DMV fees · 50 states and DC
DMV fees calculator
Type the car once and get every government charge of the state where you will register it, with the source of each line.
Built by Radif Partners · How the fees are calculated · Editorial policy
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.
A DMV fee estimate is only as good as the state formula behind it, so this calculator runs a separate engine for each of the 51 jurisdictions and returns every charge as its own line: purchase tax at your county's rate, title, registration, plates, county fees, value-based yearly taxes, EV or hybrid surcharge, inspection, and the dealer documentation fee where a law caps it. For a new $35,000 gasoline car from a dealer, the taxes and fees due at purchase range from $265 in Alaska to $4,714 in Washington. When a state leaves an amount to stations or towns, the line is listed apart with its official range instead of being guessed; 50 jurisdictions have at least one such line. The result also gives what you will pay to renew a year later.
What the calculator adds up
The purchase tax comes first because it is the largest line: a percentage of the price in most states, with or without a deduction for your trade-in, sometimes with a cap or a separate county rate. Then the title, a one-time fee, and the registration package: the base fee computed with the state's own formula, the small statewide add-ons collected with it, the county or city fees, and in some states a yearly tax on the car's value. EV and hybrid surcharges follow, then the inspection where the state requires one at registration. Finally the documentation fee, which is a dealer charge and not a government fee, appears at its legal cap or at the figure you type.
Three things the calculator asks about you
Your county or city, because local sales taxes and county fees follow the address on the registration, not the dealer's address. New or used, dealer or private seller, because states tax private sales differently, sometimes on a book value, and because some register a new car for two years. The trade-in, because most states deduct it from the taxable price and a few, California among them, do not: on a $10,000 trade-in, that difference alone is several hundred dollars.
How to check a dealer's buyer's order with it
Enter the agreed price, the trade-in and the documentation fee from the order, then compare line by line. The tax line should match within a few dollars; if it does not, ask which rate and which base the dealer used. The title and registration lines should match the state amounts; a gap often means a special plate, a lien fee or a penalty. The out-the-door price calculator presents the same figures as one final price, and the car payment calculator shows what they add to a loan.
Where the figures come from
Each state's data file cites the motor vehicle agency, the department of revenue or the statute for every amount, with the date it was read, and the engine is tested against the examples the state publishes. The method page explains the arithmetic, and each state page lists what its calculation cannot know.
The 51 jurisdictions side by side
| State | Taxes and fees at purchase | Out-the-door price |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $1,005 | $36,005 |
| Alaska | $265 | $35,265 |
| Arizona | $3,621 | $38,621 |
| Arkansas | $2,495 | $37,495 |
| California | $4,249 | $39,249 |
| Colorado | $3,911 | $38,911 |
| Connecticut | $2,477 | $37,477 |
| Delaware | $1,900 | $36,900 |
| District of Columbia | $215 + $875 to $3,500 tax | $35,215 + tax |
| Florida | $2,497 | $37,497 |
| Georgia | $2,488 | $37,488 |
| Hawaii | $2,063 | $37,063 |
| Idaho | $2,251 | $37,251 |
| Illinois | $2,941 | $37,941 |
| Indiana | $3,250 | $38,250 |
| Iowa | $2,343 | $37,343 |
| Kansas | $2,841 | $37,841 |
| Kentucky | $2,130 | $37,130 |
| Louisiana | $4,276 | $39,276 |
| Maine | $2,833 | $37,833 |
| Maryland | $3,568 | $38,568 |
| Massachusetts | $2,358 | $37,358 |
| Michigan | $2,628 | $37,628 |
| Minnesota | $3,403 | $38,403 |
| Mississippi | $1,788 | $36,788 |
| Missouri | $3,356 | $38,356 |
| Montana | $426 | $35,426 |
| Nebraska | $3,089 | $38,089 |
| Nevada | $3,605 | $38,605 |
| New Hampshire | $738 | $35,738 |
| New Jersey | $2,590 | $37,590 |
| New Mexico | $1,479 | $36,479 |
| New York | $3,328 | $38,328 |
| North Carolina | $1,180 | $36,180 |
| North Dakota | $1,848 | $36,848 |
| Ohio | $2,862 | $37,862 |
| Oklahoma | $1,684 | $36,684 |
| Oregon | $1,053 | $36,053 |
| Pennsylvania | $2,925 | $37,925 |
| Rhode Island | $2,555 | $37,555 |
| South Carolina | $780 | $35,780 |
| South Dakota | $1,502 | $36,502 |
| Tennessee | $2,568 | $37,568 |
| Texas | $2,594 | $37,594 |
| Utah | $2,849 | $37,849 |
| Vermont | $2,233 | $37,233 |
| Virginia | $1,500 | $36,500 |
| Washington | $4,714 | $39,714 |
| West Virginia | $2,167 | $37,167 |
| Wisconsin | $2,407 | $37,407 |
| Wyoming | $2,425 | $37,425 |