Arkansas Tax, Title and License Calculator
What the state actually charges on a car purchase in Arkansas, separated from what the dealer adds. Every government figure comes from Arkansas DFA.
How much is tax, title and license (TTL) in Arkansas?
On a $25,000 car, tax, title and license in Arkansas is about $1,662.50: $37.50 in fees and $1,625 in tax. The fixed fees stay about the same at any price; the tax is what moves with what you pay.
Use the full Arkansas calculator to enter your own price, trade-in and vehicle details. The table below shows the total at common prices.
Tax, title and license in Arkansas by price
| Purchase price | Fees | Tax | TTL total | With 30% trade-in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $3,000 car | $37.50 | $0 | $37.50 | $37.50 |
| $5,000 car | $37.50 | $175 | $212.50 | $160 |
| $6,000 car | $37.50 | $210 | $247.50 | $184.50 |
| $10,000 car | $37.50 | $650 | $687.50 | $492.50 |
| $20,000 car | $37.50 | $1,300 | $1,337.50 | $947.50 |
| $30,000 car | $37.50 | $1,950 | $1,987.50 | $1,402.50 |
| $40,000 car | $37.50 | $2,600 | $2,637.50 | $1,857.50 |
Used vehicle, first registration in Arkansas, at the state tax rate. Not included: annual personal property tax, local sales tax.
Where the money goes
On a $25,000 car in Arkansas, tax is $1,625 of the $1,662.50 total and the fixed fees are $37.50. The tax scales with the price of the car. The fees do not, which is why tax, title and license is a much bigger number on an expensive car and barely noticeable on a cheap one.
Sales tax on a car in Arkansas
The Arkansas rate is 6.5% plus local rates of 0% to 5%. source 3 It is the biggest part of the bill on an expensive car, and the calculator above works it into your total. How a trade-in changes it is covered in trade-ins below, and every state's rate is on the car sales tax by state page.
Arkansas used car tax at real prices: the $4,000 and $10,000 lines
On a used car the state rate is decided by the selling price before any trade-in comes off, so two cars a dollar apart can land in different bands:
| Used car price | State rate | State tax |
|---|---|---|
| $3,500 | 0% | $0 |
| $4,000 | 3.5% | $140 |
| $8,000 | 3.5% | $280 |
| $9,999 | 3.5% | $349.97 |
| $10,000 | 6.5% | $650 |
| $20,000 | 6.5% | $1,300 |
Going from $9,999 to $10,000 adds about $300 of state tax. A new car is taxed at 6.5% whatever it costs. City and county rates only reach the first $2,500 of the price, so the local share stays small. A 2025 bill to move the tax-free line up to $10,000 died in committee, which leaves these bands in place.
Does a trade-in reduce your tax in Arkansas?
Yes. Arkansas subtracts the trade-in allowance from the price before the tax is worked out. The bigger the trade-in, the smaller the tax bill.
Buy a $28,000 car and hand over a trade-in worth $8,000 and you are taxed on $20,000, not $28,000. That is $520 you do not pay.
One catch worth knowing. The credit usually only applies when the trade and the purchase happen as a single deal with the same dealer. Sell your old car privately first and you get the cash but you lose the tax break.
Buying from a dealer? Put the doc fee and any add-ons on top of these figures with the out-the-door price calculator, set to Arkansas.
The Arkansas documentation fee, and what else is not TTL
Tax, title and license is money the state collects. The rest of a dealer's out-the-door figure is not, and the documentation fee is the line that trips people up most.
Arkansas does not cap the dealer documentation fee. It is set by the dealer and shown on the paperwork, and figures around $130 are common, lower than in many states. source 1
No state makes a dealer charge this, and Arkansas puts no ceiling on it, so of everything on the sheet it is the line with the most room to push back on.
For the full list of what belongs to the state and what belongs to the dealer, see what dealers add that is not tax, title and license, and how Arkansas's doc fee rule compares with the rest.
Motorcycles, leases and other cases
Three situations where the figure above does not apply:
- Motorcycles. Arkansas DFA registers them on a different and much cheaper schedule. The tax works the same way, on the purchase price.
- Leases. A lease is not a purchase, and several states tax the monthly payment rather than the value of the car. If you are leasing, the number on this page is not your number.
- Gifts and family transfers. No sale means no sales tax in most states, though the title fee still applies. The Arkansas title transfer page has the rule and the form.
Questions about Arkansas TTL
Do you have to pay sales tax on a $4000 car in Arkansas?
Yes, at the reduced rate. Only used cars selling for less than $4,000 are exempt. At exactly $4,000 the state rate is 3.5%, or $140, plus your local rate on the first $2,500, and the full 6.5% starts at $10,000.
How to calculate tax, title and license in Arkansas?
Work it in this order. Take the purchase price, subtract your trade-in, apply the 6.5% tax rate plus any local rate for your address, then add the flat fees: $10 for the title. The calculator on the Arkansas page does all of it and shows the source for each figure.
How much does it cost to get a tax, title and license in Arkansas?
On a $25,000 car, about $1,662.50: $37.50 in fees and $1,625 in tax. On a $5,000 car it is about $212.50. The fees stay the same. The tax is what moves. Not included: annual personal property tax, local sales tax, which Arkansas DFA does not publish in a form we can verify.
How much are taxes on a $20,000 vehicle in Arkansas?
$1,300 in tax on its own, before any fees. That is at the state rate. Your local rate can push it higher, and in Arkansas it varies by where you live rather than where you buy. A trade-in reduces it, because Arkansas taxes the difference.
What does tax, title and license include in Arkansas?
Three things the state charges: the sales or use tax on the purchase, the fee to put the title in your name, and the registration and plate that make the car legal to drive. In Arkansas the title is $10. The tax is the part that moves with the price of the car.
How much is tax, title and license on a $25,000 car in Arkansas?
About $1,662.50: $37.50 in fees and $1,625 in tax. Change the price in the calculator for your own figure. Not included: annual personal property tax, local sales tax.
Is the documentation fee part of tax, title and license?
No. The doc fee goes to the dealer, not to Arkansas DFA. It often sits next to the real government fees on the same sheet, which is exactly why it gets mistaken for one. Ask what each line is for.
Can I negotiate tax, title and license in Arkansas?
Not the tax, the title or the registration. Those are set by the state and the dealer collects them on its behalf. What you can negotiate is the price of the car, which lowers the tax as a side effect, and the dealer's own fees.
How much does a trade-in save on tax, title and license in Arkansas?
On a $30,000 car with a $10,000 trade-in, tax drops from $1,950 to $1,300. That is $650 saved, because Arkansas taxes the difference rather than the full price.
Work out the rest of the Arkansas bill
The generic explainers, on what tax, title and license means, how to check a dealer's quote, and whether to finance the tax, live on the tax, title and license hub. For Arkansas specifically, these are the pages worth having open:
How Arkansas compares at one price
The table above runs Arkansas at prices from $3,000 to $40,000. To see the same bill in every state side by side, there is tax, title and license on a $30,000 car, state by state.
Nearby states
Or compare all 51 on the tax, title and license by state page.
Where these numbers come from
- Arkansas DFA, Motor Vehicle Registration Fee Schedule, retrieved 2026-09-23
- Arkansas.gov, Calculate State Sales Tax (DFA Office of Driver Services vehicle sales tax calculator), retrieved 2026-10-21
- Arkansas Act 1013 and DFA, reduced 3.5% rate on used vehicles $4,000 to $10,000 and exemption under $4,000, retrieved 2026-09-23
- Arkansas DFA, Sales and Use Tax FAQs (local tax capped on the first $2,500, trade-in credit), retrieved 2026-09-23
- Arkansas DFA, Individual Personal Property (annual assessment of vehicles at 20% of value by 31 May), retrieved 2026-09-26
- Arkansas DFA, DSMV FAQs (60 days to register, $3 per 10 days late, 10% sales tax penalty, proof of assessment and taxes paid), retrieved 2026-10-17
- Arkansas Legislature, SB82 of 2025 (raise the used-car exemption to $10,000; died in committee), retrieved 2026-10-17
- Arkansas Code 27-14-601, registration fees, retrieved 2026-10-22
- Arkansas Gross Receipts Rule GR-12, sale of motor vehicles: gifts and inheritances as non-taxable transfers (Cornell LII copy, no revision date shown), retrieved 2026-11-01
Not affiliated with Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration.