Sales tax in Steele County, Minnesota

Updated

There is no single sales tax rate in Steele County. It runs from 7.375% to 7.875% 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 4 cities is in the table below.

What is the sales tax rate in Steele County?

Sales tax rate components in Steele County, Minnesota
Minnesota state rate6.875%
Steele County rate0.5%
Lowest combined rate in the county7.375%
Highest combined rate in the county7.875%

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

What is the sales tax rate in each city in Steele 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 Steele County, Minnesota
CityOctober 1 to December 31, 2026
Blooming PrairieThe Department marks Blooming Prairie as a place that may fall within more than one taxing area; this is the rate it prints for Blooming Prairie under Steele County.7.375%
Ellendale7.375%
Medford7.875%
Owatonna7.375%
Unincorporated Steele County7.375%

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 Steele County?

At 7.375%, a $100 purchase carries $7.38 in sales tax and a $1,000 purchase $73.75, at the lowest rate in the county. At the highest, 7.875%, the same purchases carry $7.88 and $78.75. That is general merchandise; Minnesota taxes some categories, often groceries, differently, as the note below explains.

Among Minnesota's 87 counties, Steele County's lowest rate ranks 15th highest, level with 48 other counties. See every Minnesota county.

Sales tax in counties next to Steele County

Steele County borders 5 counties.

Steele County and its neighbors, highest rate first
CountyCombined sales tax
Dodge County, MN7.375%
Freeborn County, MN7.375%
Mower County, MN7.375% to 7.875%
Rice County, MN7.375%
Waseca County, MN7.375%
Steele County, MN (this county)7.375% to 7.875%

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. Steele County itself levies a 0.5 percent Steele Transit sales tax, which reaches every address in the county. Medford adds a city tax of its own on top, which is why the rate reaches 7.875 percent there and sits at 7.375 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 Steele County?

Use Minnesota's own address lookup. In Steele County the rate depends on the address, anywhere from 7.375% to 7.875%.

Who has to collect sales tax in Steele 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