Georgia‘s tax system ranks 26th overall on the 2025 State Tax Competitiveness Index. Georgia’s tax code includes all major tax types. The state has recently transitioned to a flat individual income tax and is gradually reducing the tax rate (currently 5.39 percent, scheduled to reach 4.99 percent by 2028), two positive developments in terms of tax competitiveness. However, the state still faces strong regional competition, as both Florida and Tennessee do not impose individual income taxes, while Alabama and North Carolina have lower rates.
Since 2024, Georgia’s corporate income tax rate has been aligned with the individual income tax rate and is set to decrease from the current 5.39 percent to 4.99 percent by 2028. However, the state does not allow first-year expensing of capital investment and imposes a nuisance capital stock tax of up to $5,000 per year. Like many states, Georgia also taxes tangible personal property. The state offers a de minimis exemption, but it is quite low.
Georgia’s state sales tax rate is relatively low at 4 percent, but localities are authorized to impose local sales taxes, with an average rate of 3.42 percent, bringing the combined rate to 7.42 percent, which is above the national average. Georgia does not impose inheritance, estate, or gift taxes.
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.
States that tax GILTI increase filing complexity, drive up the cost of tax compliance, and introduce unnecessary economic uncertainty and legal risk. 21 states and DC continue to tax GILTI despite these challenges.
Georgia should focus on policies that restrict the overall growth of property taxes, not policies that functionally freeze property taxes for current owners by shifting costs onto new owners and into the sales tax.