The sales tax rate in Wellington, Kansas is 8.5 percent. That total combines the 6.5 percent Kansas state tax, a 1.0 percent Sumner County tax, and a 1.0 percent City of Wellington tax, all collected together at the register. The rate came down from 9.5 percent in early 2025 when a voter-approved one-cent city tax tied to the former Sumner Regional Medical Center hit its ten-year sunset. Groceries are taxed at a lower rate because Kansas eliminated the state portion on food.
How the 8.5 Percent Breaks Down
Every taxable retail sale inside Wellington city limits is charged at the combined 8.5 percent rate and then split three ways:
- Kansas state: 6.5 percent, set by K.S.A. 79-36031Kansas Legislature. Kansas Statutes 79-3603 – Retailers Sales Tax Imposed; Rate
- Sumner County: 1.0 percent for countywide services
- City of Wellington: 1.0 percent for municipal operations
Rates can change quarterly, so for a large purchase or a new business account it’s worth confirming the current figure through the Kansas Department of Revenue’s online rate locator.2Kansas Department of Revenue. Kansas Sales and Use Tax Rate Locator
Kansas uses destination-based sourcing. The rate that applies is the rate at the address where you take possession of the item. A Wichita retailer shipping to a Wellington address charges Wellington’s 8.5 percent, not Wichita’s.3Kansas Department of Revenue. Destination-Based Sourcing Rules for Sales and Compensating Use Tax
Groceries
Food and food ingredients lost the state portion of Kansas sales tax on January 1, 2025. The local pieces stayed in place, though. In Wellington, groceries now carry a 2.0 percent combined local tax: 1.0 percent to Sumner County and 1.0 percent to the city.4Kansas Department of Revenue. Pub. KS-1223 Food Sales Tax Rate Reduction A $150 weekly grocery bill costs you $3.00 in tax instead of the $12.75 it would have under the old 8.5 percent.
What Gets Taxed and What Doesn’t
The 8.5 percent rate reaches further than tangible goods. Under K.S.A. 79-3603, it applies to:1Kansas Legislature. Kansas Statutes 79-3603 – Retailers Sales Tax Imposed; Rate
- Tangible personal property: electronics, clothing, furniture, vehicles, and anything else you can carry out of the store
- Utilities: gas, electricity, water, and heat
- Restaurant meals, bar tabs, catering, and hotel dining
- Admissions to sporting events, concerts, movie theaters, fairs, and recreation facilities5Kansas Department of Revenue. Pub. KS-1510 Sales Tax and Compensating Use Tax – Section: Sales That Are Taxable
- Phone, cable, and subscriber television services
- Dry cleaning, laundry, and car washes
- Rentals and leases of tangible personal property, including equipment
Several categories are exempt from the state and local tax altogether. Prescription drugs and insulin pay nothing.6Kansas Department of Revenue. Pharmacy Taxability Fact Sheet Prescribed mobility equipment and prosthetic devices are also exempt. Businesses buying inventory for resale pay no sales tax if they present a valid exemption certificate, and certified nonprofits and government agencies carry numbered exemption certificates issued by the Kansas Department of Revenue.7Kansas Department of Revenue. Exemption Certificate Welcome Page Manufacturing machinery and equipment installed at a qualifying business location are exempt as well.
The resale exemption is the one small business owners most often misread. It covers goods that will become part of what you sell to customers. Supplies you use in running the business are still taxable.
Hotel Stays
Wellington adds a 6.0 percent transient guest tax to short-term lodging, charged on top of the 8.5 percent sales tax.8Kansas Department of Revenue. Transient Guest Tax Rates and Effective Dates A $100 hotel room comes out to $14.50 in combined tax. The guest tax applies to properties with more than two bedrooms available to guests, and only for stays of 28 consecutive days or less.9Kansas Department of Revenue. Transient Guest Tax
If you host through Airbnb or VRBO, the platform collects and remits both the sales tax and the transient guest tax on your behalf. Kansas requires marketplace facilitators that run short-term rental booking platforms to handle this regardless of where the platform is based.10Kansas Department of Revenue. Notice 21-24 – Marketplace Facilitators Lodging Traditional hotels collect and remit directly.
Online and Out-of-State Purchases
Most large online retailers already charge Kansas buyers the full combined rate. Out-of-state sellers that ship more than $100,000 in goods or services to Kansas customers in a calendar year must register and collect Kansas sales tax, with no transaction-count alternative. The threshold counts both taxable and exempt sales, and collection begins only on future sales once a seller crosses it.11Kansas Department of Revenue. Notice 21-17 – Remote Sellers
When a seller doesn’t charge Kansas tax, or charges less than 6.5 percent, the state expects you to pay the difference yourself. That’s the compensating use tax. It mirrors the state sales tax at 6.5 percent, and the Sumner County and Wellington local use tax applies on top if levied.12Kansas Department of Revenue. Retailers Compensating Use It’s calculated on the full cost of the goods, shipping and handling included, and covers anything you use, store, or consume in Kansas.13Kansas Department of Revenue. Consumers Compensating Use Labor services aren’t covered. In practice, use tax mostly comes up with smaller sellers and private purchases from other states.