Property tax in Missoula County, Montana

By Brent Chudoba, editor Updated September 23, 2026

The median property tax bill in Missoula County, Montana is $4,150 a year, which is about 0.88% of the county's median home value of $472,100. That effective rate is higher than the typical Montana county (0.68%) and higher than the national median (0.81%). These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024); your own bill depends on your home's assessed value and any exemptions.

Estimate the property tax on a home in Missoula County

Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Missoula County's average effective rate of 0.88% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.

Home market value

Estimated property tax: $4,154 / year

Property tax in Missoula County at a glance

Missoula County, Montana property tax (Census ACS, reviewed September 23, 2026)
Measure	Value
Median annual property tax	$4,150
Median home value	$472,100
Effective tax rate	0.88%
Typical Montana county rate	0.68%
National median county rate	0.81%

Effective rate = median real estate taxes paid divided by median home value. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

How does Missoula County compare in Montana?

Among Montana's 56 counties, Missoula County has the 11th highest effective property-tax rate: 10 rank higher and 45 rank lower. That is on the higher side for Montana. Nationally, it ranks 1399th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Montana county ranked.

How much do homeowners in Missoula County actually pay?

The median is only the middle bill. Across Missoula County's 30,978 owner-occupied homes, 69.9% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 81.5% pay at least $2,000, and 6.3% pay under $800. Another 2.9% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.

Annual property tax paid by Missoula County homeowners (Census ACS 2020-2024)
Annual bill	Homes	Share
Under $800	1,958	6.3%
$800 to $1,499	1,560	5%
$1,500 to $1,999	1,310	4.2%
$2,000 to $2,999	3,599	11.6%
$3,000 or more	21,651	69.9%
No property tax paid	900	2.9%

Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $4,226 and owners without one pay $3,984. That is within 10% either way, so in Missoula County paying off the house does not go with a noticeably different bill. Census table B25103.

How does the Missoula County property tax bill compare with local incomes?

The median property tax bill of $4,150 is about 4.1% of the median income of Missoula County homeowner households, $100,216 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 58.8% of Missoula County's occupied homes are lived in by their owners; renters pay property tax too, just folded into rent.

Have property taxes gone up in Missoula County?

Yes. The median bill went from $2,824 in 2015-2019 to $4,150 in 2020-2024, a 47% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 66.2%, from $284,000 to $472,100. Bills rose more slowly than values, which is what assessment caps and falling millage rates do: the county is taxing a smaller share of each home's worth.

Two Census ACS 5-year periods with no survey years in common, in each period's own dollars. A change counts only if it exceeds the combined 90% margin of error.

Property tax in counties next to Missoula County

Missoula County borders 9 counties, 2 of them across the state line.

Missoula County and its neighbors, highest effective rate first (Census ACS 2020-2024)
County	Effective rate	Median bill	Median home value
Missoula County, MT (this county)	0.88%	$4,150	$472,100
Powell County, MT	0.69%	$2,104	$306,500
Lake County, MT	0.61%	$2,561	$421,800
Granite County, MT	0.6%	$2,130	$352,700
Flathead County, MT	0.58%	$3,120	$535,500
Clearwater County, ID	0.54%	$1,443	$268,200
Sanders County, MT	0.53%	$1,889	$359,000
Ravalli County, MT	0.5%	$2,380	$476,600
Mineral County, MT	0.48%	$1,758	$364,300
Idaho County, ID	0.32%	$995	$310,200

How is a home assessed in Missoula County?

Montana sets the assessment rules and Missoula County applies them. How Montana assesses and reappraises homes.

Is there a homestead exemption in Missoula County?

Not as a dollar amount. Montana's homestead benefit is a lower tax rate for an enrolled principal residence; a home that does not enroll is taxed at the flat 1.9% rate. That is the Montana rule, and it applies in Missoula County. Montana's exemptions and relief programs in full.

When are property taxes due in Missoula County?

Montana bills once and you pay in two halves. The first half is due by 5 p.m. on November 30, or 30 days after the notice is mailed if that falls later, and the second by 5 p.m. on May 31. Anything unpaid after May 31 is delinquent, picks up a 2% penalty and accrues interest monthly. Owners of a primary residence can instead enroll in an alternative schedule spreading the bill over seven monthly payments from November through May.

Montana splits the bill into 2 installments. That is the Montana rule. Missoula County issues and collects the bill, so the dates printed on your statement are the ones that bind you.

How to appeal your Missoula County property assessment

You contest the assessed value with the County Tax Appeal Board, then the Montana Tax Appeal Board, then district court. The filing deadline is typically 30 days from the date on your classification and appraisal notice. That is the Montana rule; Missoula County sets the exact dates and forms. The Montana appeal process step by step.

Montana rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Montana page.

Work out your own numbers

Sources

Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Missoula County, Montana: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020-2024), tables B25103, B25077, B25102, B25119 and B25003; the five-year comparison uses the 2015-2019 estimates. Neighboring counties: Census county adjacency file.