Sales Tax in Memphis, Tennessee in 2025

We'll walk you through how the sales tax rate is determined for Memphis and address some common questions you may have. We'll also cover how to collect, audit, and remit sales tax in Memphis.

Plus, we’ll share the best solution that will ensure you are always compliant across the entire sales tax lifecycle.

Disclaimer: Our sales tax data is updated on a quarterly basis.

Memphis Sales Tax Rate 2025

Memphis is located in Shelby County in Tennessee, United States, and has a sales tax rate of 9.25%-9.75%. This includes local and state sales tax rates.

Here is the breakdown of the Memphis's sales tax:

This rate applies to the following zip codes in Memphis:

How Does the Memphis Sales Tax Compare to the Rest of Tennessee?

Memphis’s 9.75% sales tax rate is the highest rate you can find in Tennessee. It is 1.25% higher than Tennessee’s lowest rate, which is 8.50% and can be found in Mountain, among other places.

To give you a better idea, here’s a comparison of Memphis sales tax rates with a few other cities in Tennessee:

What Creates Sales Tax Nexus in Memphis?

 Memphis follows the Tennessee state tax law and doesn’t have its own separate nexus rules.

Read More: Check out this detailed guide on Sales Tax in Tennessee.

Tennessee sales tax nexus rules are:

• Economic Nexus: Out-of-state businesses that have sold more than $100,000 in the past 12 months.

• Physical Location: Businesses with stores, offices, warehouses, or inventory. Using company-owned trucks or contract carriers can also create a sales tax nexus. 

• Employee Location: Businesses with employees, independent contractors, and agents in the state.

• Tangible Personal Property: Businesses that rent and lease tangible personal property. Repairing, installing, and assembling tangible personal property, even if you use an agent or independent contractor, also creates a sales tax nexus in Tennessee.

• Events: Businesses participating in promotional activities, including trade shows. Vendors who only attend these special events occasionally and haven’t registered for sales tax in Tennessee can apply for a Special Event Vendor Registration.

What Products Are Exempt from Memphis Sales Tax?

Memphis doesn’t have any special exemptions. All sales tax exemptions are granted by the Tennessee sales tax law.

Some tax-exempt items in Tennessee are:

• Drugs prescribed by a licensed physician. It also includes medical equipment, like nebulizers, prescribed by a licensed physician and for home use.
• Broadband equipment purchased by an internet service provider.
• Industry machinery and supplies purchased by a manufacturer.
• Health and fitness clubs.
• Rental of films, transcriptions, and recordings to radio stations and television stations that have the certificate from the Federal Communications Commission.
• Gas, electricity, fuel, oil, coal, and other energy fuels sold to the consumer for residential use.
• Textbooks, workbooks, newspapers, and come periodicals.
• Specified digital goods that are not taxable in their tangible form (electronically transferred digital audio-visual works).

Additionally, Tennessee state tax law offers an entity-based tax exemption where some purchasers, such as qualified farmers and manufacturers, can buy certain items tax-free or at a discounted rate. 

All products bought by government entities and non-profit organizations are also tax-exempt.

Who Needs a Sales Permit in Memphis?

Anybody who sells, rents, or leases a tangible personal property, even if it’s a tax-exempt product, should apply for a certificate of registration.

Businesses should register their business if they generate over $400 a month from selling tangible personal property or exceed $100 a month in sales of taxable services. This also applies if you’re a remote seller making more than $100,000 in the state. 

Meanwhile, wholesalers, manufacturers, and retailers will get a Tennessee Certificate of Resale upon registering their business. 

Sales tax permits are usually granted by the state. You can register for your Tennessee seller’s permit at TNTAP.

How to Collect Sales Tax in Memphis

According to Tennessee sales tax law, here’s how you can collect sales tax on:

• Intrastate Tennessee sales: Tennessee uses origin-based sales tax sourcing for in-state sales. This means that sales tax is charged at the rate of the location from which the order originates.

So, if your online store’s headquarters is in Memphis, Tennessee, and you sell to a buyer in Nashville, Tennessee, then you’d charge the sales tax rate of Memphis, where the sale started.

• Interstate Tennessee sales: For interstate sales, Tennessee is a destination-based sales tax sourcing state. 

So, if you are located in South Dakota but make a sale to a buyer in Memphis, Tennessee, you would charge the sales tax rate at your buyer’s location in Memphis, Tennessee.

However, this doesn’t apply to digital products, which are subject to the 7.00% Tennessee state rate and a local rate across the state.

Learn more about origin-based and destination-based sales tax sourcing here.

How to File and Pay Sales Tax in Memphis

There are multiple options to file and pay Memphis sales tax returns:

• File and pay online: At the TN TaxPayer Access Point (TNTAP).
• File and pay by mail: File out Form SLS-450 State and Local Sales Tax Return and mail it in.
• Or, automate your sales tax filing with Zamp. You can stay compliant across the United States — all thanks to our white-glove onboarding, precise calculations, and easy registrations!

About the author

Zamp Team

The Zamp Team consists of experienced writers and editors who are dedicated to researching sales tax topics to help readers make smart decisions about their business and sales tax compliance. Collectively, the team has over 200 years of sales tax experience.