Property Tax Calculator: Estimate Your Annual and Monthly Property Tax
Calculate annual and monthly U.S. property tax by entering market value, assessment ratio, exemptions, and tax or millage rate.
Last updated: 18 October 2026
Property Tax Calculator: Estimate Your Annual and Monthly Property Tax
Short answer
Enter your home’s market value, your county’s assessment ratio, any exemption amount, and the tax rate or millage rate you found on your county bill or assessor page. This real estate tax calculator returns the assessed value, the taxable value, the annual property tax, and the monthly escrow amount, with the formula shown using your own numbers.
Property tax is set locally. The rate you enter is labeled “entered by you” because the result is an estimate with limitations, not a bill.
What this tool does and does not do
- Turns a value, an assessment ratio, an exemption, and a rate or millage into an annual and monthly figure.
- Shows every arithmetic step, the substituted formula, and the effective rate on market value.
- Optionally prorates the annual tax across the days owned in a billing period for a closing.
- Runs entirely in your browser. No personal identifiers are collected or sent anywhere.
- It does not look up a parcel, pull assessor records, or know your exact bill.
- It does not predict reassessment after a sale, tax caps, appeals, special assessments, or rate changes.
Scope of this estimate
Supported now
- Assessed value = market value × assessment ratio.
- Taxable value = assessed value − exemptions, never below zero.
- Annual tax from a percent rate or a millage rate you enter.
- Monthly escrow, effective rate, and optional proration.
Disabled until verified
- State or county rate presets (RULE_NOT_VERIFIED).
- Assessment caps, save-on-assessment programs, and reassessment after purchase.
- A federal deduction savings figure (RULE_NOT_VERIFIED).
- Parcel-level lookup by address (outside this calculator).
Property tax calculator
Your estimate
Property tax formula with your numbers
- Assessed value = market value × assessment ratio ÷ 100
- Taxable value = max(0, assessed value − exemptions)
- Annual tax = taxable value × rate ÷ 100 (percent) or taxable value × mills ÷ 1,000 (mills)
- Monthly escrow = annual tax ÷ 12
Fill the form and press Calculate to see the substituted property tax formula.
What would change this result: a different assessment ratio, a homestead or other exemption you qualify for, a reassessment after your purchase, a millage vote, or a special assessment on your parcel. Check the county assessor and treasurer before you rely on any figure.
Rounding: exact decimal arithmetic is used internally and money is displayed rounded to cents, half up. Local tax bills often round at a different step, so a real bill may differ by a few cents.
Not represented: special assessments, tax caps and assessment limits, reassessment after purchase, appeals, supplemental or escaped assessments, personal property tax, vehicle tax, eligibility-tested exemptions, and parcel-level data.
How to calculate property tax
Property tax is imposed by local governments under state law, so the rate, the assessment ratio and the exemptions all come from your state, county and district. Four arithmetic steps connect your inputs to a bill-shaped number:
- Assess the value. Multiply the market value by the assessment ratio your county uses. A ratio of 80% means the assessor values the home at four fifths of market value for tax purposes.
- Subtract exemptions. Deduct any exemption amount from the assessed value. If the exemption is larger than the assessed value, taxable value stops at zero — it never goes negative.
- Apply the rate. Multiply the taxable value by the rate as a decimal, or by the millage rate divided by 1,000. One mill equals 0.1 percent of taxable value; confirm that definition in your county assessor’s glossary before you rely on it.
- Divide for escrow. Divide the annual tax by 12 for the monthly amount a lender typically collects in escrow.
Worked examples with every arithmetic step
All three examples below are hypothetical. The rates, ratios and exemptions are arithmetic inputs chosen to show the mechanics — they are not the rules of any real jurisdiction.
| Step | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Assessed value | 400,000 × 100 ÷ 100 | $400,000.00 |
| Taxable value | 400,000.00 − 50,000.00 | $350,000.00 |
| Annual tax | 350,000 × 0.011 | $3,850.00 |
| Monthly escrow | 3,850.00 ÷ 12 | $320.83 |
| Effective rate on market value | 3,850.00 ÷ 400,000 | 0.9625% |
| Step | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Assessed value | 400,000 × 80 ÷ 100 | $320,000.00 |
| Taxable value | 320,000.00 − 50,000.00 | $270,000.00 |
| Annual tax | 270,000 × 22.5 ÷ 1,000 | $6,075.00 |
| Monthly escrow | 6,075.00 ÷ 12 | $506.25 |
| Effective rate on market value | 6,075.00 ÷ 400,000 | 1.51875% |
| Mill conversion check | 22.5 ÷ 1,000 | 0.0225 = 2.25% |
| Case | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Prorated share at closing | 3,650.00 × 100 ÷ 365 (actual days over period) | $1,000.00 |
| Exemption larger than assessed value | max(0, 30,000.00 − 50,000.00) | Taxable value $0.00 → annual tax $0.00 |
| Zero rate entered | any taxable value × 0 | Annual tax $0.00, no division error |
These fixtures test arithmetic, not law. Any tax or program rule must still be verified against the primary source for the year printed on your bill.
Comparisons that change your budget
| Term | What it is | Who sets it | Used for | On a $400,000 home (hypothetical) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market value | What the home would sell for today | The market, confirmed by an appraisal or an assessor’s sales analysis | Listing price, loan amount, your budget | $400,000.00 |
| Assessed value | The value your county actually taxes, after the assessment ratio | The county assessor under state law | Base for property tax | $320,000.00 at an 80% ratio |
| Taxable value | Assessed value minus exemptions | Assessor plus your filed exemption claims | Input to the rate multiplication | $270,000.00 after a $50,000 exemption |
| Effective rate | Annual tax divided by market value | Result of the calculation | Comparing homes in different jurisdictions | 1.51875% in Example B |
Why it matters: two homes with the same price can carry very different tax bills once the assessment ratio and exemptions differ, so always compare taxable value, not just listing price.
| Entered rate | Taxable value | Annual tax | Monthly escrow |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.50% | $400,000.00 | $2,000.00 | $166.67 |
| 1.00% | $400,000.00 | $4,000.00 | $333.33 |
| 1.10% | $400,000.00 | $4,400.00 | $366.67 |
| 1.50% | $400,000.00 | $6,000.00 | $500.00 |
| 2.00% | $400,000.00 | $8,000.00 | $666.67 |
| 15 mills (1.5%) | $400,000.00 | $6,000.00 | $500.00 |
Why it matters: a half-point difference in the rate you enter moves the monthly escrow by roughly $167 on this value, which is real money in a housing budget. Re-enter your own rate after you read it off the county bill.
Visual breakdown of the calculation
The bars shrink at each step: the ratio cuts the base, the exemption cuts it again, and only the remaining taxable value meets the rate.
Included in the calculation
- Assessment ratio applied to the market value you entered.
- Exemption amount subtracted from assessed value, floored at zero.
- Percent rate or millage rate you entered, labeled “entered by you”.
- Monthly escrow, effective rate, and optional day-count proration.
Not represented
- Special assessments for sidewalks, districts or bonds.
- Homestead caps, circuit breakers and assessment-growth limits.
- Reassessment after a sale, appeals, and escaped assessments.
- Personal property, vehicle tax, and eligibility-tested exemptions.
Common mistakes and key conditions
- Using market value as the tax base. Many states assess at a fraction of market value. Enter the ratio your county publishes, not 100% by habit.
- Confusing a mill with a percent. One mill is 0.1 percent, so 22.5 mills equals 2.25%. The mill mode of this mill rate calculator divides by 1,000 for you.
- Forgetting the exemption. A homestead exemption you already qualify for lowers the taxable value; leaving it out overstates the bill.
- Assuming last year’s rate holds. Millage can change with a local vote or a reassessment cycle. Use the rate printed on the most recent bill or the treasurer’s page.
- Ignoring districts. City, school, fire and other districts stack on top of the county rate, which is why the total on a bill can exceed the base county figure.
- Treating the estimate as a bill. Only the county treasurer can determine the exact amount, including any special assessments on your parcel.
Converter reminder: mills ÷ 1,000 = rate as a decimal. 1 mill = 0.1 percent = $1 of tax per $1,000 of taxable value. This arithmetic definition is the calculator’s convention; confirm it in your assessor’s glossary.
Property tax calculator FAQ
How much is property tax on a $400,000 home?
It depends on your assessment ratio, exemptions and local rate. Using the hypothetical example on this page — 100% assessment, a $50,000 exemption, and an entered 1.1% rate — the annual tax is $3,850.00 and the monthly escrow is $320.83. At a different county rate the answer changes proportionally, so read the rate off your own bill and re-enter it. Local offices publish the controlling figures: your county assessor and treasurer.
What is my property tax?
Your exact property tax is the amount your county treasurer bills for your parcel, including any special assessments. This calculator produces an estimate from the value, ratio, exemption and rate you enter; it does not pull parcel records. For the official figure, contact the county treasurer or assessor for your jurisdiction.
What is a mill rate?
A mill rate is the amount of tax per $1,000 of taxable value. One mill equals 0.1 percent, so 20 mills equals 2% of taxable value. The mill mode here divides your taxable value by 1,000 and multiplies by the mills you enter; confirm the definition in your county assessor’s glossary before relying on it.
What is a homestead exemption?
A homestead exemption reduces the assessed or taxable value of a primary residence by a fixed amount or percentage. The size of the benefit and the eligibility tests (such as age, disability or veteran status) are set by state and local law, so this tool does not apply them automatically. Enter the exemption amount your assessor already shows on your account; check your state revenue department or county assessor for the rules that apply to you.
Can I take a property tax deduction?
Property taxes that are imposed on your state or locality may be deductible as an itemized state and local tax deduction on the federal return, subject to limits that Congress has changed over time. This page does not compute your deduction or your savings. Read IRS Topic No. 503, Deductible taxes, and the Schedule A instructions on irs.gov for the current year.
Is there a property tax by state table on this page?
No. Average rates and assessment practices differ by state, county and district, and a single national table would be misleading without a verified primary source for every row. Pick your state in the form only to label the jurisdiction note, then enter the rate that applies where the home sits.
Can this look up property tax by county or by address?
No. Address-level parcel records sit with the county assessor or appraiser, and this tool does not query those systems. Choose your county’s published rate on the treasurer’s page and use the property tax calculator by county workflow here: enter that rate, the local assessment ratio and any exemption, and the tool does the arithmetic.
How does the proration mode work at a closing?
The optional proration mode multiplies the annual tax by the days you owned the home divided by the days in the billing period. On the sample figures, $3,650.00 across 100 of 365 days is $1,000.00. Closing statements sometimes use a 360-day year or other conventions, so match the day-count your settlement agent uses.
Glossary
- Market value
- What a willing buyer would pay for the home; the starting figure in this calculator.
- Assessment ratio
- The percentage of market value your county treats as assessed. Default here is 100% — check your county.
- Assessed value
- Market value multiplied by the assessment ratio; the base the rate is applied to before exemptions.
- Taxable value
- Assessed value minus exemptions, floored at zero.
- Mill or millage rate
- Tax per $1,000 of taxable value. One mill equals 0.1 percent.
- Homestead exemption
- A reduction in assessed or taxable value for a primary residence; amounts and eligibility are set locally.
- Escrow
- The monthly amount a lender collects alongside the mortgage to pay property tax and insurance.
- Effective tax rate
- Annual tax divided by market value; useful when comparing homes across jurisdictions.
- Proration
- Splitting the annual tax between buyer and seller by the days each owned the home in the billing period.
Related calculators
Property tax rarely stands alone in a housing budget. The Mortgage Calculator with taxes, insurance and PMI shows the full monthly housing cost once you add this estimate to principal and interest. When you are sizing the purchase itself, the Paycheck Calculator estimates take-home pay so the escrow figure can be checked against real income.
Official references
These are the official starting points a reader should open to confirm any rule or rate; treat every figure on this page as an arithmetic estimate until you have checked the source that governs your parcel.
- IRS Topic No. 503, Deductible taxes — starting point for the federal treatment of state and local property tax. https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc503
- IRS Schedule A (Form 1040) instructions — state and local tax deduction lines. https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-schedule-a-form-1040
- USAGov — directory to state and local government tax offices. https://www.usa.gov/
- Your county assessor, appraiser or treasurer — the controlling source for your assessment ratio, exemptions, millage and bill. Search your county name plus “property tax” on the official county site.
- Your state department of revenue, taxation or equalization — the controlling source for state assessment rules, caps and exemption programs.
Review owner: Varnda Editorial Team. Review cadence: at each tax-year change or whenever a reader reports a discrepancy. Next review trigger: any new county bill, millage vote, or state exemption change. To report a correction, use the contact channel published on the Varnda site’s contact or about page; this page does not invent an address for that purpose.
Limitations, exclusions and assumptions
- Rates and assessment rules are local. This tool applies the rate you enter and does not predict reassessment, rate changes, special assessments, appeals, tax caps, or post-sale reassessment.
- No parcel records are pulled; no address lookup is performed; no eligibility-tested exemption is granted automatically.
- State and county presets are disabled (RULE_NOT_VERIFIED
- The federal state and local tax deduction limit is not shown as a number for the same reason (RULE_NOT_VERIFIED).
- Proration and unknown exemptions mark the result ESTIMATE_WITH_LIMITATIONS; a missing jurisdiction marks it JURISDICTION_REQUIRED for preset use.
- All calculations run client-side. Inputs stay in your browser; nothing personal is collected.
Final summary
Enter the market value, your county’s assessment ratio, any exemption and the rate or millage from your bill, and this property tax calculator returns the assessed value, taxable value, annual tax and monthly escrow with the property tax formula shown using your own numbers. Then take the monthly figure to the Mortgage Calculator with taxes, insurance and PMI to see the complete housing payment. Before you act on any number, confirm the rate and exemption with your county treasurer or assessor.
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