Wyoming has no state income tax. Wages, salaries, interest, dividends, capital gains, pension payments, and retirement account withdrawals are all free from state-level taxation, and no county, city, or town in Wyoming can impose an income or earnings tax of its own.1Justia. Wyoming Code 39-12-101 – Preemption by State You never file a state income tax return, and employers run payroll without any state withholding to manage. The savings are real, but they come entirely from skipping the state layer. Federal tax, sales tax, property tax, and a handful of excise taxes still apply.
Federal Income Tax Still Applies
Living in Wyoming does not change what you owe the IRS. If your income clears the federal filing threshold, you file a federal return every April and your paycheck still has federal withholding taken out. Someone moving from California or New York will see a genuine drop in state tax, but the federal bill stays the same.
Residency is the other thing worth watching. If you keep a home in your former state or spend significant time there, that state may still treat you as a resident for tax purposes. The general rule across most states is that spending more than 183 days a year inside their borders can trigger residency-based tax obligations.
What Businesses Pay
Wyoming does not tax business profits. There is no corporate income tax, no franchise tax based on revenue, and no gross receipts tax. The rule applies the same way to corporations, LLCs, partnerships, and sole proprietorships, and none of them file a state income or profit return.1Justia. Wyoming Code 39-12-101 – Preemption by State
The one recurring state-level cost for an entity is the annual report filed with the Secretary of State. The license tax is $60 or two-tenths of one mill per dollar of company assets located in Wyoming, whichever is greater.2Wyoming Secretary of State. Wyoming Secretary of State Business Division Filing Fee Schedule The $60 floor covers any company with less than $300,000 in Wyoming-based assets. Above that, the rate works out to $0.0002 per dollar, so a business with $1 million in Wyoming assets owes $200.3Wyoming Secretary of State. Annual Report and License Tax Rules
Sales and Use Tax
Sales tax is where Wyoming collects a meaningful share of its revenue from residents. The state rate is 4% on most tangible goods, built from a 3% base plus an additional 1% that has been in place since 1993.4Wyoming Legislature. Wyoming Statutes Title 39 – Taxation and Revenue Counties can add their own local option taxes on top, from 0% up to 4%. In a county that has used its full local authority, the combined rate at the register reaches 8%.
Several everyday purchases are exempt. Groceries bought for home consumption are not taxed, and neither are prescription drugs, insulin, prosthetic devices, hearing aids, or durable medical equipment. Farm implements used exclusively for agricultural work are also exempt.5Wyoming Legislature. Wyoming Sales and Use Tax Exemptions
The use tax catches purchases that escape sales tax at the register. If you buy something from an out-of-state seller who does not collect Wyoming sales tax, you owe the 4% directly to the state. That covers online purchases, out-of-state shopping trips, and goods shipped into Wyoming for personal use.6Wyoming Legislature. Wyoming Sales Tax 101 Compliance is largely self-reported, and many residents don’t realize the obligation exists.
Property Tax
Property tax is the main recurring state-related bill for most Wyoming homeowners. The Wyoming Constitution sorts property into four classes, each taxed at a different percentage of fair market value. Residential property is assessed at 9.5% of market value, and most commercial real estate falls into the same 9.5% category. Industrial property is assessed at 11.5%, and producing minerals are assessed at 100% of production value.
County assessors handle the valuations, and local taxing districts (schools, counties, cities, and special districts) set the mill levies applied to the assessed value. A home’s market value is not what gets taxed. A $400,000 home at the 9.5% residential ratio has an assessed value of $38,000, and the mill levies apply to that figure.
Bills go out on September 1 each year. You can pay in full by December 31 or split the amount into two installments, with the first half due November 10 and the second by May 10. Missing either deadline brings delinquency and interest, and prolonged nonpayment can lead to a tax lien sale on the property.7Justia. Wyoming Code 39-13-101 – Definitions
Owner-Occupied Homeowner Exemption
Starting in tax year 2026, Wyoming offers a property tax break for homeowners who actually live in their house. The exemption reduces the taxable fair market value of an owner-occupied home by 25%, up to the first $1 million of the home’s value. To qualify, you must own the home and live in it for at least eight months of the year.8Wyoming Department of Revenue. Wyoming Residential Affidavit Claim
Military families have additional flexibility. If the homeowner or an immediate family member was on active duty and could not meet the eight-month residency requirement, the exemption can still apply as long as the home remains the service member’s legal domicile. Affidavit claims are accepted between October 1 and March 1.8Wyoming Department of Revenue. Wyoming Residential Affidavit Claim
Excise Taxes
Wyoming imposes excise taxes on fuel, tobacco, alcohol, and lodging. These are built into the price you pay rather than itemized at checkout.
- Gasoline and diesel are taxed at $0.24 per gallon, with one cent of that dedicated to cleaning up leaking underground storage tanks.
- Cigarettes carry a $0.60 tax per pack of 20. Other tobacco products are taxed at 20% of the wholesale purchase price, and e-cigarettes and vapor products carry a 15% wholesale tax at retail.
- Malt beverages, wine, and spirits each carry per-volume excise taxes at different rates. Wine and spirits are also subject to a state wholesale markup of 17.6%.
- A 5% statewide lodging tax applies to hotel, motel, and rental property stays. Of that, 3% goes to the Wyoming Office of Tourism and 2% stays with the local county for tourism promotion and related initiatives.9Teton County, WY. About Lodging Tax
No Estate or Inheritance Tax
Wyoming imposes no estate tax, no inheritance tax, and no gift tax. When a Wyoming resident dies, heirs and beneficiaries owe nothing to the state on what they inherit. Estate exposure exists only at the federal level, where the exemption sits at $13.99 million per person for 2025, with the 2026 figure expected to adjust for inflation. For most families, wealth transfers happen without any state tax friction.
How the State Pays for Everything
The absence of an income tax is not a budget trick. Wyoming is one of the nation’s largest producers of coal, natural gas, oil, and trona, and the state taxes the extraction of those resources through severance taxes. A constitutionally dedicated 1.5% severance tax flows into the Permanent Wyoming Mineral Trust Fund, a savings vehicle whose principal cannot be spent. Investment income from the fund is deposited into the state’s general fund each year, and in recent years those earnings have accounted for roughly 20% of all general fund revenue. Combined with sales tax, federal mineral royalties, and property taxes on mineral production assessed at 100% of value, the structure works without reaching for residents’ paychecks.10Wyoming Legislature. Characteristics of Wyoming’s Permanent Investment Funds