How does Delaware’s tax code compare? Delaware has a graduated state individual income tax, with rates ranging from 2.20 percent to 6.60 percent. There is also a jurisdiction that collects local income taxes. Delaware has an 8.70 percent corporate income tax rate and a state gross receipts tax. Delaware does not have a state sales tax rate. Delaware has a 0.48 percent effective property tax rate on owner-occupied housing value.
Delaware does not have an estate tax or inheritance tax. Delaware has a 23 cents per gallon gas tax rate and a $2.10 cigarette excise tax rate. The State of Delaware collects $6,668 in state and local tax collections per capita. Delaware has $8,417 in state and local debt per capita and has an 88 percent funded ratio of public pension plans. Delaware’s tax system ranks 18th overall on the 2025 State Tax Competitiveness Index.
Each state’s tax code is a multifaceted system with many moving parts, and Delaware is no exception. The first step towards understanding Delaware’s tax code is knowing the basics. How does Delaware collect tax revenue? Click the tabs below to learn more! You can also explore our state tax maps, which are compiled from our annual publication, Facts & Figures 2024: How Does Your State Compare?
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The State Tax Competitiveness Index enables policymakers, taxpayers, and business leaders to gauge how their states’ tax systems compare. While there are many ways to show how much state governments collect in taxes, the Index evaluates how well states structure their tax systems and provides a road map for improvement.
115 min read
Facts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min read
Tax burdens rose across the country as pandemic-era economic changes caused taxable income, activities, and property values to rise faster than net national product. Tax burdens in 2020, 2021, and 2022 are all higher than in any other year since 1978.
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Individual income taxes are a major source of state government revenue, accounting for more than a third of state tax collections. How do income taxes compare in your state?
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Graduated corporate rates are inequitable—that is, the size of a corporation bears no necessary relation to the income levels of the owners.
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Retail sales taxes are an essential part of most states’ revenue toolkits, responsible for 32 percent of state tax collections and 13 percent of local tax collections (24 percent of combined collections).
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Growing cigarette tax levels and differentials have made cigarette smuggling both a national problem and a lucrative criminal enterprise.
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In addition to the federal estate tax, with a top rate of 40 percent, 12 states and DC impose additional estate taxes, while six states levy inheritance taxes.
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Policymakers can and should address taxpayers’ legitimate grievances about out-of-control property tax bills, but they should do so without upending a system of taxation that is more efficient, fair, and pro-growth, and better suited to municipal finance, than any of the alternatives.
39 min read
The State Tax Competitiveness Index enables policymakers, taxpayers, and business leaders to gauge how their states’ tax systems compare. While there are many ways to show how much state governments collect in taxes, the Index evaluates how well states structure their tax systems and provides a road map for improvement.
115 min read
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