Florida sales tax is 6% at the state level, and most counties add a local surtax of up to 2%, so the combined rate you actually pay at the register runs from 6% to 8% depending on where the sale happens. The tax applies to most physical goods and a short list of specific services. Groceries, prescription and most over-the-counter medicines, and digital downloads are exempt.
The 6% State Rate
Every retail sale of tangible personal property in Florida starts with a flat 6% state sales tax, and that rate is identical across all 67 counties.1Justia Law. Florida Code 212.05 – Sales, Storage, Use Tax Tangible personal property means any physical item you can see, touch, or measure, which covers almost everything you’d buy in a store or have shipped home: clothing, electronics, furniture, appliances, building materials, and so on.
A few categories carry their own statutory rate instead of the standard 6%:
- New mobile homes: 3% of the sales price.
- Coin-operated amusement machines: 4% of the charges collected.
- Electricity: 6.95% on residential and commercial electric bills.2Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax
County Surtaxes and the $5,000 Cap
Most counties add a discretionary sales surtax on top of the 6% state rate to fund things like school construction, infrastructure, and emergency services. The surtax rate depends on which county the buyer takes delivery in, because Florida sources local tax to the destination. For 2026, county surtax rates range from zero in a handful of counties up to 2% in Hamilton County.3Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax Information for Calendar Year 2026
The surtax only applies to the first $5,000 of the sales price on any single item of tangible personal property. That cap changes the math on big-ticket purchases. If you buy a $10,000 boat in a county with a 1% surtax, you pay the surtax on only the first $5,000 ($50), while the full 6% state tax applies to the entire $10,000 ($600), for a total of $650. The Department of Revenue publishes the updated county list each November for the following year.4Florida Department of Revenue. Discretionary Sales Surtax
What’s Taxable Beyond Physical Goods
Leasing or renting physical property is taxed at the same combined rate as buying it, whether you’re renting construction equipment, leasing a copier, or financing a vehicle.1Justia Law. Florida Code 212.05 – Sales, Storage, Use Tax Florida also taxes a short list of services:
- Admissions to theme parks, sporting events, movie theaters, concerts, and recreational activities like golf greens fees. Dues at private fitness or recreation clubs fall in here too.5Florida Senate. Florida Statutes Chapter 212 – Tax on Sales, Use, and Other Transactions
- Detective, burglar protection, and similar security services.
- Nonresidential cleaning and commercial pest control.1Justia Law. Florida Code 212.05 – Sales, Storage, Use Tax
- Service warranty contracts and extended warranties sold with tangible goods.
Hotels and Short-Term Rentals
Hotel rooms, vacation rentals, and other stays of six months or less carry the 6% state sales tax plus a county tourist development tax that each county sets separately. Those local lodging taxes range from zero in a few rural counties up to 6% or more in major tourist destinations like Broward, Hillsborough, Orange, and Osceola.6Florida Department of Revenue. Local Option Transient Rental Tax Rates Add the county discretionary surtax, and a hotel night in Orlando or Miami can carry a combined tax rate above 13%.
Commercial Rent Is No Longer Taxed
Florida used to tax commercial real property rentals, meaning businesses paid sales tax on their office, retail, and warehouse leases. That tax was fully repealed effective October 1, 2025. No state sales tax or discretionary surtax applies to rent for lease periods beginning on or after that date.7Florida Department of Revenue. Sales Tax on Commercial Rentals Repealed Effective October 1, 2025 If a business signed a long-term lease before the repeal, the controlling date is when each rental period begins, not when the lease was signed.
What’s Exempt
Groceries
Food products for human consumption are exempt from both the state tax and any county surtax when purchased for home preparation.8Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.08 – Sales, Rental, Use, Consumption, Distribution, and Storage Tax – Specified Exemptions The exemption covers the staples you’d expect: raw meat, produce, dairy, canned goods, bread, cereal. The line is preparation. Hot food prepared by the seller and food sold for immediate consumption (restaurant meals, deli items kept warm, anything sold with utensils) is taxable.9Legal Information Institute. Florida Administrative Code 12A-1.011 – Sales of Food Products for Human Consumption Food prepared off-site and sold in its original sealed packaging stays exempt even if a store slices it into portions.
Medicine and Medical Equipment
Florida broadly exempts medical items. Prescription drugs, common over-the-counter remedies for pain or inflammation, hypodermic needles, and diagnostic test kits are tax-free. So are prosthetic and orthopedic devices, corrective eyeglasses and contact lenses, hearing aids, colostomy supplies, kidney dialysis machines, oxygen delivery systems, insulin, blood glucose monitors, and other devices needed to treat disease or injury.8Florida Senate. Florida Code 212.08 – Sales, Rental, Use, Consumption, Distribution, and Storage Tax – Specified Exemptions
Digital Goods and Software
Because Florida’s sales tax applies only to tangible personal property, digital products fall outside it. Downloads of music, e-books, movies, and software delivered electronically are not subject to Florida sales tax. Cloud-based software subscriptions aren’t taxable either. Streaming services may fall under Florida’s separate communications services tax rather than the sales tax, so they aren’t completely untaxed.
Vehicles
Buying a car, truck, boat, or other motor vehicle triggers the 6% state sales tax on the full purchase price. The county discretionary surtax applies only to the first $5,000, same as any other tangible item.10Florida Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax on Motor Vehicles A dealer collects the tax at the point of sale. On a private-party sale, you pay when you register the vehicle at your local tax collector’s office. If you already paid sales tax on the same vehicle to another state, Florida generally credits that amount, so you owe only the difference between the other state’s rate and Florida’s.
Use Tax on Out-of-State Purchases
When you buy something from an out-of-state seller who doesn’t collect Florida sales tax, you owe Florida use tax at the same 6% rate, plus any applicable county surtax, on anything you bring into the state or have delivered here.1Justia Law. Florida Code 212.05 – Sales, Storage, Use Tax The use tax exists so people can’t dodge sales tax by shopping across state lines. If you already paid sales tax to the other state, you get a credit for that amount. In practice, most online purchases now have tax collected at checkout under Florida’s economic nexus and marketplace rules, but the use tax still matters for private purchases, items bought abroad, and purchases from small sellers that fall below the collection thresholds.
Sales Tax Holidays
Florida runs several annual sales tax holidays that temporarily exempt qualifying purchases. The details and dates can change year to year because the legislature sets them through the state budget, but a few have become fixtures.
Back-to-School
For 2026, the back-to-school holiday runs through the month of August. Qualifying items and per-item price caps:
- Clothing, footwear, and accessories: $100 or less per item.
- School supplies: $50 or less per item.
- Learning aids and puzzles: $30 or less per item.
- Personal computers and accessories: $1,500 or less per item.
An item priced above the cap doesn’t qualify at all; the exemption can’t be applied to just a portion of the price.11Avalara. 2026 Sales Tax Holidays
Freedom Month
July is designated as Freedom Month, exempting outdoor recreation supplies, sporting event admissions, fitness equipment, and cultural event tickets. State park admission fees and annual passes are included.12Florida State Parks. Freedom Month
Disaster Preparedness
Effective August 1, 2025, Florida made the sales tax exemption on certain disaster preparedness supplies permanent rather than a limited holiday. Batteries, portable generators, fire extinguishers, and smoke and carbon monoxide alarms qualify year-round.
If You’re a Business Collecting the Tax
Every Florida business registered to collect sales tax must file a return for each reporting period, even if no tax was collected. Returns are due on the first day of the month following the reporting period and become late after the 20th.2Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax Filing frequency scales with your collections, ranging from annual filing for the smallest sellers to monthly filing once you pass $1,000 in annual tax collected. Most new businesses start quarterly, and the Department adjusts the schedule based on actual collections. Skipping a return because you had no taxable sales is a common mistake and can trigger penalties even when no tax was owed.