California vs New York Sales Tax: 8.99% vs 8.54%, Nexus 2026

For low-revenue sellers: nexus triggers first in both states because of its threshold. If you cross that first, you register there first.

On rate: New York is friendlier for customers with a combined state + local rate of 8.54% vs 8.99%.

New York also adds a 100-transaction trigger that California doesn't have.

California sales tax nexus and economic nexus threshold: CDTFA guidance says remote retailers must register and collect California use tax when total combined sales of tangible personal property for delivery into California exceed $500,000 during the preceding or current calendar year. California uses a sales-only threshold — no transaction-count test. AB 147 replaced the earlier $100,000/200-transaction Wayfair threshold with the current $500,000 standard, and related-person sales count toward the threshold. CDTFA marketplace guidance says sellers include both direct California sales and marketplace-facilitated sales when testing the $500,000 threshold, but sellers whose California sales are entirely facilitated by registered marketplace facilitators may not need separate registration for those marketplace transactions. Direct-to-consumer sales outside a marketplace remain the seller's own collection responsibility once California nexus is met.

New York sales tax nexus and economic nexus threshold: a business with no New York physical presence is presumed to be a vendor when, in the immediately preceding four sales tax quarters, its gross receipts from tangible personal property delivered into New York exceed $500,000 AND it made more than 100 such sales into New York. Unlike most states, New York uses AND logic -- both thresholds must be met. Gross receipts include taxable and exempt tangible-personal-property sales without expense deductions, and sales transactions include invoices, sales slips, contracts, or other sale memoranda, including sales for resale. New York says marketplace sales should be included in the threshold calculation; after crossing, a remote seller files for registration within 30 days and begins collection 20 days later. Marketplace providers collect New York State and local sales tax on facilitated taxable tangible-personal-property sales delivered to New York, and marketplace sellers remain responsible for non-facilitated sales and taxable transactions outside the marketplace-provider rule. New York Tax Department source data last retrieved 2026-06-08.

Use the nexus calculator to check exactly which of California and New York you've already triggered. Then read each state's full guide: