Texas charges motor vehicle sales tax of 6.25% statewide on vehicles, with no local add-on. A trade-in does reduce the taxable price, which is real money on the deal.
Type your own numbers and see the same car priced as cash and as a loan, with the taxes and state fees for Texas. Nothing you type leaves this page.
To see a lease, pick a vehicle. A lease is priced on one car: what it is expected to be worth at the end (its residual) and the leasing company's money factor change by model and by month.
An estimate on the numbers you type, not an offer of credit or a quote from any dealership. Starting loan rates are Rateous's rates for each credit range and term; they are not an offer from any lender. The documentary fee starts at an example figure, the state's legal cap where it has one or $599 where it does not, not any dealership's fee; each dealership sets its own. Taxes and state fees are estimates for Texas; the dealership's paperwork and your motor vehicle agency have the final numbers. Nothing you type is sent, saved, or used to check your credit.
Texas charges 6.25% motor vehicle sales tax statewide with no city, county or transit add-on on vehicle sales.
Manufacturer rebates do not reduce the taxable total consideration (the rebate is a payment by a third party); dealer discounts do.
Title application fee is $28 or $33 depending on the county ($33 in most metro counties).
On a $35,000 new car with a $37,000 sticker, registered in Houston, no trade-in: the same figures the calculator above uses. The dealership's documentary fee is its own and is not included.
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Title fee | $33.00 |
| Registration (est., flat based) | $74.25 |
| Processing and handling fee (annual) | $4.75 |
| County local fees (road & bridge, child safety) (annual; $0-$31.50 by county) | $11.50 |
| In all | $123.50 |
Texas taxes the vehicle's price when the leased car is titled. The leasing company pays it and it is carried in the lease, so it shows up in your payment rather than as a separate tax on each payment. 6.25% motor vehicle sales tax is paid by the lessor on the vehicle's purchase price at titling and passed through in the lease; no tax on the monthly payments.
Pick your city for the exact combined rate where you register, plus what title and registration run there.
6.25%. Texas applies one rate statewide on vehicles, so it does not change from city to city.
Tax is due on the total consideration less the value of a motor vehicle taken in trade (Tax Code 152.002).
On a $35,000 new car with a $37,000 sticker, registered in Houston: Title fee $33.00, Registration (est., flat based) $74.25, Processing and handling fee (annual) $4.75, County local fees (road & bridge, child safety) (annual; $0-$31.50 by county) $11.50, about $123.50 in all. Base registration $50.75 for cars and light trucks plus a $4.75 processing and handling fee and local county fees of $0-$31.50 (most counties $10-$11.50; Bexar and Cameron $21.50). Plates included. EVs add $200 per year.
No. Texas sets no statutory cap. Each dealership sets its own documentary fee (not a government fee), and each car shows its dealership's fee. The fee must be reasonable, and a dealership charging more than $225 must notify the Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner (a threshold in effect since July 2024).
Texas taxes the vehicle's price when the leased car is titled. The leasing company pays it and it is carried in the lease, so it shows up in your payment rather than as a separate tax on each payment. 6.25% motor vehicle sales tax is paid by the lessor on the vehicle's purchase price at titling and passed through in the lease; no tax on the monthly payments.