Property Tax Calculator: Estimate Your Yearly Bill

This property tax calculator gives you a quick estimate of what you may owe each year and each month. It follows the same basic steps most local governments use: value the home, apply the assessment ratio, subtract exemptions, then apply the tax rate. Use it to plan a budget, check an escrow payment or compare homes before you buy.

How to use this calculator

1. Home market value. Your yearly assessment notice usually shows the assessor’s market value. If you are still shopping, use the asking price or a recent sale price as a rough stand-in.
2. Assessment ratio. This is the share of market value your area taxes. Many places use 100%. Others assess at a fixed fraction. Your notice, or your county assessor’s website, should state the ratio or “level of assessment.”
3. Exemptions. Enter the total dollar amount taken off your assessed value, such as a homestead, senior or veteran exemption. Your tax bill often lists each one. Enter $0 if you have none.
4. Rate type and rate. Your tax bill lists the rate for each taxing unit, such as the county, city, school district and special districts. Add them up. If the bill shows mills, pick “Mills”; if it shows a percent, pick “Percent.”
5. Read the result. You will see the yearly tax, a monthly share, your assessed and taxable values, and your effective rate.

How this calculator works

The calculator multiplies market value by your assessment ratio to get assessed value. It subtracts exemptions to get taxable value, and never lets that drop below zero. Then it applies your rate. A percent is divided by 100. Mills are divided by 1,000, because one mill is $1 of tax per $1,000 of value.

Assessed value = Market value × Assessment ratio
Taxable value  = Assessed value − Exemptions (not below $0)
Annual tax     = Taxable value × Rate ÷ 100     (percent)
Annual tax     = Taxable value × Mills ÷ 1,000  (mills)
Monthly amount = Annual tax ÷ 12
Effective rate = Annual tax ÷ Market value × 100

What it assumes:

• The default inputs ($350,000 home, 100% ratio, no exemption, 1.1% rate) are hypothetical examples, not averages for any place.
• One combined rate applies to the whole taxable value. In real life, an exemption may apply to some taxes but not others.
• Special assessments, flat fees, penalties, early-payment discounts and installment plans are ignored.
• The monthly amount is the yearly tax divided by 12. It is not your escrow payment, which can include a cushion.

Worked examples

Example 1: the default inputs

Hypothetical example: a home with a market value of $350,000 in a place that assesses at 100%, no exemption, and a combined rate of 1.1%.

1. Assessed value: $350,000 × 100% = $350,000
2. Taxable value: $350,000 − $0 = $350,000
3. Annual tax: $350,000 × 1.1 ÷ 100 = $3,850
4. Monthly amount: $3,850 ÷ 12 = $320.83
5. Effective rate: $3,850 ÷ $350,000 = 1.1%

Example 2: a millage rate and an exemption

Hypothetical example: a $300,000 home assessed at 100%, a $50,000 exemption, and a combined rate of 20 mills.

1. Assessed value: $300,000 × 100% = $300,000
2. Taxable value: $300,000 − $50,000 = $250,000
3. Annual tax: $250,000 × 20 ÷ 1,000 = $5,000
4. Monthly amount: $5,000 ÷ 12 = $416.67
5. Effective rate: $5,000 ÷ $300,000 = 1.67%

The stated rate is 20 mills (2%), but the exemption brings the effective rate down to about 1.67%.

What your result means

The yearly figure is what you would owe if your value, exemptions and rates stay as entered. The monthly figure is useful for budgeting or for checking whether your mortgage escrow collects enough. The effective rate lets you compare homes in different places on equal terms, because it is measured against full market value.

If the estimate is far above your current bill, check whether you missed an exemption or used the wrong ratio. If it is far below, you may have left out a taxing unit.

Rules that change the answer

• Fractional assessments. New York explains that if a city assesses at 27% of market value, a $100,000 home is assessed at $27,000 (New York State Department of Taxation and Finance). Using 100% there would overstate your tax.
• Exemptions that apply to only some taxes. Texas school districts must exempt $140,000 of a homestead’s value, but that amount comes off school taxes only (Texas Comptroller). Run the school rate and other rates separately for a closer estimate.
• Assessment caps. California generally limits yearly growth in assessed value to 2% until a sale or new construction (California State Board of Equalization). A buyer’s assessed value may reset to the purchase price, so the seller’s bill is a poor guide. See the assessment cap calculator.
• Rates change yearly. Local governments set rates when they adopt budgets. Florida’s millage guide explains how each taxing authority sets its own rate (Florida Department of Revenue).

Common mistakes

• Entering only the county rate and forgetting school, city or special district rates.
• Choosing “Percent” when the bill lists mills (or the reverse). Twenty mills entered as 20% makes the tax ten times too high.
• Using the seller’s tax bill when buying a home in a state where assessments reset on sale.
• Entering an exemption as a percent. This field takes a dollar amount.
• Treating the monthly figure as your exact escrow payment.

Limits and when to get help

This tool cannot look up your home’s value, your county’s rate or the exemptions you qualify for. Every state sets its own rules, and some taxes use different bases or rates. For your real numbers, check your assessment notice and tax bill, or call your county assessor or tax collector.

If you think your assessed value is too high, read our guide on how to appeal a property tax assessment and try the property tax appeal calculator. To see what an exemption could save, use the homestead exemption calculator. For the bigger picture, read how property taxes work. For questions about deducting property tax on your federal return, talk to a tax professional.