Sales Tax New York 4% + Local

New York sales tax: state plus local

New York State charges a base rate of 4%, and on top of that every county, plus New York City, tacks on its own local rate. Add them up and the combined total lands somewhere from 7% to 8.875%. New York City tops the list at 8.875% (4% state + 4.5% city + 0.375% MCTD metropolitan transit district). Buffalo, in Erie County, comes to 8.75%; Albany is 8.0%; the Westchester suburbs average 8.375%. The formula is total = price · (1 + rate), so a $100 order shipped to NYC works out to $108.88.

As with all US sales tax, the NY version goes "on top" of the pre-tax price and only applies at the final consumer sale. There's no input credit. Any seller with nexus in NY has to register with the Department of Taxation and Finance — that means physical presence, or, after Wayfair, more than $500k in sales and 100+ NY transactions per year.

Common applications

E-commerce shipping to NY State buyers. Etsy, eBay and marketplace sellers, where the marketplace now collects on the seller's behalf. Drop shipping to NYC addresses. Restaurants and prepared food, taxed at the full rate. Brazilian exporters using 3PL warehouses in upstate NY.

FAQ

Is clothing taxable in NY? Items under $110 are exempt from the state sales tax (4%), though local taxes can still apply depending on the county. NYC waives the full 8.875% on clothing under $110.

What is the MCTD surcharge? It's the Metropolitan Commuter Transportation District's 0.375% add-on, applied in NYC and the surrounding counties (Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Rockland, etc.) to help fund the MTA.

Do marketplaces collect for me? They do. Since 2019, Amazon, eBay, Etsy and similar platforms have been required to collect and remit NY sales tax on behalf of third-party sellers.