Fee schedules checked on
What your car costs at the DMV, state by state
Pick the state and county, describe the car, and the calculator applies that state’s own formula: weight, value, age, county rates and the fees only it charges.
Updated : fee schedules of the 51 jurisdictions checked against the official sources · How the fees are calculated · Who publishes this
Taxes and fees due when you buy · California
$4,249
Due at purchase $4,249 · out the door $39,249
Then about $478 a year to renew.
| Sales/use tax (10.25%) | $3,596.21 |
| Reflectorized plate fee | $1.00 |
| Registration fee (includes $3 alternative fuel/technology fee) | $76.00 |
| California Highway Patrol fee | $34.00 |
| County and district fees (Los Angeles County) | $11.00 |
| Vehicle license fee (0.65% of $35,100)Based on the price you pay, even for a used car: the schedule restarts at each change of owner. | $228.00 |
| Transportation improvement fee | $198.00 |
| Smog abatement fee (no smog check for the first eight model years) | $20.00 |
| Dealer documentation fee (capped at $85) | $85.00 |
DMV and California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) schedules read on 2026-10-11. Some lines have no single official amount and are listed apart. How this is calculated.
The same new $35,000 gasoline car, 3,500 lb, bought from a dealer, costs between $265 in Alaska and $4,714 in Washington in taxes and government fees at purchase, with a median of $2,492 across the 51 jurisdictions. Most of the gap is the purchase tax: Alaska, Montana and New Hampshire charge no state sales tax on cars, while the highest combined state and local rate reaches 12.625% in Arkansas. Registration itself ranges from $20 in Georgia to $875 in Maine for that car, because states price it by weight, by value, by age or at a flat rate. 26 jurisdictions also tax the car’s value every year, 41 add a yearly fee for electric cars, and 10 cap what a dealer may charge for paperwork. Where a state does not publish enough to compute a line exactly, such as county property tax or a station’s inspection price, the result shows the official range and says so instead of guessing.
One car, 51 bills
The table runs the reference car through each state’s engine. Click a state to see every line with its source, or change the car in the calculator above. The method page explains what is and is not included.
| # | State | Purchase tax | Title, registration and other fees | Due at purchase | Renewal, year 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | $0 | $265 | $265 | $120 |
| 2 | Montana | $0 | $426 | $426 | $384 |
| 3 | New Hampshire | $0 | $738 | $738 | $589 |
| 4 | South Carolina | $500 | $280 | $780 | $20 |
| 5 | Alabama | $963 | $42 | $1,005 | $24 |
| 6 | Oregon | $175 | $878 | $1,053 | $124 |
| 7 | North Carolina | $1,050 | $130 | $1,180 | $77 |
| 8 | New Mexico | $1,400 | $79 | $1,479 | $76 |
| 9 | Virginia | $1,453 | $48 | $1,500 | $33 |
| 10 | South Dakota | $1,400 | $102 | $1,502 | $92 |
| 11 | Oklahoma | $1,576 | $109 | $1,684 | $96 |
| 12 | Mississippi | $1,750 | $38 | $1,788 | $28 |
| 13 | North Dakota | $1,750 | $98 | $1,848 | $93 |
| 14 | Delaware | $1,825 | $75 | $1,900 | $40 |
| 15 | Hawaii | $1,649 | $413 | $2,063 | $383 |
| 16 | Kentucky | $2,100 | $30 | $2,130 | $21 |
| 17 | West Virginia | $2,100 | $67 | $2,167 | $52 |
| 18 | Vermont | $2,100 | $133 | $2,233 | $91 |
| 19 | Idaho | $2,100 | $151 | $2,251 | $123 |
| 20 | Iowa | $1,769 | $574 | $2,343 | $364 |
| 21 | Massachusetts | $2,188 | $170 | $2,358 | $590 |
| 22 | Wisconsin | $2,065 | $342 | $2,407 | $115 |
| 23 | Wyoming | $1,750 | $675 | $2,425 | $555 |
| 24 | Connecticut | $2,223 | $254 | $2,477 | $56 |
| 25 | Georgia | $2,450 | $38 | $2,488 | $20 |
| 26 | Arkansas | $2,328 | $167 | $2,495 | $28 |
| 27 | Florida | $2,150 | $347 | $2,497 | $46 |
| 28 | Rhode Island | $2,450 | $105 | $2,555 | $22 |
| 29 | Tennessee | $2,530 | $38 | $2,568 | $27 |
| 30 | New Jersey | $2,319 | $271 | $2,590 | $59 |
| 31 | Texas | $2,188 | $406 | $2,594 | $76 |
| 32 | Michigan | $2,117 | $511 | $2,628 | $195 |
| 33 | Maine | $1,925 | $908 | $2,833 | $666 |
| 34 | Kansas | $2,791 | $50 | $2,841 | $39 |
| 35 | Utah | $2,608 | $241 | $2,849 | $235 |
| 36 | Ohio | $2,800 | $62 | $2,862 | $44 |
| 37 | Pennsylvania | $2,800 | $125 | $2,925 | $53 |
| 38 | Illinois | $2,625 | $316 | $2,941 | $151 |
| 39 | Nebraska | $2,450 | $639 | $3,089 | $563 |
| 40 | Indiana | $2,468 | $782 | $3,250 | $443 |
| 41 | New York | $3,106 | $222 | $3,328 | $78 |
| 42 | Missouri | $2,708 | $647 | $3,356 | $9 |
| 43 | Minnesota | $2,430 | $973 | $3,403 | $564 |
| 44 | Maryland | $2,327 | $1,241 | $3,568 | $121 |
| 45 | Nevada | $2,931 | $674 | $3,605 | $615 |
| 46 | Arizona | $3,020 | $602 | $3,621 | $518 |
| 47 | Colorado | $3,203 | $708 | $3,911 | $519 |
| 48 | California | $3,596 | $653 | $4,249 | $478 |
| 49 | Louisiana | $3,675 | $601 | $4,276 | $53 |
| 50 | Washington | $3,868 | $846 | $4,714 | $499 |
| – | District of Columbia | $875 to $3,500 | $215 | $215 + tax | $175 |
Three things that move the bill
Where you register, not where you buy. Sales tax and county fees follow the address on the registration, so a dealer across the state line usually collects your home state’s tax, or none, and you pay it at the DMV. How the state prices registration. A heavy SUV costs more in weight states like New York, an expensive car more in value states like California, and nothing changes in flat-fee states like Pennsylvania. The yearly tax on value. In some states it is collected with registration, in others billed by the county; either way it can exceed every other fee after the first year. The vehicle property tax page lists them.
Purchase, then every year after
Sales tax, title and new plates are paid once. Registration, value taxes, the EV fee and periodic inspections come back each cycle, and some states register a new car for two or four years at once. The ownership cost page adds the renewals of the following years and the car payment calculator finances the out-the-door price.
DMV fees
- DMV fees calculatorTax, title, registration, plates, inspection and EV fee for any car in any state, line by line.
- Car registration fees by stateThe registration formula of every state, the first bill and the yearly renewal for the same car.
- Tag and title feesTitle, plates and first registration: the government fees beside the sales tax, by state.
Buying a car
- Car sales tax calculatorState and county tax on a car purchase, with each state’s rule on trade-ins, doc fees and caps.
- Out-the-door price calculatorThe final price of a car: price, taxes, government fees and doc fee, minus your trade-in.
- Car payment calculatorMonthly payment, interest and total cost, with the real taxes and fees of your state in the loan.
- Doc fee by stateThe legal cap on dealer documentation fees in each state, or the absence of one, with the source.
Owning a car
- License plate renewal costWhat renewing your registration costs each year, and how it changes as the car ages.
- Vehicle inspection costWhich states require a safety or emissions inspection, who is exempt and what the official fee is.
- Smog check costCalifornia’s smog check rules and fees, and the emissions test of every other state that has one.
- EV registration fee by stateThe yearly surcharge on electric, plug-in hybrid and hybrid cars in each state, and what it adds to registration.
- Vehicle property taxStates that tax a car’s value every year, how the value is set and how fast the tax falls.
- Car ownership costTaxes, fees, renewals and loan interest over the years you keep the car, in your state.
Questions buyers ask
Which state has the cheapest car registration in 2026?
For the reference car, Georgia has the lowest registration bill ($20 including plate, local and value-based fees) and Alaska the lowest total at purchase once the purchase tax is added. Rankings change with the car: weight, price and age move each state differently.
Which states charge no sales tax when you buy a car?
Alaska, Montana and New Hampshire have no state sales tax on a car purchase. That does not make the purchase free: several of these states charge a titling or privilege fee, local governments may add their own tax, and the yearly registration can be high. The state pages give each line with its source.
Why do some lines show a range instead of an amount?
Because the state does not publish one figure for everyone. County property tax depends on a local rate and a local valuation, many inspection stations set their own price, and some fees depend on fuel economy. Rather than guess, the calculator shows the official minimum and maximum and leaves the line out of the total.
What car is used to rank the states?
A new gasoline passenger car with a $35,000 selling price and a 3,500 lb curb weight, bought from a dealer without a trade-in and registered in the most populous county. The same car runs through every state engine, so the differences come from the rules, not from the car.
Are dealer doc fees government fees?
No. The documentation fee is kept by the dealer. 10 jurisdictions cap it by law and the calculator applies that cap by default; elsewhere it uses no amount unless you type the dealer’s figure from the buyer’s order. It belongs on the quote as a separate line.
How current are the fees in this calculator?
Every state file was read on the official DMV, revenue department or statute pages for the 2026 schedules, and each line in the result links to its source with the date it was read. Fees indexed every July, such as several EV fees, use the amount in force from July 2026.
Official sources behind this page
Published by Radif Partners
Publisher of state-by-state vehicle tax, title, registration and inspection calculators
Fee schedules checked on · Editorial policy · Contact
Estimate only: amounts come from each state’s published fee schedules and tax rates as read on the date shown. Special plates, late penalties, local add-ons a county adopts mid-year and the exact value an agency assigns to a used car can change the bill. Your DMV or county tax office has the final word.
Fee schedules and tax rates for 2026, read on the state agencies’ own pages on