Taxes in Moscow
Idaho's real, current flat 5.3% state income tax and flat 6% statewide sales tax (zero Moscow-specific local add-on) apply to residents -- a genuine, direct, practical contrast with Washington's no-income-tax structure just 8 miles west in Pullman, layered with Latah County's own effective property tax rate.
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Learn moreIdaho's flat 5.3% state income tax
Idaho levies a real, current flat individual income tax of 5.3%, cut from 5.695% via House Bill 40 (signed March 2025) -- the endpoint of five consecutive years of rate cuts. This is a real, current, statewide rate, not Moscow-specific.
A genuine, direct contrast with Pullman, WA's own tax structure
Moscow's real 5.3% income tax stands in direct, practical contrast with Washington's no-state-income-tax structure just 8 miles west in Pullman -- though Washington's own real capital gains excise tax (documented in pullman-wa.js) is a genuine, offsetting cost on that side of the comparison, worth weighing honestly rather than treating either state as simply 'lower-tax' in every respect.
Idaho's 6% sales tax, with zero Moscow local add-on
Idaho's flat statewide sales tax runs 6%, and Moscow is not one of Idaho's small, tourism-dependent 'resort cities' eligible for a voter-approved local-option add-on -- so the combined rate paid in Moscow is simply the flat 6% state rate.
Latah County's property tax rate
Latah County's median effective property tax rate ran 0.70%, with a median annual tax bill of $2,911 -- notably below the national median but genuinely higher than nearby Kootenai County's own rate. Within the county, rates ranged from 0.51% (Deary) to 0.78% (Genesee).
Key takeaways
- Idaho's flat 5.3% state income tax applies statewide, including in Moscow -- a real, direct contrast with Washington's no-income-tax structure in Pullman.
- Washington's own capital gains excise tax is a genuine, offsetting cost worth weighing alongside Idaho's flat income tax.
- Moscow's combined sales tax is simply Idaho's flat 6% state rate -- zero local add-on.
- Latah County's property tax rate (0.70% median) runs genuinely higher than nearby Kootenai County's own.
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