Sales tax in Hamilton County, Tennessee

Updated

The sales tax rate in Hamilton County, Tennessee is 9.25%. That is a 7% state rate plus a 2.25% county rate, and it is the same at every address in the county. That rate was read from Tennessee's own published schedule and checked on September 9, 2026.

What is the sales tax rate in Hamilton County?

Sales tax rate components in Hamilton County, Tennessee
Tennessee state rate7%
Hamilton County rate2.25%
Combined rate9.25%

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

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

Sales tax rate by city in Hamilton County, Tennessee
CityOctober 1, 2026 onward
Chattanooga9.25%
Collegedale9.25%
East Ridge9.25%
Lakesite9.25%
Lookout Mountain9.25%
Red Bank9.25%
Ridgeside9.25%
Signal Mountain9.25%
Soddy-Daisy9.25%
Walden9.25%
Unincorporated Hamilton County9.25%

Source: Tennessee rate file for October 1, 2026 onward, from Tennessee's official rate page.

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

At 9.25%, a $100 purchase carries $9.25 in sales tax and a $1,000 purchase $92.50. That is general merchandise; Tennessee taxes some categories, often groceries, differently, as the note below explains.

Among Tennessee's 95 counties, Hamilton County's rate ranks 68th highest, level with 21 other counties. See every Tennessee county.

Sales tax in counties next to Hamilton County

Hamilton County borders 10 counties, 4 of them in another state. The lowest rate next door is 7% in Catoosa County, GA, which is $22.50 less on a $1,000 purchase than Hamilton County's rate.

Hamilton County and its neighbors, highest rate first
CountyCombined sales tax
Bradley County, TN9.75%
Marion County, TN9.75%
Rhea County, TN9.75%
Bledsoe County, TN9.25%
Sequatchie County, TN9.25% to 9.75%
Hamilton County, TN (this county)9.25%
Meigs County, TN9%
Walker County, GA8%
Catoosa County, GA7%
Dade County, GA7%
Whitfield County, GA7%

Why the rate here is not the whole story

Tennessee taxes general merchandise at a state rate of 7 percent and Hamilton County levies the local option sales and use tax at 2.25 percent, so the rate in the unincorporated county is 9.25 percent. Any incorporated city may levy the same tax by ordinance up to the statewide local cap of 2.75 percent, and a city rate replaces the county rate inside the city limits instead of stacking on it, but every other jurisdiction the Department lists inside the county is at 2.25 percent today, so 9.25 percent applies at every address. Food and food ingredients are taxed at a reduced state rate of 4 percent instead of 7 percent, with the same local rate on top, so the figures here are the general merchandise rate. The local part of the tax applies only to the first $1,600 of the price of a single article of tangible personal property, and a separate state single article tax of 2.75 percent applies to the part of the price between $1,600 and $3,200.

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

Use Tennessee's own address lookup.

Who has to collect sales tax in Hamilton County?

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

Work out your own numbers

Sources