Property tax in Shelby County, Tennessee
In Shelby County, the property tax bill comes from the Shelby County Trustee. The 2026 bill is due February 28, 2027. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Shelby County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Shelby County, Tennessee is $2,429 a year, which is about 0.98% of the county's median home value of $249,100. That effective rate is higher than the typical Tennessee county (0.47%) 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.
Who sends the property tax bill in Shelby County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Shelby County Trustee. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Shelby County Assessor of Property, which is who to ask if the value looks wrong. For how to look up and pay the bill, go to the county's own payment information.
Most Shelby County homeowners get more than one property tax bill. The Trustee's bill covers county taxes, and the Trustee also bills and collects the city taxes of Arlington, Lakeland and Millington. Memphis, Bartlett, Collierville and Germantown send their own city tax bills on their own schedules; Memphis city taxes, for example, are delinquent after August 31, and the Memphis tax freeze and relief deadline (October 6, 2026) is earlier than the county's. County tax relief and freeze applications must be postmarked by April 5, 2027 for the 2026 tax. Online payments go through the Trustee's payment portal, with a fee for card and e-check payments.
When are property taxes due in Shelby County?
For the 2026 bill, Shelby County has one due date: February 28, 2027. County taxes are due and payable from the first Monday in October (October 5, 2026) and can be paid without interest through the last day of February 2027. Partial payments are accepted, and there is no interest as long as the full tax is paid by the deadline. Mailed payments must be postmarked on or before the last day of February. February 28, 2027 is a Sunday. State law adds interest on March 1 and makes no exception for a weekend, and the county has not said whether a payment on Monday, March 1 counts as on time, so pay by Friday, February 26, 2027, or mail early enough to be postmarked by Saturday, February 27. The Trustee's ManagedPay option lets you set your own monthly payment schedule, but it does not stop interest or legal fees on any amount still unpaid after the deadline. Taxes unpaid after the last day of February become delinquent on March 1. Interest of 1.5% of the base tax is added on March 1 and on the first day of each month after that until the tax is paid in full.
From Shelby County's published schedule, checked September 23, 2026. If a date falls on a weekend or holiday, the county's own rules on the next business day apply.
Estimate the property tax on a home in Shelby County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Shelby County's average effective rate of 0.98% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $2,441 / year
Property tax in Shelby County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $2,429 |
| Median home value | $249,100 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.98% |
| Typical Tennessee county rate | 0.47% |
| 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 Shelby County compare in Tennessee?
Among Tennessee's 95 counties, Shelby County has the highest effective property-tax rate. That places it among the most heavily taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 1188th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Tennessee county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Shelby County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Shelby County's 196,379 owner-occupied homes, 37.9% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 55% pay at least $2,000, and 11.2% pay under $800. Another 4.7% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 22,068 | 11.2% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 35,594 | 18.1% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 21,500 | 10.9% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 33,675 | 17.1% |
| $3,000 or more | 74,378 | 37.9% |
| No property tax paid | 9,164 | 4.7% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $2,614 and owners without one pay $2,029. Owners who have paid off a home have usually held it longer, and in states that cap how fast an existing owner's assessment can rise, long-held homes carry lower assessed values. Census table B25103.
How does the Shelby County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $2,429 is about 2.7% of the median income of Shelby County homeowner households, $91,584 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 54.1% of Shelby 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 Shelby County?
Yes. The median bill went from $2,064 in 2015-2019 to $2,429 in 2020-2024, a 17.7% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 65.6%, from $150,400 to $249,100. 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 Shelby County
Shelby County borders 6 counties, 4 of them across the state line.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shelby County, TN (this county) | 0.98% | $2,429 | $249,100 |
| Marshall County, MS | 0.72% | $1,213 | $167,900 |
| Crittenden County, AR | 0.62% | $987 | $160,200 |
| DeSoto County, MS | 0.6% | $1,613 | $269,600 |
| Mississippi County, AR | 0.52% | $635 | $122,500 |
| Tipton County, TN | 0.5% | $1,211 | $240,600 |
| Fayette County, TN | 0.33% | $1,140 | $340,800 |
How is a home assessed in Shelby County?
Tennessee assesses homes at 25% of market value in every county, Shelby County included. How Tennessee assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Shelby County?
No. Tennessee has no general homestead exemption; relief comes through the state Tax Relief program and the local-option Tax Freeze. That is the Tennessee rule, and it applies in Shelby County. Tennessee's exemptions and relief programs in full.
On top of the Tennessee programs, Shelby County runs its own:
- Shelby County Property Tax Freeze: A state-authorized local option Shelby County adopted in 2008: if at least one owner is 65 or older by December 31, 2026 and the combined 2025 income of the applicant, a spouse and everyone on the deed was $63,470 or less, the county tax on the primary residence (mobile homes included) is frozen at the qualifying year's amount; the freeze covers only governments that adopted it, and Germantown is not one of them. Apply by April 5, 2027.
How to appeal your Shelby County property assessment
In Shelby County you appeal to the Shelby County Board of Equalization. The deadline: For tax year 2026 the Shelby County Board of Equalization accepted appeals from May 1 through June 30, 2026, and that window has closed; an owner who misses it may lose all rights of appeal for that year. The filing window opens each May. An informal review with the Assessor can be requested at any time. A county board decision can be appealed to the Tennessee State Board of Equalization by August 1 of the tax year or within 45 days of the date the county board's notice was sent, whichever is later. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Tennessee's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Tennessee rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Tennessee page.
Work out your own numbers
-
How much house can I afford?
Your income, debts and down payment against the 28/36 rule lenders actually use, with Shelby County's tax rate to hand.
-
Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment with principal, interest, tax and insurance, plus what an extra payment saves you.
-
Tennessee income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Tennessee actually taxes.
-
Sales tax in Shelby County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Shelby County, Tennessee: 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.