The kids aren’t ready to hear about going back to school, but sales tax holidays in many states can help parents save on their back-to-school shopping.
That’s particularly important this year as shoppers say they are more stressed about tariffs and economic uncertainty.
There are 17 states that have sales-tax holidays, when certain purchases made for school will be exempt from taxes.
Four states had their sales-tax holidays in July, and the remaining 13 states host the holidays in August.
In July and August, 17 states will have sales-tax holidays, when certain purchases made for school will be exempt from taxes.
Most of the tax-free shopping days give a break on sales tax for items related to school like clothing, shoes, electronics and supplies. Two states, Ohio and Massachusetts, extend their sales-tax holiday to include more than back-to-school items.
The state of Florida has expanded its back-to-school sales tax holiday to include the whole month of August, starting Aug. 1.
Next up: Beginning Aug. 1, nine states have their tax-free holiday events, including Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Missouri, Ohio (for two weeks), Oklahoma, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia.
Here’s what you need to know and a full list of participating states:
Early-bird back-to-school shopping has already begun and has increased in July. This year, 26% of back-to-school and college shoppers had already started browsing and buying items by early June, according to a study by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics of back-to-school consumer attitudes and expectations. That was up from 22% last year and 17% in 2019.
Shoppers often say they like buying early to spread out their budget and to get early deals and promotions.
A big change came in July, when 57% of families shopping for grade-school and college-students said they had begun their shopping, Katherine Cullen, National Retail Federation vice president of industry and consumer insights, told reporters during a media briefing on July 23. That’s up from 55% last year.
A big concern, shoppers say, are tariffs. Three-quarters or 74% of those surveyed said they are shopping earlier this year because they are worried tariffs will cause prices to go up later this season.
“In June, people felt a little bit more worried about their finances and they decided, ‘Hey, maybe I’ll just buy what I need and then replenish later in the year,’ ” said Cullen. “That shifted in July when they felt ‘No, I need to stock up and save because things might be much more expensive later in the season or later in the year.’ “
The sales-tax holidays help consumers save even more, Cullen told USA TODAY in an earlier interview in June.
“Customers and retailers alike enjoy the benefits of sales tax holidays,” she said. “These tax-free events can help drive customers to stores, and result in increased sales because customers may purchase additional items that they were not shopping for that day.”
According to the NRF, the average K-12 shopper is budgeting $858 this year on average per student, down from $875, while those buying for a college student this year are expected to spend $1,326, down from $1,365 last year. This year, 76% of shoppers are anticipating higher price tags for the things they need, the NRF survey said.
And although average spending is expected to be down, total spending is expected to go up as shoppers prioritize essential categories, said Cullen. Overall, back-to-school spending is expected to reach $128 billion this year, up 2% from last year, she said.
Still, there are categories shoppers will be pulling back on. The biggest is electronics, Cullen said.
A Back-to-School Survey by Deloitte estimates that spending for K-12 shopping will remain steady at $30.9 billion or approximately $570 per student. That is down $16 a student from last year. But while the overall spending figure remains steady, lower-income parents (those making $50,000 or less) said they plan to spend 10% more this year while middle- and higher income families said they’d pull back and spend 7% to 9% less.
In another study by Coresight Research, 68% of shoppers said inflation would limit how much they spend on back-to-school shopping, while 73% of shoppers expect price increases and 64.9% expect product shortages.
“Back-to-school 2025 is shaped by measured optimism: consumers are willing to spend more, but economic pressures like inflation and tariffs are driving them to seek value more aggressively,” Madhav Pitaliya, an analyst for Coresight Research told USA TODAY.
Here is a list of participating states and what’s tax free, according to the Federation of Tax Administrators plus reporting by USA TODAY. Rules and dates vary by state so check the state’s website for the most updated information. In some instances, local taxes may also still apply.
If a dollar amount is not listed, the state did not appear to indicate a spending limit on that item. A link to most states’ details of their holiday are hyperlinked to the name of each state. Generally most purchases online also qualify for the sales-tax holiday, but check your state’s requirements.
Five states year-round don’t charge sales tax: Alaska, Montana, Delaware, Oregon and New Hampshire, according to the Tax Foundation. Some municipalities in Alaska do charge sales tax.
July 18-20
What’s tax-free:
Clothing and shoes: $100 or less per item
Computers: $750 or less per item
School supplies: $50 or less per item
Books: $30 or less per item
Aug. 2-3
What’s tax-free:
Clothing and shoes: $100 or less per item, clothing accessories: $50 or less per item
School supplies
Electronic devices used for school
Aug. 17-23 (Always the third Sunday in August to the following Saturday)
What’s tax-free:
Clothing and footwear less than $100
Florida expanded its back-to-school sales tax holiday to include the whole month of August.
Aug. 1-31
What’s tax-free:
School supplies: $50 or less per item
Clothing, footwear, accessories: $100 or less per item
Computers and related accessories: $1,500 or less
Learning aids and jigsaw puzzles: $30 or less
Aug. 1-2
What’s tax-free:
Clothing or footwear: $100 or less per item
Aug. 10-16 (Always the second Sunday of August to the following Saturday.)
What’s tax-free:
Clothing and footwear: $100 or less per item
Backpacks: the first $40 of a backpack/bookbag purchase is tax-free.
Accessory items, except for backpacks, are not included.
Aug 9-10
Eligible retail items bought for personal use costing $2,500 or less (not limited to school supplies). There are several exceptions when tax still applies, including: meals, motor vehicles and boats, gas and electricity, tobacco, marijuana or alcoholic beverages and any single item with a price more than $2,500.
July 11-13
What’s tax-free:
Clothing and footwear: $100 or less per item
School supplies: $100 or less per item
Aug. 1-3
What’s tax-free:
Clothing: $100 or less per item
School supplies: $50 or less per item
Computers: $1,500
Computer software: $350 or less
Computer peripheral devices: $1,500
Graphic calculators: $150 or less
July 25-27
What’s tax-free:
Clothing or shoes: $100 or less per item
Desktop, laptop, tablets or notebook computers: $1,000
Related computer hardware: $500 per item
School supplies: $30 per item
New York does not have a sales tax holiday, but year-round in certain counties, including the county that covers New York City, have no sales tax for clothing and footwear worn by humans that is $110 or less.
Aug. 1-14
What’s tax-free:
Ohio’s sales-tax holiday is not limited to school-related supplies. The tax-free period includes anything that is considered tangible personal property that is $500 or less, except watercraft, anything with an outboard motor that must be titled, a motor vehicle, alcohol, tobacco, a vapor product or a product that contains marijuana. Dine-in meals, which are usually taxed, are also tax-free if they are less than $500.
Aug. 1-3
What’s tax-free:
Clothing or footwear: $100 or less per item.
Pennsylvania does not have a sales-tax holiday, but year-round it does not charge sales tax for clothing and certain footwear.
Aug. 1-3
What’s tax-free:
Clothing, shoes and accessories
School supplies
Computers, printers, earbuds and headphones
Certain bed and bath items
Diapers
July 25-27
What’s tax-free:
Clothing and shoes: $100 or less per item
School supplies: $100 or less per item
Computers, including laptops and tablets: $1,500 or less per item
Aug. 8-10
What’s tax-free:
Clothing and shoes: $100 or less per item
Backpacks: $100 or less per item
School supplies: $100 or less per item
Aug. 1-3
What’s tax-free:
Clothing and shoes: $100 or less per item
School supplies: $20 or less per item
Aug. 1-4
What’s tax-free:
Clothing: $125 or less per item
Laptop or tablet computers: $500 or less per item
School instruction material: $20 or less per item
School supplies: $50 or less per item
Sports equipment: $150 or less per item This story has been updated to add new information.
Betty Lin-Fisher is a consumer reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at blinfisher@USATODAY.com or follow her on X, Facebook or Instagram @blinfisher and @blinfisher.bsky.social on Bluesky. Sign up for our free The Daily Money newsletter, which will include consumer news on Fridays, here.
