Binders and pens and more, oh my! Those are just some of the school supplies that are tax-free during Texas’ August sales tax holiday. Lone Star State and 12 others are offering no-tax bargains on selected products this month. Nine of the tax-free back-to-school shopping events are on the month’s first weekend. (Photo by Kay Bell)
The entry sign to my neighborhood lets us residents know that classes will be back in session in a couple of weeks.
It’s meant as a reminder that our streets soon will be busier. School buses will be on the roads. Youngsters will take over the sidewalks, bicycling or walking to the local elementary school, with cautious parents in cars following their semi-independent children’s comings and goings.
The notice also is a cue to get back-to-school shopping lists ready, especially if you live in one of the 13 states that’s holding a sales tax holiday in August.
Yes, Texas is one of them, but we are not first up on the calendar. Nine other states beat Lone Star State shoppers to the punch with sales tax holidays the first weekend of August.
The table below shows the coming August sales holidays. The states are listed alphabetically, and the link dates and qualifying items will take you to state tax department websites for more information about the tax-exempt events.
|
August 2025 State Sales Taxes Holidays | ||
|
State & Sales Tax Rate |
Holiday Days |
Tax-Free Products |
Arkansas 6.5% | Saturday, Aug. 2 | Clothing $100 or less |
Connecticut 6.35% | Sunday, Aug. 17 | Clothing and footwear $100 or less |
Florida 6% | Friday, Aug. 1 | Clothing $100 or less |
Iowa 6% | Friday, Aug. 1 | Clothing and footwear priced at less than $100; list of tax-exempt items is on page 2 of Iowa Sales Tax Holiday Alphabetical List of Representative Items |
Maryland 6% | Sunday, Aug. 10 | Clothing and footwear $100 or less |
Massachusetts 6.25% | Saturday, Aug. 9 | Almost every personal item |
Missouri 4.225% | Friday, Aug. 1 | Clothing $100 or less |
Ohio 5.75% | Friday, Aug. 1 | Most tangible personal property costing $500 or less. Some examples of tangible personal property include, but are not limited to electronics, clothes, home goods, school and office supplies, sports equipment, luggage, and musical instruments. |
Oklahoma 4.5% | Friday, Aug. 1 | Clothing, footwear $100 or less |
South Carolina 6% | Friday, Aug. 1 | No purchase price limit |
Texas 6.25% | Friday, Aug. 8 | Clothing, footwear, backpacks |
Virginia 5.3%* | Friday, Aug. 1 | School supplies $20 or less. |
West Virginia 6% | Friday, Aug. 1 | Clothing, footwear $125 or less. |
Shop wisely: While shoppers love tax holidays (who doesn’t want to get the best of the tax collector, especially legally?), the word tax is a dead giveaway that the events might not be that simple.
As with tax filing, dates matter. While an event might be advertised as a weekend tax holiday, it could be in effect on just Saturday and Sunday, or Friday could make it a long weekend. Or Friday and Saturday if your state discourages shopping on what is the sabbath for many. Make sure you know when the holiday applies.
Checking the tax holiday calendar is the first of 6 shopping tips to maximize sales tax holiday savings. Give it a look, then make your list. That’s also one of the tax holiday shopping suggestions.
You also can check my earlier sales tax holiday post that included the handful of such events in July. That post has more on why state lawmakers continue to authorize tax holidays, despite their revenue costs and hassles for merchants.
You also might find these items of interest:
- Tax holidays are popular, but bad tax policy
- 5 sales-tax-free states are perfect places to shop year-round
- Axing Energy Star could end consumer savings (and some state sales tax holidays)
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