Yes, there is tax on toothpaste in most U.S. states. It’s classified as a grooming and hygiene product, which keeps it on the taxable side of the line even in states that exempt groceries, prescription drugs, or over-the-counter medicine. State sales tax rates typically run between 4% and 7.25%, and local taxes often push the total higher. A small number of states exempt toothpaste, and five states have no sales tax at all.
Why Most States Tax It
Sales tax applies to tangible personal property, and toothpaste fits squarely in that category. States generally group it with shampoo, soap, and deodorant under a grooming and hygiene label. That classification is what keeps it taxable even when a state exempts food or medicine.
Under the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement, member states can choose to treat toothpaste as a grooming and hygiene product or as an oral healthcare product for human use. Most member states pick the first, keeping it fully taxable.
States Where Toothpaste Is Not Taxed
Five states impose no state-level sales tax at all: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon. In those states, toothpaste rings up at the shelf price. Alaska is the exception within the group, because it allows local governments to levy their own sales taxes, so shoppers in some Alaskan cities and boroughs still see a charge at checkout.
Pennsylvania is the standout among states that do have a sales tax. It specifically exempts toothpaste, toothbrushes, tooth cleaners, and dental floss. That’s unusual: neighboring New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, and New York all tax toothpaste at the full state rate, even when it contains medicinal ingredients.
If you’re shopping anywhere not listed above, the safe assumption is that toothpaste is taxable. Rules do shift as state legislatures debate expanding hygiene exemptions, so a quick check of your state’s department of revenue site is worth the two minutes.
Medicated and Prescription Toothpaste
Some states that tax regular toothpaste exempt tubes that qualify as a drug or medicine. The distinction usually turns on whether the product carries a “Drug Facts” panel, the standardized label the FDA requires on over-the-counter drugs. In Texas, for example, medicated toothpaste labeled with a Drug Facts panel is exempt as an OTC drug, while a cosmetic whitening paste is not.
Prescription-strength fluoride toothpaste is its own category. Nearly every state exempts prescription drugs from sales tax. If your dentist writes a prescription for a high-fluoride toothpaste to treat a specific condition, that product is exempt in most jurisdictions, not because it’s toothpaste but because it’s a prescription. Minnesota and South Dakota make this distinction explicit: over-the-counter toothpaste is taxable, but toothpaste dispensed by prescription qualifies for the drug exemption.
In practice, the toothpaste most people buy at a grocery store or pharmacy does not carry a Drug Facts panel and is not prescribed. It’s taxed.
Local Taxes on Top of the State Rate
Even if you know your state’s sales tax rate, your receipt may show a higher number. Counties, cities, and special districts frequently add their own sales taxes, and those apply to the same taxable goods, toothpaste included.
Combined rates can climb well past the state figure. A shopper in parts of Louisiana, Tennessee, or Arkansas might pay over 9% on a tube. Someone in a rural part of a lower-tax state might pay closer to 5%. A $5 tube costs meaningfully different amounts depending on where you buy it.
Buying Toothpaste Online
Ordering online usually doesn’t help. Since the Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, states can require out-of-state online retailers to collect sales tax once they exceed a sales threshold, commonly $100,000 in annual sales or 200 transactions in the state.1Supreme Court of the United States. South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. Every state with a sales tax has adopted economic nexus rules based on that decision.2Sales Tax Institute. Economic Nexus State by State Chart Major retailers like Amazon, Walmart, and Target collect sales tax in all applicable states.
If you buy from a smaller online seller that doesn’t collect your state’s sales tax, you technically owe use tax at the same rate, reported on your state income tax return. Few people report individual toothpaste purchases, but the obligation exists, and some states provide a lookup table based on income so you can estimate the total across untaxed purchases for the year.
How Coupons Change the Taxed Amount
Toothpaste is one of the most commonly couponed items in the grocery aisle, and the type of coupon affects the tax. Store coupons, funded entirely by the retailer, reduce the price that gets taxed. A $1 store coupon on a $4 tube means you pay sales tax on $3.
Manufacturer coupons work differently. Because the manufacturer reimburses the retailer for the discount, most states treat the full pre-coupon price as the taxable amount. That same $4 tube with a $1 manufacturer coupon is taxed on $4 in the majority of states. The reasoning is that the retailer still receives the full price, partly from you and partly from the manufacturer, so the full amount counts as a taxable sale.
HSA, FSA, and SNAP Won’t Cover It
You cannot use a Health Savings Account or Flexible Spending Account to buy toothpaste. IRS Publication 502 explicitly states that the cost of toothbrushes and toothpaste is a nondeductible personal expense, not a qualifying medical expense.3Internal Revenue Service. Publication 502 (2025), Medical and Dental Expenses The IRS treats toothpaste as general personal hygiene rather than a treatment for a specific medical condition, so HSA and FSA funds cannot cover it, even after the CARES Act expanded eligibility for many other over-the-counter products in 2020.4Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 502, Medical and Dental Expenses
SNAP benefits are also off the table. Federal regulations classify toothpaste as a non-food personal care item, in the same category as shampoo and deodorant. It has to be purchased with other funds.