Florida is a popular destination for retirement because it has no state income tax, but unless you plan on renting all throughout your retirement, you won't be able to escape paying property taxes.
According to the latest data from Florida TaxWatch, St. Lucie County has the highest average property tax rate in the state at 21.56 mills, and Monroe County (the Florida Keys) has the lowest at 8.24 mills. On a $400,000 home with the homestead exemption, that's the difference between about $7,545 and $2,883 a year.
Property taxes are obviously not the only factor to consider when choosing a place to retire in Florida, but it doesn't hurt to know what you're getting into either.
How to read these numbers
Florida's property tax rate is called the “millage rate.” One mill equals $1 in tax for every $1,000 of taxable value.
If you make the home your primary residence, the homestead exemption takes up to $50,000 off its taxable value. So on a $400,000 home in a county with a 15-mill rate, the math is $350,000 ÷ 1,000 × 15 = $5,250.
The homesteaded estimates below apply the full $50,000 exemption. Because the second $25,000 doesn't apply to school taxes, your actual bill will usually run about $150 higher. The “no homestead” column is closer to what you'd pay on a second home or a seasonal snowbird property.
Property tax rates for all 67 Florida counties
| Rank | County | Millage rate | Est. tax, $400K home (homestead) | Est. tax, $400K home (no homestead) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. Lucie | 21.5570 | $7,545 | $8,623 |
| 2 | Alachua | 20.8894 | $7,311 | $8,356 |
| 3 | Dixie | 19.8732 | $6,956 | $7,949 |
| 4 | Broward | 19.8638 | $6,952 | $7,946 |
| 5 | Hillsborough | 18.8553 | $6,599 | $7,542 |
| 6 | Pinellas | 18.4941 | $6,473 | $7,398 |
| 7 | Miami-Dade | 18.4893 | $6,471 | $7,396 |
| 8 | Glades | 18.3732 | $6,431 | $7,349 |
| 9 | Duval | 17.8910 | $6,262 | $7,156 |
| 10 | Leon | 17.8003 | $6,230 | $7,120 |
| 11 | Putnam | 17.7142 | $6,200 | $7,086 |
| 12 | Palm Beach | 17.4918 | $6,122 | $6,997 |
| 13 | Volusia | 17.4169 | $6,096 | $6,967 |
| 14 | Orange | 17.4100 | $6,094 | $6,964 |
| 15 | Pasco | 17.2168 | $6,026 | $6,887 |
| 16 | Hendry | 17.1732 | $6,011 | $6,869 |
| 17 | Flagler | 17.1551 | $6,004 | $6,862 |
| 18 | Union | 16.7165 | $5,851 | $6,687 |
| 19 | Bradford | 16.5732 | $5,801 | $6,629 |
| 20 | Lafayette | 16.2231 | $5,678 | $6,489 |
| 21 | Gadsden | 16.1423 | $5,650 | $6,457 |
| 22 | Martin | 16.0598 | $5,621 | $6,424 |
| 23 | Nassau | 16.0559 | $5,620 | $6,422 |
| 24 | Levy | 16.0399 | $5,614 | $6,416 |
| 25 | DeSoto | 15.9319 | $5,576 | $6,373 |
| 26 | Marion | 15.8838 | $5,559 | $6,354 |
| 27 | Charlotte | 15.6763 | $5,487 | $6,271 |
| 28 | Suwannee | 15.6611 | $5,481 | $6,264 |
| 29 | Lake | 15.6324 | $5,471 | $6,253 |
| 30 | Gilchrist | 15.5297 | $5,435 | $6,212 |
| 31 | Citrus | 15.4758 | $5,417 | $6,190 |
| 32 | Polk | 15.4378 | $5,403 | $6,175 |
| 33 | Taylor | 15.4326 | $5,401 | $6,173 |
| 34 | Holmes | 15.4115 | $5,394 | $6,165 |
| 35 | Seminole | 15.3480 | $5,372 | $6,139 |
| 36 | Clay | 15.3466 | $5,371 | $6,139 |
| 37 | Calhoun | 15.3340 | $5,367 | $6,134 |
| 38 | Hamilton | 15.2115 | $5,324 | $6,085 |
| 39 | Liberty | 15.1744 | $5,311 | $6,070 |
| 40 | Madison | 15.1668 | $5,308 | $6,067 |
| 41 | Osceola | 14.9738 | $5,241 | $5,990 |
| 42 | Washington | 14.9640 | $5,237 | $5,986 |
| 43 | Columbia | 14.6841 | $5,139 | $5,874 |
| 44 | Baker | 14.6131 | $5,115 | $5,845 |
| 45 | Hernando | 14.5695 | $5,099 | $5,828 |
| 46 | Manatee | 14.5524 | $5,093 | $5,821 |
| 47 | Highlands | 14.5216 | $5,083 | $5,809 |
| 48 | Okeechobee | 14.4357 | $5,052 | $5,774 |
| 49 | Jackson | 14.2637 | $4,992 | $5,705 |
| 50 | Indian River | 14.1659 | $4,958 | $5,666 |
| 51 | Escambia | 14.1316 | $4,946 | $5,653 |
| 52 | Hardee | 14.1244 | $4,944 | $5,650 |
| 53 | Lee | 13.9967 | $4,899 | $5,599 |
| 54 | St. Johns | 13.9738 | $4,891 | $5,590 |
| 55 | Jefferson | 13.8674 | $4,854 | $5,547 |
| 56 | Brevard | 13.7669 | $4,818 | $5,507 |
| 57 | Wakulla | 13.4421 | $4,705 | $5,377 |
| 58 | Sarasota | 12.7527 | $4,463 | $5,101 |
| 59 | Bay | 12.6966 | $4,444 | $5,079 |
| 60 | Okaloosa | 12.2773 | $4,297 | $4,911 |
| 61 | Gulf | 12.2198 | $4,277 | $4,888 |
| 62 | Santa Rosa | 11.7171 | $4,101 | $4,687 |
| 63 | Sumter | 11.2052 | $3,922 | $4,482 |
| 64 | Franklin | 10.6003 | $3,710 | $4,240 |
| 65 | Collier | 9.8185 | $3,436 | $3,927 |
| 66 | Walton | 9.1512 | $3,203 | $3,660 |
| 67 | Monroe | 8.2361 | $2,883 | $3,294 |
Source: Florida TaxWatch, 2025 How Florida Counties Compare. Rates are county-wide averages of all taxing authorities. Estimates are rounded to the nearest dollar.
Why your tax bill may not match the listing
Your taxes reset when you buy. Florida's Save Our Homes cap limits how much a homesteaded home's assessed value can rise each year, to 3% or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower. A seller who has owned a home for 15 years may be paying taxes on a value far below what you're paying for it. When you buy, the home is reassessed at market value, so the tax figure on the listing is often much lower than what you'll actually pay.
Your city matters. These are county-wide averages. Living inside city limits usually adds a city millage rate, while unincorporated areas typically don't have one, so rates can vary by a few mills within the same county.
CDDs and special assessments aren't included. Many newer 55+ communities are located in a Community Development District (CDD), which adds bond and maintenance assessments to your tax bill. Those charges aren't part of the millage rate, so always ask what the total annual tax bill is on a specific home.
Where popular retirement counties rank
St. Lucie County: #1 of 67
21.5570 mills | about $7,545 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($8,623 without homestead)
Hillsborough County: #5 of 67
18.8553 mills | about $6,599 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($7,542 without homestead)
Tampa is the largest city in Hillsborough County. See our guide to Tampa 55+ communities.
Duval County: #9 of 67
17.8910 mills | about $6,262 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($7,156 without homestead)
Jacksonville is the biggest city in Duval County, and you can check out some Jacksonville 55+ communities right here.
Palm Beach County: #12 of 67
17.4918 mills | about $6,122 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($6,997 without homestead)
There are a number of great 55+ communities in Palm Beach County.
Volusia County: #13 of 67
17.4169 mills | about $6,096 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($6,967 without homestead)
The very first 55+ community from Jimmy Buffett, Latitude Margaritaville Daytona Beach, is located in Volusia County.
Orange County: #14 of 67
17.4100 mills | about $6,094 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($6,964 without homestead)
Most of these Orlando area 55+ communities are located in Orange County.
Marion County: #26 of 67
15.8838 mills | about $5,559 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($6,354 without homestead)
Marion County is home to Ocala, and some great 55+ communities.
Charlotte County: #27 of 67
15.6763 mills | about $5,487 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($6,271 without homestead)
Most of Babcock Ranch is in Charlotte County.
Citrus County: #31 of 67
15.4758 mills | about $5,417 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($6,190 without homestead)
Citrus County is home to the Villages of Citrus Hills, which is extremely popular with our readers.
Manatee County: #46 of 67
14.5524 mills | about $5,093 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($5,821 without homestead)
St. Johns County: #54 of 67
13.9738 mills | about $4,891 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($5,590 without homestead)
Bay County: #59 of 67
12.6966 mills | about $4,444 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($5,079 without homestead)
Bay County in the Florida Panhandle is home to Florida's second Jimmy Buffett 55+ community, Latitude Margaritaville Watersound.
Sumter County: #63 of 67
11.2052 mills | about $3,922 a year on a $400,000 homesteaded home ($4,482 without homestead)
The majority of The Villages is located in Sumter County. Keep in mind that Villages homeowners also pay CDD assessments, which aren't included in the millage rate, so your total bill will be higher than the estimate here.
Final thoughts
If you're worried about the cost of your property taxes, keep in mind that Florida does offer some property tax relief in the form of homestead exemptions, which can help quite a bit if you qualify for them.
Thank you for the information. It has really made me think about the areas I was wanting to retire.
There are plenty of retirement communities in Florida without a CDD. Property taxes are on par with many other states. If you live a little further inland, homeowners insurance is not that bad. I pay approximately $250 per $100K of home value. The fact there is no state tax, the weather is never above 100 degrees, makes Florida still one of the best places, in the country, to retire.
Reading about the people who moved from Florida to north of Atlanta, yes it would be cheaper. I lived and worked there for 40 some years. It can get really cold there in the winter and then there is the ocean. People that are moving to the mountains love the mountains. People who are moving to Florida love the ocean and year round warm and hot weather. Oh, and it can get really hot in Georgia in the summer. I was there with 100 degree weather for 30 days. And we had a five year drought. Lake Lanier almost disappeared. Different strokes for different folks. I moved to a small home in Florida and am thrilled that I don’t have to clean so much house. I’m here to be outside and walk on the beaches. Yes somethings are more and somethings are less. Decide what makes you happy.
It all depends where you are moving FROM . We are building at The Villages and even with the CDD bond the $ situation is much better than NY. A BIG factor is that none of our retirement money is taxable on the state level and there are NO estate taxes. We have paid as much as 50K in New York state taxes on our tax return. Our house tax assessment was about $30 per thousand so our house assessed at 600k had a property tax bill of a hefty 18K and climbing with property values going up. Yes Tennessee along with Texas and Wyoming ert are cheaper places to live IF that is where you want to be. To us northeast retirees Florida is a BARGAIN!
I agree. House is twice the size of our prior CO home and was 70,000 less. Since purchasing our 4,300 sq foot home in land o lakes, it has gone up $250,000 (in 9 months). You read that right. The beach(clearwater beach) is 30 min away by Suncoast hwy. No snow! Tropical paradise! We love it here!! Taxes are not as bad if you figure in no state income tax. They have a lot of exemptions available. Plus, our governor is amazing.
We own a condo in Gulf Shores, AL. Was thinking of Florida for a retirement home but after reading here think we will look elsewhere.
I just moved to Kissemme Florida from Maryland and my car Insurance is much cheaper. I wanted a smaller home because it’s a retirement property and want low maintenance as I still own my home in Maryland. I love Florida and my taxes are reasonable and much cheaper too. No state taxes is a PLUS! You must try it for yourself and not listen to others. After all, you can always sell your house if you not happy.
I live in NYC and bought a condo in Kissimmee a few years ago to retire and I cant wait to live here, low cost of living, lower taxes, no state tax, cheaper car insurance, great weather year round , not much traffic, friendly people, alot of fine restaurants, shopping, tennis, golf, theme parks etc,
Ken and Denise said it all. We are also moving from Chicago area to Florida and find it very difficult to really understand what our costs will be. It is crazy. As Denise stated, the listing real estate tax is not what I will pay when they reaccess. How does one figure that out? Also, we are concerned about insurance. I have heard wild estimates. Lastly, we really want the warmth of the SW area of Florida but we may have to consider other areas. Any suggestions?
When we first decided on the area, North of Tampa, I said to my wife, we can afford a house on the water, but flood insurance was about the same as a mortgage payment each month, plus regular homeowners, so not really that affordable. We ended up buying about 10 miles inland on high ground, so no flood insurance. Our homeowners is about the same as in Delaware because even though we were on high ground, we were bicycling distance to the beach, so still in the hurricane and nor’easter zone. My advice on insurance is to make sure flood insurance is not required. If it’s required it is very costly, if it’s not in a flood zone, flood insurance is cheap. I think regular homeowners is expensive all over the state due to hurricane risk. I think there are decent deals in SW FL, but we wanted more space and less traffic, that was my biggest problem with that area. Good luck and have fun, we looked at the area we ended up in four times over a two year period, looking at things like traffic at different times of day, impact of tourists and snowbirds on resources at different times, the area we ended up in is known for ecotourism, so people stay for short visits and because it does get pleasantly cool during the winter, not as many people have second homes in our community, but still quite a few. Much different that the seasonal beach resort we left.
I used to live in Palm Beach County. When I retired 3 years ago I could no longer afford to live there. We moved to the hills north of Atlanta and now have a house twice the size of our FL concrete pillbox and our property taxes are only $500 per year and house insurance is only $480 a year. Plus the people here are much nicer. It is a joy to live here.
BOOMERS BEWARE…Florida is not the bargain everyone thinks it is. THE PROPERTY TAXES ARE HIGH, sales tax is also high @7%. Then you have insurance and association dues. If you take the time to calculate all that…not at all a bargain for a state that has a population of 19 million and a very high crime rate and the number one state for pediphiles/sex offenders! Wow! Florida is not all that its marketed as especially for boomers. Where are the intelligent people!
Ken & Denise, we have lived in Florida for 20 years and are looking to go elsewhere to retire. The taxes and insurance has gotten to be so unaffordable, especially in retirement years. Our home is 3500 sq ft in Brevard County and our taxes are 4500 and our insurance is 4200 annually. We just looked at a 5500 sq ft home in Central Tennessee and the taxes were 996 and the insurance was 897, so right away we have a 6K year raise……Auto insurance is extremely high here in Florida as well…..we will save over 40% on auto insurance when we move. Property values are fairly low considering what you get…..we have 2.5 acres and are looking to get at least that much property when we move and are finding the pricing on comparable size houses and lot size to be about the same.
I agree with both Ken and Denise, the cost of both insurance and taxes are a real wildcard. We are getting ready to retire out of Florida after 30 years here. I would really warn anyone to think twice before moving here. If you find any home that is not crazy expensive you will probably be living in a claustrophobic tiny house. That is why we are leaving, along with the fact that the weather has become more oppressive with each passing year. It is basically too hot to do any outdoor activities for at least 6 months a year. The only way I would recommend any one to retire here is if they can afford to be snowbirds and spend at least 6 months a year elsewhere.
I agree w/the comments that Ken Schulter made above. We are planning to move to Florida from Illinois, primarily because we are in need of a “weather lifestyle change”. I really am not finding it to be that inexpensive to buy a home in Florida… the costs/square foot really aren’t that low, add in the HOAs, CDDs… and, it can get to be quite expensive to maintain a home in Florida. What is really confusing to me is the cost of insurance… that truly is a wildcard. We originally were considering the Gulf area, but, between sinkhole coverage, hurricane coverage… it just was silly. I wish that when the realtors list the homes they would llist such things as how much insurance is for that particular home. They list the taxes, but, that really doesn’t apply as the taxes will be based on the new selling price. I have looked at thomes where they list taxes as $2500/year… but, w/the higher sales price the taxes for me would be closer to $6,000/year. It is very, very difficult to quantify the costs!
Not worth the taxes , You can go live on the water in NC for a fourth of what they want in taxes in FL.
FL is a consideration for a possible retirement home. After scanning the FL for Boomers site, it is becoming somewhat confusing. I see there are CDD’s, possible HOA’s, property tax concerns, and then I understand that it is a very high cost for home insurance to cover for floods, hurricanes, and sinkholes. So while the cost of a home might be cheaper than other parts of the country, is FL really a bargain when you add up these costs? I would sure like to find more than anecdotal references on the web that can provide very clearly stated facts. Otherwise, I might be wasting my time to consider FL as a destination for lower cost living. BTW, I am also hearing of high crime rates in many parts of FL. As the economy tanks, I believe that crime peaks. So again, I am really trying to look past the rosy pictures and see the real FL. Thanks if you can help and be honest.
Wow! I know I get quite a few customers who end up purchasing in Naples over Palm Beach partly because of the taxes but I had no idea they were almost double over there. That’s a big difference!