States With No Income Tax in 2026: Is Moving Worth It?
Nine states don’t tax your paycheck: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming.
That’s a real advantage, and it’s one reason people have been moving to Texas, Florida and Tennessee for years. But “no income tax” doesn’t mean “no taxes,” and the savings are smaller than a lot of people assume.
How much more you’d take home
Here’s what a single person earning $90,000 keeps in 2026 after all taxes, compared with a few popular states people leave:
| Move | Take-home before | Take-home after | Difference per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| California to Texas | $66,835 | $72,145 | +$5,310 |
| New York to Florida | $67,455 | $72,145 | +$4,690 |
| Illinois to Tennessee | $67,835 | $72,145 | +$4,310 |
So around $360 to $440 a month at this salary. Meaningful, but probably not life-changing on its own. The gap gets bigger as income rises, especially from California or New York City, where top rates are over 10%.
They aren’t all identical
Seven of the nine really do leave your paycheck alone: at $90,000 you take home $72,145 in Texas, Florida, Nevada, Tennessee, South Dakota, Wyoming and New Hampshire.
Two are a little different:
- Washington withholds for its Paid Family and Medical Leave program and the WA Cares long-term care program. At $90,000 that’s about $1,250 a year, so you take home $70,897.
- Alaska takes unemployment insurance out of employee paychecks, about $271 a year at this salary. It’s the only no-income-tax state that does this (New Jersey and Pennsylvania do too).
New Hampshire also used to tax interest and dividends, but that tax was fully repealed starting in 2025. Washington taxes large long-term capital gains, and it has passed a tax on incomes over $1 million that is scheduled for 2028 and is being challenged in court.
Where the money comes from instead
States still need revenue, so no-income-tax states lean on other taxes. How much that matters depends on your life.
- Property taxes. Texas has some of the highest property tax rates in the country. If you’re buying a house, the property tax bill can eat a good share of your income tax savings.
- Sales taxes. Tennessee and Washington have some of the highest combined sales tax rates in the U.S. If you spend most of what you earn, you’ll feel it.
- Insurance and housing. Florida home insurance costs have climbed sharply, and housing in popular metros like Austin, Nashville and Miami isn’t cheap anymore.
New Hampshire is the unusual one: no income tax and no general sales tax, but high property taxes.
When a move really pays off
The math tends to favor moving if:
- you earn a high salary, since state income tax savings grow faster than most other costs
- you rent, or you’d buy a home at a similar price, so property tax doesn’t swamp the savings
- you can keep your current salary, for example with a remote job
It’s weaker if your employer adjusts pay by location, since a lower salary can wipe out the tax savings, or if housing where you’d move is much more expensive.
One more thing to check with remote work: some states, like New York, can keep taxing you if your employer is based there and you work remotely “for your convenience.” Our guide on living in one state and working in another covers how that works.
Run your own numbers
The state comparison tool shows your take-home pay in any two states side by side, plus the salary you’d need in the new state to match what you keep now. That last number is useful when you’re negotiating a relocation offer.