Illinois charges a flat 4.95% income tax, property taxes that rank second in the nation behind New Jersey, and a sales tax that now reaches 10.5% in Chicago. There is no city or county income tax anywhere in the state, which is the one clean piece of good news. This guide puts the 2026 numbers in one place, with the tax year labeled, so you can see what you pay and who sets it.
| Tax | Current figure | Who sets it |
|---|---|---|
| Income | 4.95% flat; $2,850 exemption per person (tax year 2025) | State |
| Property | 1.7% to 2.3% of home value in most populous counties | County, schools, village |
| Sales | 6.25% state base; 10.5% in Chicago, 9.75% in Springfield | State plus local add-ons |
| Groceries | 0% state since January 1, 2026; 1% in 600+ towns that kept it | Your municipality |
| Gas | 65.3 cents per gallon in state fuel taxes through December 2026 | State, plus some counties |
| Estate | Applies above a $4 million estate, not indexed since 2012 | State |
What a $75,000 salary pays in Illinois income tax
The rate is 4.95% of net income whether you earn $30,000 or $3 million. The only break is the exemption allowance: $2,850 per person for tax year 2025, the return filed in April 2026, up from $2,775 the year before, plus another $1,000 if you are 65 or older or legally blind. A single filer on $75,000 subtracts one exemption and pays 4.95% of $72,150, which is $3,571. A married couple with two children on the same income claims four exemptions and pays about $3,148. The allowance disappears once federal adjusted gross income passes $250,000 for single filers or $500,000 for joint filers, per the Illinois Department of Revenue's exemption FAQ.
Two refundable credits matter for lower earners. The Illinois Earned Income Credit equals 20% of your federal EITC for tax year 2025, up from 18%, and it now covers workers aged 18 to 24 and over 65 who have no qualifying children. Families who get the state EITC and have a child under 12 also receive the Illinois Child Tax Credit, set at 40% of the state EITC for 2025, which tops out a little above $600 for a family with three children. Both are refundable and claimed on Schedule IL-E/EITC.
Tax year 2025 returns were due April 15, 2026. Tax year 2026 returns are due April 15, 2027, the same day as federal.
Why your property tax bill depends on the county line
The state average hides a wide spread. Tax Foundation's county data, published in 2026 from 2024 Census figures, shows effective rates, meaning taxes paid as a share of home value:
| County | Effective rate (2024 data) |
|---|---|
| Cook | 1.73% |
| DuPage | 1.89% |
| Sangamon (Springfield) | 1.89% |
| Champaign | 2.04% |
| Will | 2.10% |
| McLean (Bloomington-Normal) | 2.11% |
| Peoria | 2.15% |
| Kane | 2.18% |
| Lake and McHenry | 2.26% |
| Winnebago (Rockford) | 2.28% |
Cook County reads lower than its reputation on this measure because it assesses homes at 10% of market value rather than the 33.33% used in the other 101 counties, and because bills inside Cook vary by township far more than the countywide figure suggests. Calculators that divide median tax by median value show higher numbers for the same counties, so compare like with like.
Exemptions come off the equalized assessed value, not the bill. The General Homestead Exemption removes $10,000 of EAV in Cook, $8,000 in the counties that touch Cook, and $6,000 everywhere else. The Senior Citizen Homestead Exemption adds $8,000 in Cook and $5,000 elsewhere for owners 65 and up, with no income test. The Senior Freeze, which locks your assessment rather than your rate, has a household income cap of $65,000 now, rising to $75,000 for tax year 2026 (bills issued in 2027), $77,000 in 2028, and $79,000 in 2029, according to the Cook County Assessor. The freeze requires a new PTAX-340 every year; the other two do not.
What you pay at the register in Chicago versus Springfield
The state base is 6.25%, of which 5% stays with the state, 1% goes to municipalities, and 0.25% to counties. Everything above that is local. On August 1, 2026, the transit sales tax rose by 0.25 points across Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, and Will counties under the transit law (Senate Bill 2111) the governor signed in December 2025, which created the Northern Illinois Transit Authority.
Chicago's rate is now 6.25% state, 1.75% Cook County, 1.25% city home-rule, and 1.25% transit: 10.5%, among the highest of any large U.S. city. Naperville, Aurora, Waukegan, and Joliet each rose 0.25 points on the same day. Springfield, outside the transit region, stays at 9.75%: 6.25% state, 1% Sangamon County, 2.5% city, with two business districts at 10.25% (verified October 2026). On a $1,500 laptop, that is $157.50 in tax in Chicago and $146.25 in Springfield. The Tax Rate Finder on tax.illinois.gov gives the exact rate for any street address.
Groceries are the exception that now varies by town. The statewide 1% grocery tax ended January 1, 2026, but more than 600 municipalities adopted their own identical 1% tax, and Chicago did not. Our Illinois grocery tax guide explains how to check your town.
Local note: the transit increase follows the delivery address, not the seller. An online order shipped to Naperville pays the new rate even if the warehouse is in Peoria, and a car bought in Rockford but registered in Cook County owes the extra 0.25% at registration.
Gas, car, and the taxes you forget about
The state motor fuel tax has two parts. Part A is 48.3 cents per gallon for gasoline and 55.8 cents for diesel through December 31, 2026. It was due to rise 1.3 cents on July 1 under the annual inflation adjustment, but Public Act 104-0468, signed June 16, 2026, paused that increase for six months. Part B is reset each January at 6.25% of the prior year's average fuel price: 17.0 cents for gasoline and 18.0 cents for diesel in 2026. Add them and the state takes 65.3 cents on gasoline and 73.8 cents on diesel, before any county tax; Kane County's own fuel tax went from 5 to 8 cents on July 1, 2026. The figures come from IDOR bulletin FY 2026-24.
A standard passenger plate renews for $151 a year, with a $100 surcharge for electric vehicles. Chicago residents also buy a city sticker: $105.18 for 2026 on a vehicle under 4,500 pounds, up from $100.17, and $167.07 for heavier passenger vehicles, per the City Clerk's sticker FAQ. Illinois has no personal property tax on cars.
The Illinois estate tax applies above $4 million, a threshold unchanged since 2012, not indexed for inflation, and not portable between spouses.
Before you file
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Count your exemptions: $2,850 each for tax year 2025, plus $1,000 at 65 or older.
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If your federal EITC is above zero, claim the 20% Illinois EITC and, with a child under 12, the 40% child credit on Schedule IL-E/EITC.
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Look for the General Homestead line on your property tax bill; if it is missing, file with your county assessor.
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Senior Freeze filers: refile PTAX-340 each year. The income cap is $65,000 for 2025 and $75,000 for 2026.
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Figures verified October 2026 against IDOR bulletins FY 2026-23 and FY 2026-24, the IDOR exemption FAQ, the Cook County Assessor, the Chicago City Clerk, and Tax Foundation's 2026 county data.
Quick answers
What is the Illinois income tax rate in 2026? A flat 4.95% on net income after a $2,850 per-person exemption (tax year 2025). No Illinois city or county adds an income tax.
Does Chicago really charge 10.5% sales tax? Yes, since August 1, 2026, when the regional transit tax rose from 1% to 1.25%. Suburbs in the six transit counties also rose 0.25 points; Springfield is 9.75%.
Which Illinois counties have the lowest property taxes? Among the larger counties, Cook (1.73%), Madison (1.79%), St. Clair (1.83%), DuPage and Sangamon (1.89%) sit lowest in Tax Foundation's 2024 data. Lake, McHenry, and Winnebago are near the top at 2.26% to 2.28%.
Related reading
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