Spokane Valley Sales Tax: 9% Rate, Exemptions, and Lodging

The Spokane Valley sales tax rate is 9.0 percent as of 2026. That total combines Washington’s 6.5 percent state retail sales tax with a 2.5 percent local share that funds transit, public safety, and city services.¹² The rate applies to most retail purchases of goods and to many services, with groceries and prescription drugs among the notable exemptions. Businesses collect the tax at checkout and remit it to the state, which routes each share to the right fund.

How the 9 Percent Breaks Down

Every taxable sale in Spokane Valley includes Washington’s statewide 6.5 percent retail sales tax.¹ The remaining 2.5 percent is a stack of local levies, each authorized by its own statute and earmarked for a specific purpose. The largest single piece is the Spokane Transit Authority’s 0.8 percent levy, which funds bus and paratransit service in the Public Transportation Benefit Area that includes the city.³ A criminal justice and public safety component adds another fraction, and on January 1, 2026, Spokane Valley added a new one-tenth of one percent dedicated to criminal justice, fire protection, or both.⁴ The rest is made up of county and city general-purpose levies.

Spokane Valley does not impose a local Business and Occupation tax or a corporate income tax.⁵ Sales tax is the city’s primary revenue tool, which is why the local share carries more weight here than in Washington cities that also charge a B&O tax.

What the Tax Applies To

The 9 percent rate hits most retail sales of physical goods: electronics, clothing, furniture, building materials, household items. Services tied to physical property are also taxable, including construction, repair, installation, landscaping, and cleaning.⁶

Services Newly Taxable in October 2025

ESSB 5814 took effect October 1, 2025, and pulled several service categories that were previously exempt into the sales tax. In Spokane Valley the full 9 percent now applies when you hire any of the following:⁷

Advertising services, including ad design, campaign planning, lead generation, and buying online ad space.
IT services such as help desk support, network administration, IT consulting, and data processing.
Custom website development, from design and build-out through ongoing support.
Investigation and security work, including security guards, background checks, armored car transport, and alarm services.
Temporary staffing arrangements.
Access to custom software, and customization of off-the-shelf software.
Paid live workshops, webinars, and interactive courses, whether in person or online.

Services That Stay Exempt

Traditional professional services still sit outside the sales tax. Legal, accounting, and architectural fees are not taxable, and neither is pure consulting work that doesn’t include a digital or advertising component.⁷ Telehealth and telemedicine are also specifically excluded. One practical trap: when a firm bundles exempt and taxable services on a single invoice without itemizing them, the entire invoice can become subject to sales tax. A business that provides both consulting and IT work needs to break those charges out separately.

Common Exemptions

Grocery food is the exemption most residents run into daily. Unprepared food and food ingredients sold at a grocery store are tax-free under RCW 82.08.0293.⁸ The exemption does not cover prepared food, soft drinks, carbonated beverages, bottled water, or dietary supplements, all of which are taxable at the full 9 percent.

Prescription drugs dispensed for human use are separately exempt under RCW 82.08.0281, which also covers family planning drugs and devices provided by prescription or through qualifying clinics.⁹ Over-the-counter medications don’t qualify.

Manufacturers operating in Spokane Valley may also qualify for a machinery and equipment exemption. Equipment used directly in manufacturing or research and development, with a useful life over one year and an acquisition cost of at least $200, can be bought without paying sales tax. The exemption extends to related installation, repair, and maintenance costs.

Vehicle Purchases

A car purchase in Spokane Valley costs more than 9 percent in tax. Effective January 1, 2026, Washington imposes a separate motor vehicle sales tax of 0.5 percent on qualifying retail vehicle sales, with the revenue directed to transportation improvements.¹⁰ That brings the combined tax on a typical vehicle purchase in the city to 9.5 percent before other fees.

A new luxury vehicle tax also took effect January 1, 2026, on vehicles priced above $100,000. The rate is 8 percent, applied only to the portion of the price that exceeds $100,000.¹¹ On a $130,000 vehicle, the luxury tax applies to $30,000, adding $2,400. Trade-in values cannot be deducted from the vehicle price when calculating the luxury tax, though the $100,000 threshold rises by 2 percent each July 1. The luxury tax stacks on top of both the regular sales tax and the 0.5 percent motor vehicle tax, so a six-figure purchase in Spokane Valley carries three separate layers of taxation.

Lodging Stays

Hotel and motel stays run well above the standard 9 percent. A special lodging tax of roughly 5.3 percent applies to short-term accommodations, with portions funding city tourism efforts and the Spokane Public Facilities District. The Spokane Valley Tourism Promotion Area also assesses a flat $4 per room, per night, used exclusively for tourism marketing.¹² A one-night stay in a $150 room brings all three on top of the room rate.

Where the Rate Applies

The 9 percent is specific to transactions within Spokane Valley’s city limits. Neighboring areas, including the City of Spokane, unincorporated Spokane County, and Liberty Lake, each carry their own local rate. Businesses report Spokane Valley transactions under location code 3213 on their excise tax returns.² Using the wrong code sends the local share to the wrong city and can trigger corrections during an audit.

Washington uses destination-based sourcing, so the rate is set by where the buyer receives the goods or services, not where the seller sits.¹³ For walk-in purchases where the customer takes the item home from the store, the store’s location controls. For deliveries, the rate at the delivery address applies. A Spokane retailer shipping to a customer in Spokane Valley charges Spokane Valley’s 9 percent, not Spokane’s rate. Repair and installation services follow the same logic: if you pick up a repaired item at the shop, the shop’s location controls; if the shop delivers it, your address does.

Buying From Out of State

If you buy something from outside Washington and the seller does not charge sales tax, you owe use tax when you bring the item into Spokane Valley or first use it here. The use tax rate equals the combined sales tax rate for the location where the item is used, so it’s 9 percent for Spokane Valley.¹⁴¹⁵ The tax exists to prevent people from avoiding sales tax by buying from out-of-state sellers. Common triggers include online purchases from retailers with no Washington nexus, items bought on vacation in a state without sales tax, and goods originally bought for resale that a business ends up using itself.

Out-of-state businesses shipping into Spokane Valley must register and collect Washington sales tax once they exceed $100,000 in combined gross receipts sourced to the state in the current or prior year, whether or not they have any physical presence here.¹⁶ For purchases through Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and similar platforms, the marketplace facilitator handles collection rather than the individual seller.¹⁷ Most large online marketplaces already apply the correct Spokane Valley rate at checkout, so individual buyers rarely need to self-report use tax on marketplace purchases.

Collecting the Tax as a Business

Any business making taxable sales in Spokane Valley must first register with the Washington Department of Revenue and obtain a Unified Business Identifier number. The UBI links the business to the state’s tax system and is required for every filing that follows.¹⁸ Registration also creates an account on the My DOR portal, which is where returns are filed and payments are made.

The Department of Revenue assigns each business a filing frequency of monthly, quarterly, or annual, based primarily on business type and expected sales volume. Retail businesses generally file quarterly up to a certain revenue level and switch to monthly once sales exceed it. The assigned frequency appears on the business license.

All Spokane Valley sales must be reported under location code 3213 to send the local share to the right jurisdiction.² Late payments trigger an escalating penalty: 9 percent of the tax due if late by the due date, 19 percent if still unpaid by the end of the following month, and 29 percent if unpaid by the end of the second month after the due date. The minimum penalty is $5.¹⁹

Reseller Permits

Businesses that buy inventory for resale can skip sales tax on those purchases by obtaining a reseller permit through the Department of Revenue.²⁰ The permit is generally valid for four years, though new businesses, contractors, and businesses with gaps in their filing history receive a two-year permit. The permit cannot be used to buy supplies, equipment, or anything the business will use rather than resell, and that distinction trips up more businesses than you might expect. Misusing a reseller permit on a non-qualifying purchase results in the full tax owed plus a 50 percent penalty, whether or not the misuse was intentional.²¹

1
Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.08.020 – Tax Imposed, Retail Sales, Retail Car Rental
2
Spokane Valley, WA. Spokane Valley Tax Rates
3
Spokane Transit Authority. Public Transportation Benefit Area
4
Washington Department of Revenue. City of Spokane Valley Public Safety Tax Q1 2026
5
Spokane Valley, WA. Taxes
6
Washington Department of Revenue. Retail Sales Tax
7
Washington Department of Revenue. Services Newly Subject to Retail Sales Tax
8
Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.08.0293 – Exemptions, Sales of Food and Food Ingredients
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Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.08.0281 – Exemptions, Prescription Drugs
10
Washington Department of Revenue. Motor Vehicle Sales/Use Tax
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Washington Department of Revenue. Luxury Motor Vehicle Tax
12
Spokane Valley, WA. Tourism and Visitor Services
13
Washington Department of Revenue. Determine the Location of My Sale
14
Washington Department of Revenue. Use Tax
15
MRSC. Sales and Use Taxes
16
Washington Department of Revenue. Out of State Businesses Reporting Thresholds and Nexus
17
Washington Department of Revenue. Marketplace Facilitators
18
Washington Department of Revenue. Apply for a Business License
19
Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.32.090 – Penalties
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Washington Department of Revenue. Reseller Permits
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Washington State Legislature. Washington Code 82.32.291 – Reseller Permit Penalties