Taxes in Roanoke
Virginia's income tax applies identically in Roanoke as everywhere else in the state -- a graduated 2%/3%/5%/5.75% bracket structure that functions, for the overwhelming majority of working filers, as a near-flat 5.75% tax since the top bracket starts at just $17,000 -- while Roanoke's combined sales tax rate (5.3%) sits at Virginia's statewide floor, genuinely lower than Richmond's 6.0% in this same project.
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Learn moreVirginia's Graduated-in-Name, Near-Flat-in-Practice Income Tax
Virginia taxes income on a four-bracket schedule that has been unchanged for decades: 2% on the first $3,000, 3% on $3,001-$5,000, 5% on $5,001-$17,000, and 5.75% on everything above $17,000 -- independently re-verified this session, identical to the figures this project's Richmond record already carries. Because the top bracket starts at just $17,000 of Virginia taxable income, nearly all working income above a very low threshold is taxed at 5.75% -- the bracket structure is nominally graduated but functions, for the overwhelming majority of working filers in Roanoke as much as anywhere else in the state, as a near-flat 5.75% tax.
Roanoke's Combined Sales Tax Rate Sits at Virginia's Statewide Floor
Roanoke's minimum combined 2026 sales tax rate is 5.3% -- Virginia's 4.3% state rate plus the mandatory 1.0% local add-on levied in every Virginia locality. This is Virginia's statewide floor rate: Roanoke does not sit within Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads, Central Virginia, or the Historic Triangle special districts, each of which layers an additional 0.7%-1.7% regional tax on top of the floor. This is why Roanoke's 5.3% runs genuinely below Richmond's 6.0% in this same project -- a real, quantified sales-tax advantage, not a marginal one.
Social Security Is Fully Exempt; the Age Deduction Applies Identically Statewide
Virginia does not tax Social Security benefits at any age. Filers 65 or older can additionally claim an age deduction of up to $12,000, phased out dollar-for-dollar between $50,000-$62,000 (single) or $75,000-$99,000 (married filing jointly) federal adjusted gross income -- both figures apply identically in Roanoke as statewide, per Va. Code Ann. Section 58.1-322.03. See the retiring topic page in the companion file for the fuller retirement-specific picture.
Real Estate and Personal Property Taxes: Genuinely Local, Not Statewide
Unlike the state income tax, Roanoke's real estate tax rate ($1.22 per $100 assessed value in the city, $1.03 in Roanoke County) is set locally and genuinely differs by jurisdiction -- see the property-taxes topic page for the full detail. Virginia also levies a locally-set personal property tax on vehicles, a real and sometimes-surprising cost for newcomers from states without one; the specific current Roanoke-area rate was not independently verified to one precise figure this pass.
No State Estate or Inheritance Tax
Virginia does not levy a state estate tax or inheritance tax -- this applies statewide, including in Roanoke, though Virginia residents with sufficiently large estates may still owe the federal estate tax. This detail should be confirmed against current guidance for anyone making estate-planning decisions on this basis.
Key takeaways
- Virginia's income tax (2%/3%/5%/5.75%, unchanged for decades) applies identically in Roanoke as statewide -- near-flat 5.75% in practice for most working filers since the top bracket starts at just $17,000.
- Roanoke's 5.3% combined sales tax rate sits at Virginia's statewide floor -- genuinely lower than Richmond's 6.0% in this same project, since Roanoke isn't in a special regional taxing district.
- Social Security is fully exempt statewide at any age; the age deduction (up to $12,000, phasing out $50K-$62K single / $75K-$99K MFJ) applies identically in Roanoke as anywhere else in Virginia.
- Real estate tax rates are genuinely local, not statewide: $1.22/$100 in Roanoke City vs. $1.03/$100 in Roanoke County -- see the property-taxes topic page.
- Virginia has no state estate or inheritance tax, applying statewide including in Roanoke.
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