Sales tax in Carter County, Missouri
There is no single sales tax rate in Carter County. It runs from 5.725% to 9.225% depending on the exact address, because cities and special districts inside the county levy their own on top of the 4.225% state rate. The 4.225% state rate applies everywhere in the county; everything above that depends on where you are standing. These rates were read from Missouri's own published schedule and checked on October 1, 2026. The rate in each of the 5 cities is in the table below.
What is the sales tax rate in Carter County?
| Missouri state rate | 4.225% |
|---|---|
| Carter County rate | 1.5% |
| Lowest combined rate in the county | 5.725% |
| Highest combined rate in the county | 9.225% |
The combined figures are the lowest and highest totals anywhere in Carter County, so the rows above do not add up to them.
What is the sales tax rate in each city in Carter County?
Missouri publishes the rate for every city it taxes. These are the combined rates, state and local together, as listed in Missouri's own rate file. Where a city shows a range, a special district covers only part of it, so the rate depends on the exact address.
| City | October 1 to December 31, 2026 |
|---|---|
| EllsinoreEllsinore has two rates: 7.225% and 8.225%. The higher rate applies inside a community improvement district (CID), for example Leerjak CID. | 7.225% to 8.225% |
| Fremont | 6.225% |
| Grandin | 7.225% |
| Hunter | 5.725% |
| Van BurenVan Buren has two rates: 8.225% and 9.225%. The higher rate applies inside a community improvement district (CID), for example Black Mountain CID and Landing River Center CID. | 8.225% to 9.225% |
| Unincorporated Carter CountyRates in the unincorporated part of Carter County run from 5.725% to 7.225%. Addresses inside an ambulance district or community improvement district (CID) pay more, and the highest rate applies where both overlap, for example Landing River Center CID and West Carter County Ambulance District. | 5.725% to 7.225% |
Source: Missouri rate file for October 1 to December 31, 2026, from Missouri's official rate page.
How much sales tax is that on a purchase in Carter County?
At 5.725%, a $100 purchase carries $5.73 in sales tax and a $1,000 purchase $57.25, at the lowest rate in the county. At the highest, 9.225%, the same purchases carry $9.23 and $92.25. That is general merchandise; Missouri taxes some categories, often groceries, differently, as the note below explains.
Among Missouri's 115 counties, Carter County's lowest rate ranks 92nd highest, level with 11 other counties. See every Missouri county.
Sales tax in counties next to Carter County
Carter County borders 6 counties. The lowest rate next door is 5.475% in Butler County, MO, which is $2.50 less on a $1,000 purchase than the lowest rate in Carter County.
| County | Combined sales tax |
|---|---|
| Oregon County, MO | 6.725% to 9.725% |
| Wayne County, MO | 5.975% to 8.975% |
| Reynolds County, MO | 5.725% to 8.225% |
| Ripley County, MO | 5.725% to 8.225% |
| Shannon County, MO | 5.725% to 9.225% |
| Carter County, MO (this county) | 5.725% to 9.225% |
| Butler County, MO | 5.475% to 8.975% |
Why the rate here is not the whole story
Missouri charges 4.225 percent statewide and then stacks a county rate, city rates and special district rates whose boundaries do not follow county lines, so a single rate for the whole county does not exist. The county itself levies 1.5 percent countywide. The floor of 5.725 percent is state plus county in unincorporated areas with no city and no district. The ceiling of 9.225 percent is at Van Buren, on top of Black Mountain CID and West Carter County Ambulance District. That ceiling comes from a community improvement district, which in Missouri can cover a single shopping center or one development rather than a whole city, so most addresses pay less. Missouri's address level rate map is required by RSMo 32.310 and is operated for the Department of Revenue on a vendor domain, which is the map dor.mo.gov itself links.
How do I find the exact rate for an address in Carter County?
Use Missouri's own address lookup, which the state designates and an outside provider runs for it. In Carter County the rate depends on the address, anywhere from 5.725% to 9.225%.
Who has to collect sales tax in Carter County?
Any seller with a physical presence in Missouri collects at the rate for the address of the sale; a remote seller does once it passes Missouri's economic nexus threshold. Missouri sales tax covers the statewide rules and what is exempt.
Work out your own numbers
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Sales tax calculator
Tax on a specific purchase at this county's rate, and the total you will actually pay.
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Do you have to collect?
Whether your sales into Missouri cross its economic nexus threshold. A different question from the rate.
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Property tax in Carter County
The other local tax: effective rate and median bill for this county.
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Sales tax by county
Every US county, and how Missouri compares with the rest of the country.
Sources
- Carter County rates: Missouri Department of Revenue, Sales and Use Tax Rate Tables for October, November, December 2026 (fourth quarter 2026, updated 8/25/2026), https://dor.mo.gov/pdf/rates/2026/october2026.xlsx, read together with the DOR Jurisdiction and Total Rate Database Q4 2026 and the DOR Rate Database Q4 2026, https://dor.mo.gov/taxation/business/tax-types/sales-use/documents/dor-rate-database-q4-2026.xlsx
- Collected and verified October 1, 2026. Confidence: P on the rate components, P on the range (P read on a primary agency page, S strong but indirect, U unverified).