Long Island Sales Tax: Rate, Exemptions, and Vehicles

The Long Island sales tax rate is 8.625% in both Nassau and Suffolk Counties. That single rate applies whether you’re shopping in Hempstead, Huntington, or anywhere else on the island, and it’s built from three separate taxes stacked together: New York State’s 4%, the county’s 4.25%, and a 0.375% regional transit surcharge.

How the 8.625% Breaks Down

Three levies combine into the rate you pay at the register:

New York State tax of 4% on retail sales of taxable goods and services statewide.¹
County tax of 4.25% in both Nassau and Suffolk, imposed under Tax Law § 1210. Each county’s authorization is set by the state legislature and must be periodically renewed.²
A 0.375% surcharge for the Metropolitan Commuter Transportation District, which funds regional transit. Both Nassau and Suffolk fall inside the MCTD.³

Nassau’s local authorization currently extends through November 30, 2027.² Suffolk’s additional local rate was recently extended through the same date.⁴ Absent a renewal, the local portions would drop.

What You Pay 8.625% On

The full rate applies to most physical products sold at retail. New York’s tax code calls this “tangible personal property,” which covers electronics, furniture, appliances, household goods, and essentially anything you can see and touch.⁵

Prepared food is taxable at 8.625%. That includes meals and drinks sold by restaurants, taverns, caterers, and food vendors when the food is ready to eat, whether you dine in or take it to go.¹ The line between prepared and unprepared food matters at checkout: a rotisserie chicken from a deli counter is taxed; the same chicken raw from the grocery case is not.

Certain services are also taxable, particularly those involving maintaining, installing, or repairing tangible or real property. Utility services like electricity, gas, and intrastate telecommunications round out the main taxable categories.⁵

What’s Exempt

Clothing and Footwear Under $110

Clothing and footwear priced below $110 per item or pair are exempt from state sales tax under Tax Law § 1115(a)(30).⁶ Nassau and Suffolk both mirror the exemption at the local level, so qualifying purchases carry no sales tax at all.⁷

Watch the threshold. Once an item reaches $110, the full 8.625% applies to the entire price, not just the amount over the line. A $109 pair of sneakers is tax-free; a $115 pair is taxed on all $115.

Groceries and Home-Consumption Food

Food and beverages sold for home consumption are generally exempt, along with dietary supplements and health foods. The exemption does not cover candy, soft drinks, fruit drinks with less than 70% natural juice, or alcoholic beverages, all of which stay taxable.⁶

Medicine and Medical Equipment

Prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines intended to treat illness, medical equipment, and prosthetic devices are all exempt. Hearing aids, eyeglasses, and products consumed for health preservation qualify as well.⁶ Newspapers and periodicals are also exempt.

Online and Out-of-State Purchases

If you buy a taxable item online, by phone, or on a trip outside New York and the seller doesn’t collect New York sales tax, you owe use tax at the same 8.625% rate. This covers internet purchases from out-of-state retailers who aren’t registered here, items brought back from other states, and catalog orders.⁸

Most individuals report and pay use tax on their New York State personal income tax return. If you need to report outside that cycle, use Form ST-141, which replaced the older ST-140.⁹

Larger online sellers already collect the 8.625% on your Long Island orders because state law requires it once a remote seller crosses $500,000 in New York sales and 100 transactions in a year. Both thresholds have to be met.¹⁰ Smaller out-of-state sellers may not, which is where the buyer’s use tax obligation kicks in.

Vehicles

Cars and other motor vehicles are taxed at the full 8.625%, but the collection mechanism differs from retail. Buy from a New York dealer and the dealer collects the tax at the time of sale; you show the bill of sale when you register at the DMV.¹¹

Private sales work differently. Both buyer and seller complete Form DTF-802 (Statement of Transaction), and the DMV calculates and collects the tax when you register. If you bought out of state from a dealer authorized to collect New York tax, you use Form DTF-803 instead.¹¹ Either way, you cannot register a vehicle in New York without paying or proving exemption from sales tax.

Hotels Are Higher Than 8.625%

Short-term lodging is one place where the 8.625% figure understates what you’ll actually pay. Sales tax still applies, but occupancy taxes stack on top. Suffolk County imposes a 5.5% hotel and motel tax on the daily rental rate for stays under 30 days, covering hotels, motels, inns, rental homes, and campgrounds.¹² Nassau County is authorized to impose a hotel occupancy tax of up to 3% on similar stays. In Suffolk, the combined tax on a room can exceed 14% before any municipal add-ons.

1
New York State Senate. New York Tax Code 1105 – Imposition of Sales Tax
2
New York State Senate. New York Tax Code 1210 – Taxes of Cities and Counties
3
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Sales Tax Rates, Additional Sales Taxes, and Fees
4
New York State Senate. NY State Senate Bill 2025-S7420
5
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Quick Reference Guide for Taxable and Exempt Property and Services
6
New York State Senate. New York Tax Code 1115 – Exemptions From Sales and Use Taxes
7
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Clothing and Footwear Exemption
8
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Instructions for Form ST-141
9
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Individual Purchaser’s Annual Report of Sales and Use Tax
10
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Registration Requirement for Businesses With No Physical Presence
11
NY DMV. Sales Tax Information
12
Suffolk County Comptroller. Hotel / Motel Tax