Kentucky Sales Tax

Kentucky Sales Tax Guide (2026)

One rate of 6% with no local tax anywhere, attached to a services base that has been re-cut in almost every legislative session since 2022.[1]

5 min read • Reviewed by Tax Advisory Team • Verified • Sources: KY DOR & KRS
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Quick Facts

Sales Tax at a Glance

Statewide rate
6% [1]
Local sales tax
None [1]
Services added
From Jan 1, 2023 [2]
Small-seller threshold
$12,000 [3]
Economic nexus
$100k, no transaction test [4]
Transaction test ended
Aug 1, 2026 [4]
SaaS
Taxable [5]
Groceries
Exempt [6]
Sourcing
Where the service is received [7]
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The rate is simple; the taxable services list is not

Kentucky added roughly three dozen service categories to its tax base from 1 January 2023, pulling in photographers, web designers, event planners, trainers, investigators and software vendors that had never registered before.[2]

Website design & hosting Photography & photofinishing Event planning & venue rental Personal training & recreation Security, investigation & background checks Prewritten software access services
The base keeps moving. Marketing services were repealed in 2023, testing services were narrowed the same year, the small-seller threshold doubled in 2025, and data brokering and pay phone services joined the base on 1 August 2026. A taxability conclusion reached two years ago is not safe.[8]
Estimate

Kentucky sales tax calculator

Kentucky · statewide rate 6%
There is no local sales tax anywhere in Kentucky.
Rate applied–
Estimated sales tax–
Total with tax–

Estimate only. Local transient room and occupational taxes exist outside the sales tax and are not modelled here.[1] Talk to CrownGlobe about service taxability.

Rates & Registration

Kentucky Sales Tax Rates, Nexus & the de minimis threshold

Kentucky rate structure

State sales & use tax6%
City, county or district sales taxNone
Maximum combined rate6%
Small-seller service threshold$12,000 a year
Threshold once exceededPermanent

The small-seller threshold covers only the newer enumerated services. It does not shelter sales of goods, digital property, or the longer-standing taxable service categories.[3]

Who must register

Either trigger applies: economic nexus at $100,000 or more in gross receipts from Kentucky sales, or any physical presence. The alternative 200-transaction test was repealed effective 1 August 2026 for remote retailers and marketplace providers.[4]

Bundling is unforgiving: where one charge covers both taxable and non-taxable work and the components are not itemised on the invoice, the entire charge is taxable. Separate statement is not a formality here.[9]

Compliance

Sales Tax Registration and Filing

Register through the Kentucky Department of Revenue before making taxable sales.

How to register

  • Confirm nexus or threshold→
  • Kentucky business registration→
  • Sales & use tax account issued→
  • Configure taxable services→
  • File electronically

Buyers of a retail business should obtain a tax clearance letter before completing the purchase, because successor liability can attach for the seller’s unpaid sales tax.[10]

Filing & due dates

FrequencyApplies whenDue
MonthlyStandard assignment20th of next month
AnnualSmallest filersJan 20
AcceleratedOver $10,000 average monthly25th of each month

Late filing costs 2% of the tax due per 30 days up to 20% with a $10 minimum, and late payment carries the same 2% per 30 days up to 20%, plus statutory interest that cannot be waived.[11]

Pricing

Sales Tax & Nexus Pricing

Multi Tax Filing – $50 Per State/Month

ServiceWhat’s Included
Multi-state registrationNexus tracking, permit setup, and state agency coordination.
Monthly filingSales tax returns filed in every registered state.
Exemption & audit supportCertificate handling and notice response.
Get Started with Multi-State Filing
Taxability

Taxable vs. exempt

Kentucky taxes goods, digital property and a long enumerated list of services at a flat 6%, with groceries and a narrow set of statutory exemptions outside the base.[1]

Generally taxable

  • Tangible retail goodsKRS 139.200
  • Prewritten software access servicesSaaS, from Jan 1, 2023
  • Website design & hostingKRS 139.200(2)
  • Data brokering servicesFrom Aug 1, 2026
  • Digital propertyKRS 139.200 / 139.310
  • Janitorial & landscaping servicesIncl. power washing & snow removal

Generally exempt

  • Food & food ingredientsKRS 139.485
  • Small-seller services under $12,000KRS 139.470(23)–(24)
  • Marketing servicesRepealed from the base
  • Currency & bullion as legal tenderKRS 139.480(37)
  • Qualified data centre equipmentKRS 139.499
  • Religious institution salesKRS 139.495(6), from Aug 2026
Worth flagging: the $12,000 small-seller threshold is a one-way ratchet. Once a business exceeds it in any calendar year, every further dollar is taxable for that year and for all future years, and falling back below $12,000 does not restore the exemption.[3]
Reference

Glossary of key terms

Prewritten software access services
Kentucky’s statutory term for SaaS: the right of access to prewritten software the seller keeps possession of.
Enumerated service
A service specifically listed in statute as taxable; services not listed remain outside the base.
De minimis threshold
The $12,000 annual receipts level below which certain enumerated services are exempt, permanent once exceeded.
Digital property
A separate statutory category taxed alongside goods and services in Kentucky.
Bundled transaction
A single un-itemised charge covering taxable and non-taxable work, which Kentucky taxes in full.
Successor liability
The rule making a buyer of a retail business liable for the seller’s unpaid sales tax absent a clearance letter.
FAQ

Sales Tax FAQs

6% statewide. Kentucky authorises no city, county or district sales tax, so 6% is the combined rate at every address. Local transient room and occupational taxes exist but are separate levies.

Roughly three dozen categories were added from 1 January 2023, including website design and hosting, photography, event planning and venue rental, personal training and recreational instruction, security and investigation services, background checks, parking, interior design and prewritten software access services.

Receipts of $12,000 or less a year from the newer enumerated services are exempt. Once you exceed it in any calendar year, all further receipts are taxable for that year and permanently thereafter, even if receipts later fall back below the threshold.

Yes. Prewritten software access services became taxable on 1 January 2023, and the Department has confirmed that software with artificial intelligence features is still prewritten software rather than custom software.

$100,000 or more in gross receipts from Kentucky sales. The alternative 200-transaction test was repealed effective 1 August 2026 for remote retailers and marketplace providers.

No. Food and food ingredients for human consumption are exempt. Alcoholic beverages, tobacco, candy, dietary supplements, soft drinks and prepared food are carved out and remain taxable at 6%.

Verification

Sources & methodology

  1. KY DOR – Sales & Use Tax
  2. KY DOR – Sales Tax Facts June 2022
  3. KY DOR – Sales Tax Facts June 2024
  4. KY DOR – Sales Tax Facts Summer 2026
  5. KY DOR – Sales Tax Facts Winter 2025-2026
  6. KY DOR – Prepared Food Guidance
  7. Kentucky TaxAnswers – Sourcing Guidelines
  8. KY DOR – Sales Tax Facts June 2023
  9. KRS Chapter 139 – Sales & Use Taxes
  10. KY DOR – Sales Tax Facts June 2025
  11. KY DOR – Penalties, Interest & Fees
  12. Kentucky HB 8 (2022 Session)
  13. Kentucky HB 757 (2026 Session)
  14. KY DOR – Accelerated Filer Regulation
Methodology: Every rate, threshold and effective date is taken from the Kentucky Department of Revenue’s Sales Tax Facts newsletters, enrolled bill text or the Kentucky Revised Statutes. Superseded guidance, including pre-2023 software rulings still posted in the guidance library, is disregarded.
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