Vehicle registration fees by state
Vehicle registration fees are worked out differently from state to state: 25 states charge a flat fee, 16 go by the car’s weight, and the rest use its age, its value or, in Missouri, its taxable horsepower. That method, and whether your state adds a yearly tax on the car’s value, decides whether you pay $20 a year or several hundred. Pick your state for an itemized estimate with the source behind every figure, or compare the rules below.
Trade-in tax rule by state
The single biggest difference between states, and the one most calculators ignore.
| State | Trade-in credit | State tax rate |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Yes, deducted before tax | 2% |
| Alaska | Yes, deducted before tax | 0% |
| Arizona | Yes, deducted before tax | 5.6% |
| Arkansas | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.5% |
| California | No, taxed on the full price | 7.25% |
| Colorado | Yes, deducted before tax | 2.9% |
| Connecticut | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.35% |
| Delaware | Yes, deducted before tax | 5.25% |
| District of Columbia | No, taxed on the full price | 3.1% |
| Florida | Yes, deducted before tax | 6% |
| Georgia | Yes, deducted before tax | 7% |
| Hawaii | No, taxed on the full price | 4% |
| Idaho | Yes, deducted before tax | 6% |
| Illinois | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.25% |
| Indiana | Yes, deducted before tax | 7% |
| Iowa | Yes, deducted before tax | 5% |
| Kansas | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.5% |
| Kentucky | New cars only, not used | 6% |
| Louisiana | Yes, deducted before tax | 5% |
| Maine | Yes, deducted before tax | 5.5% |
| Maryland | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.5% |
| Massachusetts | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.25% |
| Michigan | Partly, up to a cap | 6% |
| Minnesota | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.875% |
| Mississippi | Yes, deducted before tax | 5% |
| Missouri | Yes, deducted before tax | 4.225% |
| Montana | Yes, deducted before tax | not published |
| Nebraska | Yes, deducted before tax | 5.5% |
| Nevada | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.85% |
| New Hampshire | Yes, deducted before tax | not published |
| New Jersey | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.625% |
| New Mexico | Yes, deducted before tax | 4% |
| New York | Yes, deducted before tax | 4% |
| North Carolina | Yes, deducted before tax | 3% |
| North Dakota | Yes, deducted before tax | 5% |
| Ohio | New cars only, not used | 5.75% |
| Oklahoma | No, taxed on the full price | 3.25% + 1.25% |
| Oregon | No, taxed on the full price | 0.5% |
| Pennsylvania | Yes, deducted before tax | 6% |
| Rhode Island | Yes, deducted before tax | 7% |
| South Carolina | Yes, deducted before tax | 5% |
| South Dakota | Yes, deducted before tax | 4% |
| Tennessee | Yes, deducted before tax | 7% |
| Texas | Yes, deducted before tax | 6.25% |
| Utah | Yes, deducted before tax | 4.85% |
| Vermont | Yes, deducted before tax | 6% |
| Virginia | No, taxed on the full price | 4.15% |
| Washington | Yes, deducted before tax | 7% |
| West Virginia | Yes, deducted before tax | 6% |
| Wisconsin | Yes, deducted before tax | 5% |
| Wyoming | Yes, deducted before tax | 4% |
How states calculate car registration fees: flat, weight, age or value
Most people assume registration is a flat charge. It is in some states. In others it is worked out from something about your car, and which something it is decides whether you pay $30 or $500.
| Worked out from | States | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| A flat fee, the same for every car | Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming | The simplest kind. What you drive makes no difference. |
| The weight of the car | Arkansas, Colorado, District of Columbia, Florida, Kansas, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, Hawaii | Heavier cars pay more, on the argument that they wear the road faster. Hawaii charges by the pound. |
| The age of the car | Idaho, Montana, Oklahoma, Utah | The fee falls each year as the car gets older, whatever it is worth. |
| What the car was worth when new | Arizona, Minnesota, Michigan | Worked out from the list price when new, not what you paid. This is the kind that gets expensive, and the only kind that can be tax deductible. |
| What the car sold for | Louisiana | A small percentage of the selling price, so a cheaper car pays less. |
| List price and weight together | Iowa | A share of the list price when new plus a charge per hundred pounds, written down as the car ages. |
| Taxable horsepower | Missouri | An older method, still used in a couple of states, taken from a figure printed on your title. |
How to calculate your registration fee
- Find your state’s method in the table above.
- Get the figure it uses. Weight is on the sticker inside the driver’s door, the list price when new is on the window sticker, and taxable horsepower is printed on a Missouri title.
- Add the yearly extras: any county or city fee, an electric or hybrid fee, and a yearly value tax if your state charges one (listed below).
- For a first registration, add the one-time charges: the title fee, the plate, and the sales or use tax on the price, less your trade-in where the state allows it.
Your state’s calculator does all four steps and asks only for what that state uses. To renew, switch it to Renewing and the one-time charges drop out.
The states that charge a second yearly tax on top
In these states the registration fee is not the bill. There is a separate annual charge worked out from what the car is worth, and on most cars it is the larger of the two. It does not appear in a dealer's quote and it catches people moving in.
- Alabama: Ad Valorem Tax
- California: Vehicle License Fee
- Colorado: Specific Ownership Tax
- Indiana: Motor Vehicle Excise Tax
- Maine: Excise Tax
- Massachusetts: Motor vehicle excise
- Nebraska: Motor Vehicle Tax
- Nevada: Governmental Services Tax
- New Hampshire: Town Permit Fee
- Wyoming: County Fee
What is not on these pages
Two things, deliberately. County and city charges that the state does not publish centrally are left out and named as left out, because a wheel tax that runs from nothing to over a hundred dollars cannot be honestly averaged. And personal property tax on a vehicle, which several states bill through the county rather than the DMV, is outside what a registration estimate can tell you.
Every figure on the state pages is checked against that state agency’s own fee schedule and linked to it; there is more on how we source our data.
Common questions about registration fees by state
Which states are the cheapest and most expensive to register a car?
The yearly cost swings from around $20 in the cheapest states to several hundred where a state charges an annual tax on the car’s value. See the full ranking on cheapest states to register a car, and the all-in first-year cost on how much it costs to register a car.
Why does car registration cost so much more in some states?
The registration fee itself is usually small. What moves the total is whether the state adds a yearly tax on the car’s value on top, and the one-time sales or use tax on the purchase. A few states charge both, which is why the same car can cost ten times as much to keep registered depending on where you live.
How do states work out the registration fee?
25 states charge a flat fee that is the same for every car, and 16 go by the car’s weight. The rest use its age, its value when new, its sale price, value and weight together, or, in Missouri, its taxable horsepower. The table above groups every state by method.
How much is a registration renewal, and how often do you renew?
Most states renew every year, a few every two. Renewal is far cheaper than the first registration because the one-time tax and the title fee are not charged again. See registration renewal cost by state for the yearly figure.
Do all states charge sales tax when you register a car?
No. Most do, collected when you title the car, but a handful charge none at all. Which states, and the rate everywhere else, is on car sales tax by state.