Bottom Line
Middle-Class Families: Tax-Friendly (Go to the Kiplinger Tax Map for Middle-Class Families)
Retirees: Mixed Tax Picture (Go to the Kiplinger Tax Map for Retirees)
Utah has a flat-rate income tax system (currently 4.85%). But retirees can get stung by the Beehive State's income tax, since Utah is one of only a handful of states that taxes Social Security benefits.
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Sales taxes in Utah aren't exactly steep — but they're certainly not what you'd call low, either. The state's average combined state and local sales tax rate is 7.19%, which is above average.
Residents should like the property tax rates in the state. The median property tax rate in Utah is the 10th-lowest in the nation.
Utah Income Taxes
Utah Income Tax Range
Utah has a flat tax of 4.85% (reduced from 4.95% starting with the 2022 tax year).
Utah Taxation of Social Security Benefits
Social Security benefits are included in Utah taxable income to the same extent they're taxed at the federal level. However, a nonrefundable tax credit is available for Social Security benefits. The credit is calculated by multiplying the Utah income tax rate (currently 4.85%) by the amount of Social Security benefits included in federal adjusted gross income (AGI). The total credit amount is reduced by $.025 for each dollar by which the taxpayer's modified AGI exceeds $31,000 ($25,000 for 2021) for a married person filing a separate tax return, $37,000 ($30,000 for 2021) for a single filer, and $62,000 ($50,000 for 2021) for a married couple filing a joint return or a head-of-household filer. Taxpayers can't claim both the Social Security credit and the general $450 credit for retirees.
Utah Tax Breaks for Other Retirement Income
Income from a qualified retirement plan may be deductible if contributions to the plan were previously taxed in another state.
Seniors born on or before December 31, 1952, can also claim a nonrefundable tax credit of up to $450 ($900 for joint filers). The credit is completely phased-out for single taxpayers with a modified AGI of $43,000 or more, joint or head-of-household filers with modified AGI of $50,000 or more, and married taxpayers filing separate returns with modified AGI of $34,000 or more.
Beginning in 2021, a separate nonrefundable tax credit is available for military retirement pay. The credit is calculated by multiplying the Utah income tax rate (currently 4.95%) by the amount of military retirement pay included in federal AGI. Retirees can't claim both the military retirement credit and the general $450 credit for retirees.
Railroad Retirement benefits are exempt.
Utah Sales Tax
State levy is 4.85%, but a mandatory 1% local sales tax and 0.25% county option sales tax are added to the state tax (for a 6.1% total rate). Plus, localities can add up to an additional 2.95%, making the average combined state and local rate 7.19%, according to the Tax Foundation.
- Groceries: Taxable (1.75% state tax, plus mandatory 1.25% in local and county taxes)
- Clothing: Taxable
- Motor Vehicles: Taxable
- Prescription Drugs: Exempt
Utah Real Property Taxes
In Utah, the median property tax rate is $575 per $100,000 of assessed home value.
Utah Property Tax Breaks for Retirees
For 2022, homeowners 66 and older (and surviving spouses of any age) who earned $35,807 or less in 2021 can get a "circuit breaker" property tax credit of up to $1,110. An additional credit equal to the tax on 20% of a home's fair market value is also available. Homeowners who qualify for the circuit breaker generally also qualify for an indigent abatement of up to $1,110 or tax deferral.
Homeowners who are at least 75 years old may also have their county property taxes deferred if certain income, liquid asset, and home value limits aren't exceeded.
Utah Motor Fuel Taxes
Gasoline: 31.91¢ per gallon (36.41¢ per gallon effective January 1, 2023).
Diesel: 31.91¢ per gallon (36.41¢ per gallon effective January 1, 2023).
Utah Sin Taxes
Cigarettes: $1.70 per pack
Snuff: $1.83 per ounce
Other tobacco products: 86% of manufacturer’s price
Vapor products: 56% of manufacturer’s price
Beer: $0.42 per gallon
Wine: not available
Liquor: $15.92 per gallon (the liquor tax is an estimate by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States and published by the Tax Foundation)
Utah Estate and Inheritance Taxes
No estate or inheritance tax.
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