Where Georgia Tax Rate Ranks Among States

ATLANTA, GA — With income tax season in full swing, it might help to know that Georgia's tax rates puts it in the middle of the pack among the 50 states and Washington, D.C., according to a recent study. The median Georgia household pays about $100 more than the average U.S. household, which pays more than $5,700 in federal income taxes, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And while we’re all faced with that same tax burden, there is significant difference when it comes to state and local taxes.

Georgia came in at 23rd place in taxes among all U.S. states, says the study by personal finance website WalletHub. The most costly state was Illinois. When adjusted for the cost of living, Georgia compares much better, ranking 14th among the states. Connecticut, Nebraska, New York and Rhode Island follow Illinois as the highest taxed states, while Alaska, Delaware and Montana took the top three spots for lowest taxes.

Neighboring Florida ranked 9th lowest, Tennessee ranked 6th, South Carolina placed 10th and Alabama was 14th.

WalletHub compared state and local tax rates in the 50 states and the District of Columbia against national medians to come up with its ranking.

The authors broke the study down into five categories defining taxation impacts (and Georgia's data in these categories):

• Effective total state and local tax rates on median U.S. household: 10.54 percent
• Annual state and local taxes on median U.S. household: $5,876
• Percent difference between state and U.S. average: Minus 2.06 percent
• Annual state and local taxes on median state household: $5,237
• Adjusted overall rank (based on cost of living index): 14

The study also found that red states generally impose lower taxes than blue states. Red states' average position on the ranking as 24.8, while blue states' average position was 27.71.

SEE ALSO:

• 2018 Income Tax Season: Filing Under Way

See the interactive map below:

See WalletHub's research methodology here, pulled from their website:

1. Real-Estate Tax: We first divided the "Median Real-Estate Tax Amount Paid" by the "Median Home Price" in each state. We then applied the resulting rates to a house worth $184,700, the median value for a home in the U.S., in order to obtain the dollar amount paid as real-estate tax per household.
2. Vehicle Property Tax: We examined data for cities and counties collectively accounting for at least 50 percent of the state's population and extrapolated this to the state level using weighted averages based on population size. For each state, we assumed all residents own the same car: a Toyota Camry LE four-door sedan, 2017's highest-selling car, valued at $24,000, as of March 2018.
3. Income Tax: We used the percentage of income (middle income rate) spent on income tax from WalletHub's Best States to Be Rich or Poor from a Tax Perspectivereport. "Income" refers to the mean third quintile U.S. income amount of $55,754.
4. Sales & Excise Tax: We used the percentage of income (middle income rate) spent on sales and excise taxes from WalletHub's Best States to Be Rich or Poor from a Tax Perspective report. "Income" refers to the mean third quintile U.S. income amount of $55,754.

Image via Shutterstock