Sales tax

As of April 1st, 2024, the retail sales tax in most cities of King County increased to 10.2%. The majority of this revenue is allocated to the state and the Regional Transit Authority (RTA), also known as Sound Transit. King County utilizes the remaining funds for metro transit, criminal justice, mental health, children and family services, housing, and general government operations. Although the standard rate in King County is 10.2%, areas outside the RTA zone have a lower rate. Additionally, certain cities may impose a slightly higher rate due to citywide sales taxes. The state Department of Revenue (DOR) monitors all city-level tax rates here. 
 

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Taxable Sales

The Washington State DOR maintains a detailed and useful online database of taxable sales and sales tax distributions. Using this data, we compiled a spreadsheet that contains the annual taxable sales for each city (and the unincorporated area) from 2009 to 2023. Click here to access the excel workbook. Below is a chart depicting taxable sales as a percentage of personal income in King County. Taxable sales have not kept pace with rising incomes, which shows one of the major shortcomings of sales tax as a revenue tool.

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