Unless you hate where you live then most likely you have at least some pride in your state. Whether it’s your local sports teams or the community you live in, or anything else, you probably like where you live and you are proud of the things your state represents. However, no state is perfect and there might be a few things you would change if you could. For example, when it comes to taxes, do you wish your state would stop taking so much of your money? No matter what state we live in, we all have to pay our fair share of federal income taxes, but when it comes to state and local taxes, where you live makes a big difference in your tax bill.

New Yorkers Paying the Most

Each year WalletHub releases its Tax Burden by State report and the 2017 list is now out. According to WalletHub, which gathers and compares all 50 states by individual income taxes, property taxes, and total sales and excise taxes, the state with the highest tax burden is New York, with a total tax burden of 12.94 percent. New York’s property tax is 4.55 percent, while its individual income tax burden is the nation’s highest at 4.76 percent. The state’s sales and excise tax burden is 3.63 percent. Add it all up and New York easily outdoes the next highest state, Hawaii, which has a total tax burden of 11.27 percent.

How’s Your Home State Doing?

 

So where does your state fall in the standings? Do you feel a heavier burden when it’s time to pay your taxes? Here are the top 10 states with the highest tax burden according to WalletHub:

  1. New York (12.94%)
  2. Hawaii (11.27%)
  3. Vermont (10.75%)
  4. Maine (10.73%)
  5. Minnesota (10.24%)
  6. Connecticut (10.23%)
  7. New Jersey (10.14%)
  8. Rhode Island (10.09%)
  9. Illinois (10.00%)
  10. California (9.52%)

You might notice a few trends here. For starters, six of the 10 states in the top ten are on the East Coast. WalletHub also found that so-called Red States have a lower tax burden than Blue States, which is probably not surprising.

States With Lower Tax Burden

So, what about the best states for taxes? If you want to live somewhere with a smaller tax burden, here are the best states to live in:

  1. Delaware (5.59%)
  2. Alaska (6.27%)
  3. Tennessee (6.45%)
  4. Oklahoma (6.61%)
  5. New Hampshire (6.70%)
  6. Florida (6.79%)
  7. South Dakota (7.12%)
  8. Alabama (7.19%)
  9. Wyoming (7.29%)
  10. Montana (7.51%)

Delaware takes the cake when it comes to having a low overall tax burden. With an individual income tax of just 2.59 percent combined with a property tax burden of just 1.83 percent and a sales and excise tax of just 1.17 percent, Delaware residents enjoy a much lighter tax burden than the rest of the country. If you your state falls somewhere in the middle, you can click here to see the entire list, and the breakdown of each states overall tax burden.

Ready to Move?

So, there you have it. The next time someone from New York tells someone from Delaware that “New York rules,” the person from Delaware can retort: “Not when it comes to taxes.” Chances are these findings won’t likely motivate you to move, but if your tax burden is too high and you are looking for greener pastures, then you might want to consider some of these states that are much lower on the list. On the other hand, if you have a higher tax burden but you love where you live then you’ll just have to consider those higher taxes as fair payment for the added benefits you
r home state offers.