What actually sets Tennessee apart
Tennessee has no tax on earned income, and the certified tax rate rule means reappraisal is revenue-neutral by default. The result is a state where property tax is genuinely moderate, but where a city rate on top of a county rate — as in Memphis — can nearly double the bill relative to an unincorporated address.
Property taxes in Tennessee at a glance
- Average effective tax rate: 0.55% of home value per year
- Median home value: $256,800
- Estimated tax on a median-value home: $1,400 per year (about $117 per month)
- Rank by tax rate: 40th of 50, highest first
- Rank by amount actually paid: 44th of 50, highest first
- Where these figures come from: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, for the Tennessee statewide averages shown above — ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates, last reviewed September 2026.
What the Tennessee rate leaves out
Tennessee is 40th of the fifty by rate and 44th by the bill a median-value owner receives — a shift of 4 places, and the $256,800 median home value is what causes it. The rate is a reasonable shorthand here, but it is not the whole answer, and both numbers are worth checking before comparing Tennessee with anywhere else.
How Tennessee works out what you owe
Residential property is assessed at 25% of appraised value. Counties reappraise on a four, five or six year cycle, and values are held flat in between.
After a reappraisal, districts must adopt a certified tax rate that produces the same revenue as before, so a district that wants more has to vote for it publicly.
Exemptions Tennessee homeowners should claim
Each of these reduces a Tennessee bill every year you hold the property, and almost none are granted without a claim:
- Property tax relief: A state programme that reimburses part of the bill for low-income owners aged 65 or older, disabled owners, and disabled veterans and their surviving spouses.
- Property tax freeze: Counties and cities may adopt a freeze that holds the bill for owners aged 65 or older within an income limit at its qualifying-year amount. Adoption is local.
Where you buy inside Tennessee changes the bill
A statewide average hides its extremes. Where they show up in Tennessee:
- Davidson County: Nashville, a consolidated city-county with general and urban services district rates that differ inside the same county
- Shelby County: Memphis, where county and city rates stack to produce the highest combined burden in the state
- Williamson County: the affluent suburbs south of Nashville, where high values meet a comparatively low rate
Tennessee and its neighbours
The same $256,800 — the Tennessee median — taxed at each neighbouring state's average rate:
- Kentucky at 0.77%: about $1,977 a year, roughly $577 more than the $1,400 a Tennessee owner would pay on the same value.
- Virginia at 0.74%: about $1,900 a year, roughly $500 more than the $1,400 a Tennessee owner would pay on the same value.
- North Carolina at 0.7%: about $1,798 a year, roughly $398 more than the $1,400 a Tennessee owner would pay on the same value.
- Georgia at 0.81%: about $2,080 a year, roughly $680 more than the $1,400 a Tennessee owner would pay on the same value.
- Alabama at 0.38%: about $976 a year, roughly $424 less than the $1,400 a Tennessee owner would pay on the same value.
- Mississippi at 0.74%: about $1,900 a year, roughly $500 more than the $1,400 a Tennessee owner would pay on the same value.
- Arkansas at 0.57%: about $1,464 a year, roughly $64 more than the $1,400 a Tennessee owner would pay on the same value.
- Missouri at 0.88%: about $2,260 a year, roughly $860 more than the $1,400 a Tennessee owner would pay on the same value.
Appealing a Tennessee assessment
If the assessed value on your Tennessee home overstates what it is worth, the route is an appeal to the county Board of Equalization, then the State Board of Equalization. The window is county boards convene on the first Monday in June, and it is strict — missing it means waiting a full cycle.
Frequently asked questions
When are Tennessee property taxes due, and when must exemption claims be filed?
Bills are issued on 1 October and are payable without interest through the end of February. Applications are filed with the county trustee or city collector, generally by 35 days after the tax due date.
Does this calculator use my exact Tennessee county tax rate?
No — it applies the Tennessee statewide average of 0.55%. Rates are set locally, and the spread inside Tennessee is wide enough to matter: on a $256,800 home, $1,119 a year separates Tennessee from an averagely taxed state before any county variation is counted. Check the parcel's own rate with its Tennessee county before relying on this figure.
Reference sources
Related calculators
How this estimate is built
Principal and interest come from the standard amortization formula, worked through in full on the formula reference page. Property tax, insurance, PMI and loan-program figures layer on top from published assumptions — each one sourced, dated and listed on the methodology page. Every result here is an estimate built from public data, not a quote: confirm the specifics with a lender before relying on it.
For developers
This calculation is also available as a REST API and through an MCP server, both running the same engine as this page — so the figures match by construction rather than by convention. No key required.