COLUMBUS, Ohio (WLIO) — Ohio shoppers will have a chance to save money this weekend as the state's annual sales tax holiday returns Aug. 7-9 with new rules on which items qualify for the exemption.
The sales tax holiday begins at 12 a.m. Friday and runs through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, returning to its original three-day format. The exemption had been expanded to 10 days in 2024 and 14 days in 2025.
This year's tax holiday also marks a significant change in eligible purchases. Last year, nearly all items priced under $500, with the exception of motor vehicles, alcohol and tobacco products, qualified for the exemption. This year, only select items at specific price points will be exempt from sales tax.
“Shirts, pants, shoes, any article of clothing $75 or less is exempt from sales tax August 7th through August 9th and then also school supplies $20 or less. So, markers, crayons, pencils, paper, notebooks, pens are all sales tax exempt as well as school instructional materials such as workbooks as well,” says Tim Lynch, Policy Director, Ohio Dept. of Taxation.
Ohio's statewide sales tax rate is 5.75%, and with local county sales taxes added, shoppers could see additional savings during the three-day event.
“We've seen data from the Ohio Council of Retail Merchants that suggests that families will spend on average $900 per child from kindergarten through 12th grade on back to school shopping. So, even at a 7 or an 8% rate if you round that up to $1,000 families are going to be saving $70 to $80 a child,” adds Lynch.
The sales tax exemption applies to both in-store and online purchases that meet the eligibility requirements. Ohio has offered an annual sales tax holiday since 2015.
