bigger long-term advantage is the “Save Our Homes” cap. After the first year of homestead status, your assessed value can rise by no more than 3% or the change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower.8Florida Department of Revenue. Save Our Homes Assessment Limitation and Portability Transfer In a rising market, the gap between assessed value and market value grows every year, and the tax savings compound.
Two catches. When you sell a homesteaded property, the cap resets and the new buyer is reassessed at full market value, which is why new Florida buyers often see much larger bills than their neighbors. And if you move within Florida, you can transfer up to $500,000 of your accumulated Save Our Homes benefit to your new homestead.
Sales Tax
Florida’s state sales tax rate is 6%, with counties allowed to add a discretionary surtax on top.9Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax The highest local surtax currently in effect is 2%, and the statewide average combined rate is roughly 7%.10Florida Dept. of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax Rate Table
Georgia’s state rate is lower at 4%, but local option, special-purpose, transportation, and education sales taxes stack up fast.11Georgia.gov. Georgia Sales and Use Tax Rate Chart Effective January 1, 2026 Many Georgia counties hit the maximum combined rate of 9%, and the state average lands around 7.4%. So Georgia’s headline rate is lower, but you’ll usually pay a bit more at the register.
Both states exempt groceries from state sales tax, but Georgia counties can still apply their local portion to grocery purchases.12Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts. Tax Incentive Evaluation – Georgia Sales Tax Exemption for Food for Off-Premises Consumption Prescription drugs are exempt in both states.13Florida Department of Revenue. Nontaxable Medical Items and General Grocery List DR-46NT
Buying a Home and Registering a Car
Relocation triggers a batch of one-time costs, and the two states are lopsided here.
Real Estate Closing Taxes
Georgia’s real estate transfer tax on a deed is $1 for the first $1,000 of sale price and $0.10 per $100 after that. On a $400,000 home, that comes to about $401. Florida charges documentary stamp tax on deeds at $0.70 per $100, so the same $400,000 home costs $2,800 in transfer tax — roughly seven times what Georgia charges.14Florida Department of Revenue. Documentary Stamp Tax
Mortgages get taxed too. Georgia’s intangible recording tax is $1.50 per $500 of loan amount, capped at $25,000 per note.15Department of Revenue. Intangible Recording Tax Florida charges $0.35 per $100 documentary stamp on the promissory note (capped at $2,450), plus a separate uncapped $0.35 per $100 documentary stamp on the mortgage itself when recorded.16Florida Dept. of Revenue. Documentary Stamp Tax On a $320,000 mortgage, that works out to about $960 in Georgia and $2,240 in Florida. Combined with the deed tax, closing on a median-priced Florida home can carry $5,000 or more in state taxes that a Georgia buyer largely avoids.
Vehicle Costs
Georgia charges a Title Ad Valorem Tax of 7% of fair market value at titling.17Department of Revenue. Vehicle Taxes – Title Ad Valorem Tax (TAVT) New residents moving in from another state pay a reduced rate of 3%; family transfers pay 0.5%.
Florida has no equivalent one-time tax, but it collects 6% sales tax on vehicle purchases and charges a $225 initial registration fee when a vehicle first enters the state.18Fees – Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Fees On a $35,000 car, a new Georgia resident pays about $2,450 (3% TAVT) and a Florida buyer pays about $2,325 (sales tax plus initial registration). Close enough at the outset.
Annual renewal is where Georgia pulls ahead. A standard passenger vehicle renews for $20 per year in Georgia.19Department of Revenue. Motor Vehicles Fees, Fines, and Penalties Florida’s annual renewal fee is tied to vehicle weight and type and runs considerably higher.
Business Owners and Pass-Through Income
Georgia’s corporate income tax rate is 5.19%, tied to the same reduction schedule as the individual rate.20Department of Revenue. Corporate Income and Net Worth Tax Florida’s corporate rate has held at 5.5% since 2022.21Florida Dept. of Revenue. Corporate Income Tax At the corporate level, the states are close.
The split opens up with pass-through entities. In Florida, profits from an S corporation, LLC, or partnership flow to owners entirely untaxed at the state level. In Georgia, that same income lands on the owner’s personal return at 5.19%. A small business owner pulling $200,000 in profit through an LLC pays around $9,800 to Georgia and nothing to Florida. Georgia allows pass-throughs to elect entity-level taxation, which can preserve a federal deduction for state taxes paid, but the underlying state tax bill doesn’t disappear.
Georgia also levies a corporate net worth tax that tops out at $5,000 for corporations with net worth above $22 million; corporations under $100,000 in net worth owe nothing.22Justia Law. Georgia Code 48-13-73 – Amount of Corporate Net Worth Tax Florida has no counterpart.
Estate and Inheritance Taxes
Neither state imposes a state-level estate or inheritance tax. Florida repealed its estate tax in 2004, and Georgia has decoupled from the old federal credit that once funded state estate taxes. Only the federal estate tax applies in either state, on estates above the current $13.99 million per-individual exemption for 2025. This is a wash between Georgia and Florida, but a real gain for anyone relocating from a state that does impose one.
Which State Costs You Less
Florida is the cheaper state if you’re still working and earning a real salary, if you own a business that produces pass-through income, or if you’re a wealthy retiree whose non-Social Security income runs well past Georgia’s exclusions. The absence of any state income tax compounds year after year, and the Save Our Homes cap rewards long-term homeowners in a way Georgia can’t match.
Georgia is more competitive than the headline rate suggests. A retired couple living on Social Security and up to $130,000 of other retirement income pays effectively no Georgia income tax, matching Florida. Georgia also charges dramatically less at real estate closings and much less to renew a vehicle each year. Its combined sales tax runs a fraction of a point higher than Florida’s, which is a small drag on daily spending.
The honest answer is that the tipping point is earned income. If you’re drawing a paycheck, Florida saves you serious money. If you’re retired on a moderate income and planning to buy a home, Georgia can quietly come out ahead once you count closing costs and vehicle fees.