The Miami Beach sales tax is 7% on most purchases: Florida’s 6% state sales tax plus a 1% Miami-Dade County surtax. That rate climbs sharply once you add the city and county tourism taxes layered onto hotel stays and restaurant meals, so what you actually pay depends heavily on what you’re buying.
What the 7% Rate Covers
The 7% applies to retail purchases of tangible goods: clothing, electronics, furniture, vehicles, and the like. Florida’s 6% state rate is set by statute,1Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.05 – Sales, Storage, Use Tax and Miami-Dade County adds 1% as a discretionary surtax.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.055 – Discretionary Sales Surtaxes; Legislative Intent; Authorization and Use of Proceeds The retailer collects the full amount at checkout and sends it to the Florida Department of Revenue.3Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
Admission charges carry the same 7%. Theater tickets, sporting events, and similar venues are taxed under Florida’s admissions tax.4The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 212.04 – Admissions Tax; Rate, Procedure, Enforcement
One quirk saves money on expensive items. The 1% county surtax only applies to the first $5,000 of a single item of tangible personal property.3Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax Buy a $20,000 boat and the surtax caps at $50. The 6% state tax still runs on the full price.
Hotels and Short-Term Rentals: About 14%
A hotel room, vacation rental, or any short-term accommodation booked for six months or less in Miami Beach is taxed at roughly 14%. Four separate taxes stack on the nightly rate:
- 6% Florida state sales tax
- 1% Miami-Dade County surtax
- 3% Miami-Dade Convention Development Tax, a county levy on transient accommodations5Miami-Dade County. Tourist and Restaurant Taxes
- 4% City of Miami Beach resort tax, collected by the city’s Finance Department6City of Miami Beach. File/Pay Resort Tax
The Florida Department of Revenue publishes a combined local option transient rental tax rate of 7% for Miami Beach, which sits on top of the 7% state-plus-surtax base.7Florida Department of Revenue. Local Option Transient Rental Tax Rates
The six-month line matters. Stay longer than six consecutive months and the transient rental taxes drop off because you’re treated as a long-term tenant. At six months or less, you pay the full stack.6City of Miami Beach. File/Pay Resort Tax
Restaurants, Bars, and Nightclubs
Eating out in Miami Beach costs more than the 7% retail rate. The City of Miami Beach imposes a 2% resort tax on the total price of all food, beverages, and alcohol sold at any restaurant, bar, or nightclub inside city limits, whether or not alcohol is served.6City of Miami Beach. File/Pay Resort Tax A coffee shop and a beachfront cocktail bar both collect it.
Miami-Dade County adds its own food and beverage tax on top: 2% for restaurants inside hotels and motels, 1% for standalone restaurants and other establishments.8Florida Office of Economic and Demographic Research. 2026 Local Option Tourist/Food and Beverage Tax Rates
Added together, a meal at a non-hotel restaurant in Miami Beach carries about 10% in total tax. Dining inside a hotel can reach 11%.
What’s Exempt
Groceries are the biggest exemption most residents encounter. Unprepared food products including milk, bread, produce, meat, cereal, eggs, and canned goods are not taxed.9Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.08 – Sales, Rental, Use, Consumption, Distribution, and Storage Tax; Specified Exemptions The dividing line is preparation. A raw chicken from the meat case is exempt; a rotisserie chicken from the deli counter is taxable.
Prescription medications are exempt, along with prosthetic and orthopedic devices dispensed by prescription from a licensed practitioner.10Florida Department of Revenue. Nontaxable Medical Items and General Grocery List Over-the-counter medicines bought without a prescription generally do not qualify.
Florida also holds periodic sales tax holidays through the year, including a back-to-school window covering clothing, school supplies, and personal computers. Dates and item price thresholds change annually, so check the Florida Department of Revenue’s website before timing a purchase around one.
Online and Out-of-State Purchases
Buy something online or out of state without being charged Florida sales tax and you owe use tax at the same 7% combined rate. The tax applies when you purchase a taxable item outside Florida and bring it into the state.3Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
If another state’s sales tax was already paid on the item, Florida credits that amount. You owe only the difference if the other rate was lower than 7%. If you paid more, there’s no Florida refund, but nothing extra is owed either. Most online purchases through major platforms already have Florida tax collected automatically, because marketplaces that facilitate more than $100,000 in annual sales to Florida customers are required to collect it.