Is There Sales Tax in CT? Rates, Exemptions, and Tax-Free Week

Yes, there is a sales tax in CT. Connecticut charges a statewide rate of 6.35% on most retail purchases, with higher rates on certain luxury goods, restaurant meals, and short-term car rentals.¹ The state has no local or county sales taxes, so the rate you pay in Stamford is the rate you pay in Storrs. Groceries, prescription drugs, and a long list of medical supplies are exempt, and once a year a tax-free week suspends the tax on affordable clothing and footwear.

The Standard 6.35% Rate

The base Connecticut sales tax rate is 6.35%, and it applies to every retail sale of physical goods unless a specific exemption or special rate kicks in.¹ That covers the obvious categories: electronics, furniture, clothing, household supplies, sporting equipment, and so on. The state presumes every retail sale is taxable, and the burden falls on the buyer or seller to show otherwise.

Higher Rates on Luxury Goods, Meals, and Rentals

Connecticut layers several special rates on top of the base for specific categories. With the exception of meals, these replace the 6.35% rate rather than adding to it.

Motor vehicles over $50,000: 7.75% on the full sales price, not just the amount above $50,000.¹
Jewelry over $5,000: 7.75% on the entire price, for both real and imitation jewelry.¹
Clothing, footwear, handbags, luggage, umbrellas, wallets, and watches priced over $1,000 per item: 7.75% on the full price.¹
Restaurant meals and certain beverages: 7.35%, which is the 6.35% base plus a 1% surcharge. This covers food sold by restaurants, caterers, and grocery-store delis, along with alcoholic drinks and soft drinks served at bars or soda fountains.¹
Short-term car rentals of 30 days or less: 9.35%.¹
Boats and vessel motors: 2.99%.²
Hotel rooms for stays of 30 consecutive days or less: 15%.²

One detail trips people up on the luxury tiers. The higher rate hits the entire purchase price the moment you cross the threshold, not just the amount above it. A car selling for $50,001 is taxed at 7.75% on the full $50,001, not at 6.35% on the first $50,000 and 7.75% on the last dollar. That jump adds roughly $700 in tax compared with staying a dollar below the line.

What’s Exempt

Groceries and Unprepared Food

Food products for home consumption are fully exempt. That covers produce, meat, fish, eggs, dairy, cereals, coffee, tea, spices, and sugar products other than candy. The moment food becomes a “meal,” meaning packaged, portioned, and ready to eat, it loses the exemption and is taxed at the 7.35% meals rate. A rotisserie chicken from the grocery deli counter is a taxable meal. A raw whole chicken from the meat section is exempt. Soft drinks, alcoholic beverages, and dietary supplements also do not qualify for the food exemption.³

Prescription Drugs and Medical Equipment

Prescription medications, syringes, and needles prescribed by a healthcare provider are exempt.³ The exemption also reaches a broad range of over-the-counter products, including vitamins, mineral supplements, herbal remedies, allergy medications, pain relievers, antibiotics, antacids, and eye, ear, and nose preparations.⁴

Medical equipment carries its own exemptions. Wheelchairs, hearing aids, canes, crutches, walkers, prosthetic devices, oxygen supply equipment, kidney dialysis machines, and diabetic testing supplies are all tax-free.⁴ So are diapers, both infant and adult, and menstrual products.

Government and Qualifying Nonprofits

Sales to the federal government, the State of Connecticut, municipalities, and their agencies are exempt.³ Qualifying nonprofit hospitals, nursing homes, and 501(c)(3) organizations can also purchase goods and services tax-free for their charitable purposes by presenting an exemption certificate to the seller.

Services the State Taxes

Unlike many states that tax only physical products, Connecticut taxes a substantial list of services at the standard 6.35% rate.⁵ If you hire someone for work on a commercial building, whether electrical, plumbing, painting, or carpentry, that labor is taxable. The same goes for motor vehicle repair, landscaping, janitorial services, private investigation, employment agencies, photography studios, and business consulting.

One important exception: services performed on owner-occupied residential property with three or fewer units are not taxed.⁵ The plumber who fixes a pipe in your house does not charge sales tax. The same plumber doing identical work in an office building does. Landlords with four or more residential units fall on the taxable side.

Computer and data processing services, including programming, code writing, feasibility studies, and software installation, are taxed at a reduced rate of 1%.¹

The August Tax-Free Week

Every August, Connecticut suspends the sales tax for one week on qualifying clothing, footwear, and, starting in 2026, school supplies. The 2026 tax-free week runs from Sunday, August 17 through Saturday, August 23. For 2026, the legislature raised the per-item threshold from $100 to $300, so any individual clothing or footwear item priced at $300 or less qualifies. The expanded list now includes backpacks and cleated athletic shoes alongside standard clothing and shoes.

Not everything in a clothing store qualifies. Jewelry, handbags, luggage, umbrellas, wallets, watches, and similar accessories are excluded from the holiday even if they are under $300. School supplies newly covered for 2026 include notebooks, pens, pencils, crayons, rulers, lunchboxes, and paper. Timing a back-to-school shopping trip for this week saves 6.35% on every eligible item.

Online Purchases and Use Tax

Most online shopping at major retailers already includes Connecticut sales tax at checkout, because large sellers and marketplaces are required to collect it. When a seller doesn’t, the obligation shifts to you through what the state calls use tax.

If you buy something from an out-of-state retailer that doesn’t collect Connecticut sales tax, you owe use tax at the same 6.35% rate (or the applicable special rate) directly to the state.² You get credit for sales tax properly paid to another state. If you bought furniture while visiting Massachusetts and paid that state’s 6.25% sales tax, you’d owe Connecticut only the 0.10% difference. If you paid a rate equal to or higher than Connecticut’s, you owe nothing additional.⁶

Individuals report use tax either on their Connecticut income tax return (Form CT-1040) or on a standalone Form OP-186. The deadline is April 15 for purchases made during the prior calendar year.⁶ The obligation most often comes up with smaller out-of-state vendors, estate sales across state lines, or overseas sellers.

No Local or Municipal Sales Taxes

Connecticut is one of the states where the price tag tells you almost exactly what you’ll pay. There are no city, county, or municipal sales taxes layered on top of the state rate.¹ Whether you shop in downtown Hartford or rural Litchfield County, the rate is the same, and every merchant applies the schedules set by the Department of Revenue Services.

1
Connecticut General Assembly. Connecticut General Statutes Chapter 219 – Sales and Use Taxes
2
Justia. Connecticut Code 12-411 – The Use Tax
3
Justia. Connecticut Code 12-412 – Exemptions
4
CT.gov. Exemptions from Sales and Use Taxes
5
Justia. Connecticut Code 12-407 – Definitions
6
CT.gov. Individual Use Tax Information