When Is Your State’s Tax-Free Weekend?
Written by
Sabah Karimi
Edited by
Nupur Gambhir
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A tax-free weekend is a short period when states temporarily suspend sales tax on specific items, allowing shoppers to buy essentials without paying state or local sales tax. These tax holidays are designed to help consumers save money on common purchases — like school supplies, clothing, computers, or emergency preparedness items — while also encouraging seasonal spending.
Because the dates, eligible items, and price limits vary by state, knowing when tax-free weekends happen in 2026 can help you plan purchases and maximize your savings.
What Is Tax-Free Weekend and How Does It Work?
A tax-free weekend works exactly like it sounds. Certain items that are normally taxed in a particular state become tax-free for that specified time only. The purpose of the tax holiday is both to incentivize spending and to provide some relief to consumers for items they need.
When Is Tax-Free Weekend in 2026?
Tax-free weekends vary by state — and by purpose. Many states offer back-to-school tax holidays, typically held in July or August before the school year begins. During these weekends, shoppers can buy items like school supplies, qualifying clothing, and sometimes computers without paying sales tax.
Some states also designate tax-free periods for hurricane preparedness, allowing residents to purchase items such as generators, batteries, and emergency supplies tax-free. Others offer Energy Star tax holidays, during which energy-efficient appliances and products are exempt from sales tax. These events usually take place ahead of or during hurricane season, giving households a chance to prepare — ideally before severe weather hits.
Back-to-School Tax-Free Days
Back-to-school tax-free days typically occur in the late summer and offer parents a break on items like computers, books, and other school supplies. A few examples of back-to-school tax-free days include:
- Missouri, Aug. 7-9: Computers priced at $1,500 or less, school supplies up to $50 per purchase, graphing calculators priced at $150 or less, and computer software priced at $350 or less
- Texas, Aug. 7-9: School supplies up to $100
Weather Preparedness Tax-Free Days
Weather preparedness tax-free days obviously only apply to states where these major storms are an annual occurrence. Holidays are enacted to allow residents to prepare for upcoming storms and usually go into effect sometime during the summer months. Here is an example of a state with weather preparedness tax-free days:
- Alabama Feb. 20-22: Severe weather preparedness items include generators and power cords. The exemption applies to items priced at $94 or less per item and generators priced at $1,564 or less.
Which States Have Tax-Free Weekends in 2026?
It pays to know whether your state offers tax-free shopping days and no-tax weekends you can plan around to save money on your purchases this year. You may be wondering, “When is the tax-free weekend in my state?” Check out this list of tax-free days that either happen annually or have already been announced for 2024:
| State | Tax-Free Days in 2026 | What’s Included |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | – Feb. 20-22 – July 17-19 |
– Severe weather preparedness items and generators; $94 or less per item, $1,564 or less for generators – Clothing, computers and school supplies (Varies from $47 – $1,173 or less) |
| Arkansas | – Aug. 7-9 | – Articles of clothing or footwear under $100 – Cosmetics – Select school supplies |
| Connecticut | -Typically in August | – Articles of clothing or footwear under $100 |
| Florida |
– August 1-31 |
-Computers, school supplies, and clothing – Amount varies depending on the item but typically ($30 – $1,500 or less) |
| Iowa | – Aug. 7-8 | – Articles of clothing or footwear under $100 |
| Maryland | -Typically in February -August 9-15 |
– Solar water heaters and Energy Star products, including air-conditioners, washers, dryers, heat pumps, and energy-friendly lighting – Articles of clothing or footwear priced at $100 or less – $40 or less for backpacks |
| Massachusetts | Aug. 9-10 | -Retail items for personal use for $2,500 or less per item |
| Mississippi | -Typically in July -Typically in August |
– Articles of clothing or footwear under $100 – Firearms, ammunition and hunting supplies |
| Missouri | – April 19-25 – Aug. 7-9 |
– Energy Star products, up to $1,000 per item – Articles of clothing and footwear priced at $100 or less – Computers priced at $1,500 or less – School supplies, up to $50 per purchase – Graphing calculators priced at $150 or less – Computer software priced at $350 or less |
| New Mexico | -Typically July | – Articles of clothing or footwear under $100 – Computers priced at $1,000 or less; computer equipment priced at $500 or less – School supplies under $30 |
| Ohio | -Aug. 7-9 | -Retail items under $500 or less |
| Oklahoma | – Aug. 7-9 | – Articles of clothing or footwear under $100 |
| South Carolina | – Aug. 7-9 | – Articles of clothing, accessories, footwear, computers, school supplies and select bedding |
| Tennessee | – July 31-Aug. 2 | – Articles of clothing priced at $100 or less – School supplies priced at $100 or less – Computers priced at $1,500 or less |
| Texas | – April 27-29 – May 23-25 – Aug. 7-9 |
– Portable generators priced at less than $3,000 an item – Ladders and hurricane shutters priced at less than $300 an item – Other emergency supplies priced at less than $75 an item – Energy Star products – Articles of clothing, footwear, school supplies and backpacks under $100 |
| Virginia | -Aug. 7-9 | – School supplies, weather preparedness supplies, Energy Star products, and WaterSense Products |
| West Virginia | -Aug. 7-10 | – Clothing, computers, school supplies, sports equipment – Varies depending on item $20 to $500 |
Additional tax-free weekends might be announced throughout the year.
States Without Tax-Free Days in 2026
Although many states have tax-free days to help you save a little money on seasonal items, there are some states that don’t offer a tax-free week or tax-free shopping day. But Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon are all states with no sales tax at all, so you don’t have to wait for a tax-free holiday to shop there. Alaska also does not have a state sales tax, but local sales taxes might apply in some jurisdictions.
Here’s a list of states that have either not yet announced a tax-free weekend or holiday for 2026 or don’t anticipate having one at all:
- Alaska
- Arizona
- California
- Colorado
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Jersey
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Utah
- Vermont
- Washington
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Additional Ways To Save During Tax-Free Weekends
Some individuals might itemize sales tax deductions on their tax return or take a tax exemption to reduce their taxable income, but even if you’re not one of them, you can offset your costs by shopping during a tax-free day or weekend in your state — or a neighboring one. Tax-free weekends may also apply to items sold online, so you can shop tax-free in the applicable states on sites like Amazon. You can save even more by looking out for tax-free weekend deals on coupon sites.
John Csiszar and Chris Ozarowski contributed to the reporting for this article.
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