West Virginia charges motor vehicle privilege tax (titling tax) of 6% 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 West Virginia. 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 West Virginia; 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.
The 6% privilege tax (raised from 5% on July 1, 2017 by SB 1006) is paid to the DMV when the vehicle is titled; municipal sales taxes do not apply to vehicle purchases.
The tax base is the net purchase price on the bill of sale.
Leases: the lessor pays 6% on each lease payment (or on the vehicle's value at titling when the lease is not with a licensed leasing company).
On a $35,000 new car with a $37,000 sticker, registered in Charleston, 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 | $15.00 |
| Registration (est., flat based) | $51.50 |
| In all | $66.50 |
West Virginia taxes a lease one payment at a time: the tax is added to each monthly payment, so you pay it as you go.
Pick your city for the exact combined rate where you register, plus what title and registration run there.
6%. West Virginia applies one rate statewide on vehicles, so it does not change from city to city.
Net purchase price is the price less the trade-in allowance for a vehicle traded to the dealer (W. Va. Code 17A-3-4).
On a $35,000 new car with a $37,000 sticker, registered in Charleston: Title fee $15.00, Registration (est., flat based) $51.50, about $66.50 in all. Class A (passenger) registration $51.50 per year (plates included). EVs add $200, hybrids $100 per year.
Yes, at $575. Under W. Va. Code 17A-6-18a, the DMV Dealer Advisory Board set the cap at $575 effective July 2024, adjusted for inflation from July 2025.
West Virginia taxes a lease one payment at a time: the tax is added to each monthly payment, so you pay it as you go.