How does New Jersey’s tax code compare? New Jersey has a graduated state individual income tax, with rates ranging from 1.400 percent to 10.750 percent. There is also a jurisdiction that collects local income taxes. New Jersey has a graduated corporate income tax, with rates ranging from 6.5 percent to 9.0 percent. New Jersey also has a 6.625 percent state sales tax rate and an average combined state and local sales tax rate of 6.60 percent. New Jersey has a 2.08 percent effective property tax rate on owner-occupied housing value.
New Jersey has an inheritance tax. New Jersey has a 42.4 cents per gallon gas tax rate and a $2.70 cigarette excise tax rate. The State of New Jersey collects $8,308 in state and local tax collections per capita. New Jersey has $10,731 in state and local debt per capita and has a 54 percent funded ratio of public pension plans. New Jersey’s tax system ranks 49th overall on the 2025 State Tax Competitiveness Index.
Each state’s tax code is a multifaceted system with many moving parts, and New Jersey is no exception. The first step towards understanding New Jersey’s tax code is knowing the basics. How does New Jersey 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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The threatened lawsuit may be more a political exercise than a legal one, as a judge is unlikely to rule that the SALT deduction cap violates either the Equal Protection Clause or the Tenth Amendment
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New Jersey has the worst state business tax climate of the 50 states and the third highest state and local tax burden. If federal tax reform prompts New Jersey to overhaul its tax code, it’s long overdue.
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