Florida sales tax is a 6% state tax on most retail purchases of goods and some services, with each county free to add a discretionary surtax on top. County surtaxes generally run from 0.5% to 2.5%, so the combined rate you actually pay at the register lands somewhere between 6% and 8.5% depending on where the sale takes place. The merchant collects the tax and sends it to the Florida Department of Revenue, but the money comes out of the buyer’s pocket.
The 6% State Rate
The 6% rate applies to the retail sale, lease, or rental of tangible personal property, meaning physical items you can see, touch, or move. Buy a $500 couch and the state portion is $30 before any county tax is added. Businesses must charge the 6% on the full sales price of every taxable item unless a specific exemption applies.1Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
County Discretionary Surtax and the $5,000 Cap
Most Florida counties layer a discretionary sales surtax on top of the 6%. The rate is set by the county where the item is delivered or where the transaction takes place, and it typically falls between 0.5% and 2.5%.2Florida Senate. Florida Statutes Title XIV Chapter 212 Section 212.054 On a $100 purchase in a county with a 1% surtax, you pay $7 in total tax.
There is one important limit for expensive purchases. The county surtax only applies to the first $5,000 of any single item of tangible personal property. If you buy a $10,000 piece of equipment in a 1% surtax county, the surtax is capped at $50, not $100. The 6% state tax still applies to the whole price. When multiple items are sold together and normally function as a single working unit, they count as one item for purposes of the cap.3Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes Section 212.054 The cap does not reduce the state portion, only the county piece.
What Florida Taxes
Tangible personal property is the broad category: clothing, electronics, appliances, furniture, and almost anything else you can carry out of a store. If you can pick it up, assume it is taxable unless a specific exemption applies.
A handful of services are also taxed. Nonresidential cleaning, commercial pest control, and security or detective services all carry sales tax. A business paying $1,000 for office cleaning sees a $60 state charge before any county surtax is added.
Motor Vehicles
Vehicle purchases pay the same 6% state tax plus the applicable county surtax. If you trade a vehicle in at a registered dealer, the dealer can subtract the trade-in value from the taxable price before calculating tax. In a private sale between individuals, a trade-in credit is available only when the buyer trades an aircraft, boat, motor vehicle, or mobile home as part of the same transaction.4Florida Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax on Motor Vehicles Tax on a vehicle is usually collected at the county tax collector’s office when the new owner registers it.
Digital Goods and Software
Software delivered entirely by electronic download is generally not subject to Florida sales tax. The Department of Revenue has concluded in a technical advisory that licensing software through electronic download is a service transaction rather than a sale of tangible personal property, and the exemption applies whether the software is custom or off-the-shelf. Buy the same software on a physical disc, though, and the sale is taxable. Maintenance agreements covering electronically downloaded software are likewise not taxed.5Florida Department of Revenue. Technical Assistance Advisement 10A-028 – Sales and Use Tax Computer Software
Commercial Rent Is No Longer Taxed
Florida used to charge sales tax on rent for commercial real property such as offices, retail storefronts, warehouses, and self-storage. That tax was fully repealed effective October 1, 2025, and no state tax or county surtax applies to commercial rental payments for occupancy periods beginning on or after that date. The repeal does not cover short-term rentals of six months or less (hotels and vacation rentals), parking and vehicle storage, boat docking and storage, or aircraft tie-down spaces, all of which remain taxable.6Florida Department of Revenue. Sales Tax on Commercial Rentals Repealed Effective October 1, 2025
Common Exemptions
Several categories of essentials are exempt by statute.
- Groceries for home consumption are exempt. Prepared meals and food sold for immediate eating are not.7Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.08 – Sales, Rental, Use, Consumption, Distribution, and Storage Tax Specified Exemptions
- Prescription medicines, hypodermic needles and syringes, diagnostic test kits, and common household remedies used to treat or prevent illness are exempt. Cosmetics and toiletries that happen to contain medicinal ingredients are not covered.7Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.08 – Sales, Rental, Use, Consumption, Distribution, and Storage Tax Specified Exemptions
- Recognized nonprofits and government agencies can buy tax-free by presenting a valid Consumer’s Certificate of Exemption (Form DR-14) to the seller at the time of purchase. The certificate carries an issue date and an expiration date, both of which the seller must verify.8Legal Information Institute (LII) / Cornell Law School. Fla Admin Code Ann R 12A-1.038 – Consumers Certificate of Exemption
Annual Sales Tax Holidays
The Florida legislature typically authorizes sales tax holidays each year that let shoppers buy certain categories of items tax-free for a limited window. Dates and price limits are set by statute and can change, so the most recent holidays are a guide rather than a guarantee:
- The back-to-school holiday covered all of August 2025, exempting clothing and footwear priced at $100 or less per item, school supplies at $50 or less, learning aids and puzzles at $30 or less, and personal computers at $1,500 or less.9Florida Department of Revenue. Annual Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday
- The disaster preparedness holiday ran June 2 through June 15, 2025, covering flashlights ($40 or less), radios ($50 or less), portable generators ($3,000 or less), coolers and portable power banks ($60 or less), tarps ($100 or less), and batteries ($50 or less).10Florida Senate. Senate Tax Relief Package – Disaster Preparedness Tax Holiday
Check the Florida Department of Revenue website before relying on these windows, since the legislature can adjust dates and price caps each year.
When You Owe Use Tax Yourself
Use tax covers the gap when you buy a taxable item from a seller who did not collect Florida tax, whether online, by catalog, or while traveling in another state. The rate is the same combined state and county rate that would have applied to a local purchase.1Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
Individuals report use tax on the Department of Revenue’s Out-of-State Purchase Return, Form DR-15MO. You list your untaxed purchases for the quarter, apply the 6% rate, and subtract any sales tax already paid to another state on the same items. Pay 6% or more elsewhere and you owe Florida nothing extra. The return is due on the first day of the month after each calendar quarter and becomes late after the 20th, so purchases made January through March are due April 1 and late after April 20. Boats and aircraft bought out of state follow a separate process and should not be reported on the DR-15MO.11Florida Department of Revenue. Out-of-State Purchase Return DR-15MO
Most online purchases from large retailers already include Florida tax at checkout. Since July 1, 2021, out-of-state sellers with no physical presence in Florida must collect and remit the tax if their taxable sales into the state exceeded $100,000 the previous calendar year, and marketplace platforms that list third-party sellers are treated as the dealer responsible for collecting tax on transactions made through the marketplace.12Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes Section 212.05965 – Taxation of Marketplace Sales
Registering and Filing as a Business
If you sell taxable goods or services in Florida, you must register as a sales and use tax dealer before your first sale. Registration uses the Florida Business Tax Application, Form DR-1, available online or on paper. Out-of-state retailers and marketplace providers that cross the $100,000 economic nexus threshold must register online and file electronically.13Florida Dept. of Revenue. Account Management and Registration
How often you file depends on how much tax you collect in a year:
- Monthly, if annual collections exceed $1,000
- Quarterly, for $501 to $1,000
- Semiannually, for $101 to $500
- Annually, for $100 or less
Most new businesses start on a quarterly schedule. Returns are due on the 1st of the month after each reporting period and become late after the 20th. Electronic filers must initiate payment and receive a confirmation number by 5 p.m. ET on the business day before the 20th. A late return or late payment triggers a 10% penalty on the tax owed, with a $50 minimum even if no tax is due, plus interest at a floating rate.1Florida Dept. of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax