Sheet PA · 2026 rules
Pennsylvania Property Tax Calculator
Pennsylvania has no statewide assessment ratio: each county applies its own predetermined ratio, sometimes to a decades-old base-year value, and the school district, county and municipality each levy their own millage on the result.
Rules verified 10 primary sources Editorial policy
Estimate your 2026 Pennsylvania bill
- Tax — School district —
- Tax — County —
- Tax — Municipal —
- Credits subtracted —
- Fixed charges added —
Different allowances for different levies need separately approved taxable bases in the prepared levy worksheet. The extra exemption above subtracts the same assessed-dollar amount from every modeled levy.
How Pennsylvania turns value into a tax bill
| Step | Pennsylvania rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Value | Counties value property at actual (market) value, often as of a base year, then apply their predetermined ratio. | [1] |
| Assessment | Approved assessment ratio you enter (County assessment ratio)Each county sets a predetermined ratio up to 100% and may assess on an old base year. The State Tax Equalization Board’s common level ratios (2025 ratios, used from July 1, 2026) range from 5.6 to 94.3 among counties without a reassessment flag and are officially for appeals; five recently reassessed counties are marked to use 100 from January 1, 2026. If your notice already shows assessed value, enter 100 and the assessed value. | [1][6] |
| Annual limit | No statewide cap on an individual assessment. Act 1 index limits school tax rate increases instead, so they are reflected in the millage you enter. | |
| Exemption | School district homestead exclusion: the actual approved amount you enter off assessed value; School district.Owner-occupied primary residence approved by the county as homestead property. The dollar amount is set each year by the school district (fixed $ of assessed value, capped at one-half of the median assessed homestead value). There is no statewide figure, so this is a required user input. | [2][3] |
| Exemption | County or municipal homestead exclusion: the actual approved amount you enter off assessed value; County, Municipal.Local option. A county or municipality may exclude a fixed dollar amount of assessed value from each homestead, up to one-half of the median assessed homestead value. Most do not. | [2][3] |
| Exemption | Disabled veterans’ real estate tax exemption: 100% off market value; all levies.Pennsylvania resident, honorably discharged, served during a period of war or armed conflict. The veteran must be blind, paraplegic, or have lost two or more limbs from service, or be rated 100% permanently and totally disabled (service-connected) by the VA. The home must be the principal dwelling, owned solely, with a spouse, or by the entireties. Financial need is determined by the State Veterans' Commission (presumed at annual income of $114,637 or less). Also covers the unmarried surviving spouse with need. | [4][5] |
| Rate | School district: local rate — you enter it.School district real estate tax. | [2] |
| Rate | County: local rate — you enter it.County real estate tax. | [2] |
| Rate | Municipal: local rate — you enter it.Municipal real estate tax. | [2] |
Pennsylvania property tax rules in brief
Pennsylvania has no statewide assessment ratio. Each county assesses at its own predetermined ratio of up to 100% of actual value, often using an old base-year market value.1
The State Tax Equalization Board's 2025 common level ratios apply from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 and are for assessment appeals only, not for setting value. Counties that recently reassessed, such as Lackawanna, are marked to use 100 from January 1, 2026.6
The school district, the county and the municipality each levy their own millage. A homestead exclusion removes a fixed dollar amount of assessed value from an approved homestead,2 and no exclusion may exceed one-half of the median assessed value of homestead property in the taxing jurisdiction.3
Wartime veterans who are 100% permanently disabled from service, blind, paraplegic or double amputees, and who show financial need, pay no real estate tax on their principal dwelling.4 The State Veterans' Commission presumes need at annual income of $114,637 or less, a level set January 1, 2025.5
The state Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program pays eligible homeowners after the tax is paid; it does not reduce the bill this worksheet estimates. It covers people 65 or older, widows and widowers 50 or older, and people with disabilities 18 or older with household income of $48,110 or less. The standard rebate runs from $1,000 for income up to $8,550 down to $380 for income of $19,241 to $48,110, and supplemental rebates of $190 to $500 are added automatically for the most burdened owners.7 Half of Social Security income is excluded from household income.8
Rebate claims for 2025 are being accepted through December 31, 2026, the date on the Department of Revenue's program page, although the printed PA-1000 booklet shows June 30, 2026.78 Since Act 7 of 2023, the income limits rise each year with the Consumer Price Index.9
Some cities tax land more heavily than buildings. For 2026, Allentown's city real estate tax is 24.4705 mills on land and 4.6293 mills on buildings and improvements, so a single municipal millage will not reproduce an Allentown bill; calculate the land and building portions separately and enter their combined tax as the municipal line.10
Worked example
Illustrative: 49.3% ratio (Allegheny County’s 2025 common level ratio, used only as an example), a 10,000 school exclusion and 20 / 5 / 3 mills. Assessed 147,900. School (147,900 − 10,000) × 0.020 = 2,758.00; county 739.50; municipal 443.70. Total 3,941.20.
| Line | Taxable value | Tax |
|---|---|---|
| School district at 20 mills | $137,900.00 | $2,758.00 |
| County at 5 mills | $147,900.00 | $739.50 |
| Municipal at 3 mills | $147,900.00 | $443.70 |
| Annual total | $3,941.20 |
Left to your local bill
- Property Tax/Rent Rebate (PA-1000): a $380 to $1,000 standard rebate for eligible owners with household income of $48,110 or less (2025 claim year), paid by the state after the tax is paid.
- Local senior and low-income relief programs, such as Philadelphia's LOOP and senior tax freeze.
- Farmstead exclusions on qualifying farm buildings.
- Split-rate (land versus building) municipal taxes such as Allentown's; enter a blended municipal amount or calculate the two portions separately.
- Discounts for early payment and penalties for late payment, which vary by taxing body.
- Act 1 referendum and index limits on school tax increases; they constrain the millage you enter, not your bill.
- Per-capita, occupation and other non-property taxes, and trash or stormwater fees billed alongside the property tax.
Census context, not a rate
American Community Survey 2020–2024: median owner-occupied value $254,500 (±$767), median real-estate taxes $3,311 (±$12). Dividing one by the other gives 1.30% for Pennsylvania. Tables B25077 and B25103; why it is only context.
Sources
- palegis.us53 Pa.C.S. 8842(a), read .
“The county assessment office shall assess real property at a value based upon an established predetermined ratio which may not exceed 100% of actual value. The ratio shall be established and determined by the board of county commissioners by ordinance.”
- palegis.us53 Pa.C.S. 8583(a), read .
“The governing body of a political subdivision may exclude from taxation a fixed dollar amount of the assessed value of each homestead property in the political subdivision consistent with section 8586 (relating to limitations).”
- palegis.us53 Pa.C.S. 8586(a)(1), read .
“no governing body of a political subdivision shall authorize an exclusion for homestead property in excess of the amount which is one-half of the median assessed value of homestead property in the political subdivision.”
- palegis.us51 Pa.C.S. 8902(a), 8904(1), read .
“Any resident of this Commonwealth shall be exempt from the payment of all real estate taxes levied upon any building, including the land upon which it stands, occupied by that person as a principal dwelling, if all of the following requirements are met”
- pa.govPa. Dept. of Military and Veterans Affairs, Real Estate Tax Exemption, read .
“On January 1, 2025, the State Veterans' Commission adjusted the presumptive need level for the Disabled Veterans' Real Estate Tax Exemption upward to $114,637 in accordance with state law.”
- dced.pa.govPa. State Tax Equalization Board, 2025 Common Level Ratios - Certified (May 20, 2026), read .
“2025 COMMON LEVEL RATIOS - Certified Ratios to be used from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027 … ^Lackawanna Use 100 – Jan. 1, 2026 … CLR’s are to be used in Appeals ONLY, not to create value.”
- pa.govPa. Department of Revenue, Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program, read .
“In addition to age requirements, to qualify for the Property Tax/Rent Rebate, your household income must be $48,110 or less annually. … Applications for 2025 Property Tax/Rent Rebates are being accepted. The deadline to submit your rebate application is December 31, 2026. Applications postmarked by that date will be accepted for processing.”
- pa.govPa. Department of Revenue, 2025 PA-1000 Property Tax or Rent Rebate booklet, read .
“Applicants can exclude one-half of all Social Security income. … Application deadline: JUNE 30, 2026”
- palegis.usAct 7 of 2023 (HB 1100), Taxpayer Relief Act section 1304(a)(4), read .
“The household income limits contained in paragraphs (2)(i) and (ii) and (3) shall be increased by a percentage equal to the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers statistics published by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.”
- allentownpa.govCity of Allentown, 2026 Final Budget Narrative (City Real Estate Tax), read .
“The bifurcated rate taxes land at 24.4705 mills, and 4.6293 mills for buildings and improvements.”
Bordering jurisdictions
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