The sales tax in Mesa, AZ is 8.3% on most retail purchases as of 2026. That total combines 5.6% from the state of Arizona, 0.7% from Maricopa County, and 2.0% from the city of Mesa.1Arizona Department of Revenue. Model City Tax Code City Profile Mesa Some transactions carry higher rates, and some purchases are exempt entirely.
How the Rate Breaks Down by Purchase Type
Standard Retail
The 8.3% rate applies to most tangible goods purchased in Mesa, including clothing, electronics, furniture, appliances, and prepared food from restaurants. It also covers online orders from sellers based in or shipping to Mesa. The city’s 2.0% share funds municipal services such as road maintenance, parks, and emergency response.1Arizona Department of Revenue. Model City Tax Code City Profile Mesa Entertainment admissions and recreational activities are also taxable under Mesa’s amusement classification.2Arizona Department of Revenue. Transaction Privilege Tax
Hotels and Short-Term Rentals
Stays of 29 nights or fewer in Mesa hotels, vacation rentals, and similar lodging carry a combined rate of 14.27%. That total includes a 7.27% state and county transient lodging rate, Mesa’s standard 2.0% city tax, and an additional 5.0% Mesa transient lodging tax.3City of Mesa. Transient Lodging Tax
Guests staying 30 or more consecutive days can avoid the 5.0% transient lodging portion, but only if they prepay the full rental amount or sign a binding lease for that period at the start of the stay. Simply staying longer than 29 days after the fact does not retroactively remove the tax.3City of Mesa. Transient Lodging Tax
Construction Contracting
Prime contracting work in Mesa carries a combined rate of 8.30%, matching the standard retail rate.4Arizona Department of Revenue. Transaction Privilege and Other Tax Rate Tables – January 2026 Contracting tax applies to the contractor’s gross income from the project rather than to the individual materials they buy.
Digital Goods: The Split Rule
Digital purchases follow a rule that trips people up. Prewritten software and digital goods that are electronically transferred to you, such as downloaded music, e-books, and purchased apps, are taxable at the standard rate. Streaming services are specifically exempt. So buying a movie through a digital store is taxable, but a monthly streaming subscription is not. Digital goods you access remotely without downloading are also exempt, and custom software built specifically for a business is exempt as well.5Arizona Legislature. Fact Sheet for H.B. 2479
What’s Exempt
Groceries
Food for home consumption is exempt from Arizona’s 5.6% state tax and the 0.7% county tax.6Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 42-5061 – Retail Classification; Definitions Mesa’s 2.0% city portion is a different story. Whether your groceries get hit with it depends on where you shop. “Qualified retailers,” generally meaning grocery stores that meet specific criteria, can sell tax-exempt food without adding the city portion. Other retailers that sell food alongside non-food merchandise may still collect Mesa’s local tax on the same grocery items.1Arizona Department of Revenue. Model City Tax Code City Profile Mesa
The practical effect: your receipt at a supermarket will show much lower tax than you’d pay at a general retailer for the same food. Alcoholic beverages and food prepared for on-premises consumption remain fully taxable regardless of where they’re sold.
Medical Items
Several healthcare categories are exempt from both state and local tax. These include prosthetic devices prescribed by a health professional, insulin and glucose testing supplies, prescription eyeglasses and contact lenses, medical oxygen and related equipment when prescribed by a medical or dental professional, and durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs and respirators.7Arizona Department of Revenue. Arizona Transaction Privilege Tax Ruling TPR 93-43 To qualify as durable medical equipment, an item must have a Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System code and be reimbursable by Medicare. Equipment that doesn’t meet that definition is taxable unless it falls under a separate exemption.8Arizona Department of Revenue. Procedure for Implementation of the Exemption for Durable Medical Equipment
Why Arizona Calls It a Transaction Privilege Tax
What most people call “sales tax” in Arizona is technically a transaction privilege tax, and the distinction matters more than it sounds. A traditional sales tax is legally imposed on the buyer. Arizona’s TPT is imposed on the seller for the privilege of doing business in the state.2Arizona Department of Revenue. Transaction Privilege Tax The business owes the tax whether or not it collects it from customers. Virtually every seller passes the cost along at the register, so from a shopper’s perspective it feels identical to a sales tax. But if a business miscalculates and under-collects, the business is on the hook for the difference, not you.
The Arizona Department of Revenue administers and collects TPT for the state, all 15 counties, and participating cities including Mesa. Rates vary by business classification and location, which is why a restaurant in Mesa might charge a different rate than a furniture store across the street in Gilbert.2Arizona Department of Revenue. Transaction Privilege Tax
Online and Out-of-State Purchases
Out-of-state sellers that generate more than $100,000 in gross sales into Arizona during the current or previous year must register for a TPT license and collect tax on Arizona sales. Marketplace platforms like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy collect and remit TPT on behalf of third-party sellers.9Arizona Department of Revenue. Out-of-State Sellers For Mesa shoppers, that means the 8.3% combined rate typically appears on online purchases regardless of where the seller is located.
If you do buy something from an out-of-state seller that doesn’t collect Arizona tax, you owe use tax on that purchase. The rate matches the combined TPT rate that would have applied locally.10Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 42-5155 – Levy of Tax; Tax Rate; Purchaser’s Liability Arizona has no minimum dollar threshold for reporting; every taxable purchase technically counts.11Arizona Department of Revenue. Understanding Use Tax Casual sales between individuals, such as buying a couch from someone on a local marketplace app, are an exception and not subject to use tax. In practice, this comes up less than it used to since most major retailers now collect automatically, but items bought from smaller vendors, while traveling, or through catalogs can still slip through.