Sales tax in Dakota County, Minnesota

Updated

There is no single sales tax rate in Dakota County. It runs from 8.125% to 8.625% depending on the exact address, because cities and special districts inside the county levy their own on top of the 6.875% state rate. The 6.875% state rate applies everywhere in the county; everything above that depends on where you are standing. These rates were read from Minnesota's own published schedule and checked on September 9, 2026. The rate in each of the 22 cities is in the table below.

What is the sales tax rate in Dakota County?

Sales tax rate components in Dakota County, Minnesota
Minnesota state rate6.875%
Dakota County rate0.25%
Lowest combined rate in the county8.125%
Highest combined rate in the county8.625%

The combined figures are the lowest and highest totals anywhere in Dakota County, so the rows above do not add up to them.

What is the sales tax rate in each city in Dakota County?

Minnesota publishes the rate for every city it taxes. These are the combined rates, state and local together, as listed in Minnesota's own rate file.

Sales tax rate by city in Dakota County, Minnesota
CityOctober 1 to December 31, 2026
Apple Valley8.125%
Burnsville8.125%
Coates8.125%
Eagan8.125%
Empire8.125%
Farmington8.125%
Hampton8.125%
HastingsThe Department marks Hastings as a place that may fall within more than one taxing area; this is the rate it prints for Hastings under Dakota County.8.125%
Inver Grove Heights8.125%
Lakeville8.125%
Lilydale8.125%
Mendota8.125%
Mendota Heights8.125%
Miesville8.125%
New Trier8.125%
NorthfieldThe Department marks Northfield as a place that may fall within more than one taxing area; this is the rate it prints for Northfield under Dakota County.8.125%
Randolph8.125%
Rosemount8.125%
South St Paul8.125%
Sunfish Lake8.125%
Vermillion8.125%
West St Paul8.625%
Unincorporated Dakota County8.125%

Source: Minnesota rate file for October 1 to December 31, 2026, from Minnesota's official rate page.

How much sales tax is that on a purchase in Dakota County?

At 8.125%, a $100 purchase carries $8.13 in sales tax and a $1,000 purchase $81.25, at the lowest rate in the county. At the highest, 8.625%, the same purchases carry $8.63 and $86.25. That is general merchandise; Minnesota taxes some categories, often groceries, differently, as the note below explains.

Among Minnesota's 87 counties, Dakota County's lowest rate ranks 7th highest, level with 1 other county. See every Minnesota county.

Sales tax in counties next to Dakota County

Dakota County borders 7 counties, 1 of them in another state. The lowest rate next door is 5.5% in Pierce County, WI, which is $26.25 less on a $1,000 purchase than the lowest rate in Dakota County.

Dakota County and its neighbors, highest rate first
CountyCombined sales tax
Hennepin County, MN8.525% to 9.775%
Ramsey County, MN8.375% to 9.875%
Scott County, MN8.375%
Washington County, MN8.375% to 8.875%
Dakota County, MN (this county)8.125% to 8.625%
Goodhue County, MN7.375%
Rice County, MN7.375%
Pierce County, WI5.5%

Why the rate here is not the whole story

Minnesota's state rate is 6.875 percent and local sales taxes are not automatic. A city or a county has to get specific authority from the Legislature and then win a local referendum, so the local layer is assembled one jurisdiction at a time and the county line is frequently not the tax boundary. Dakota County itself levies a 0.25 percent Dakota Transit sales tax, which reaches every address in the county. Two regional taxes also apply at every address in the seven county Twin Cities area, the Metro Area Transportation tax at 0.75 percent and the Metro Area Tax for Housing at 0.25 percent. They are levied across the region rather than by the state or by any one county, so they are not part of the state or county rate, but they are included in the combined rate shown here. West St Paul adds a city tax of its own on top, which is why the rate reaches 8.625 percent there and sits at 8.125 percent elsewhere in the county. Clothing is exempt from Minnesota sales tax at every rate shown here, which is unusual among states and changes none of the rates. Use the department's Sales Tax Rate Calculator for a specific address rather than a single county figure.

How do I find the exact rate for an address in Dakota County?

Use Minnesota's own address lookup. In Dakota County the rate depends on the address, anywhere from 8.125% to 8.625%.

Who has to collect sales tax in Dakota County?

Any seller with a physical presence in Minnesota collects at the rate for the address of the sale; a remote seller does once it passes Minnesota's economic nexus threshold. Minnesota sales tax covers the statewide rules and what is exempt.

Work out your own numbers

Sources