Taxes in Kennewick
Washington's no state income tax and Kennewick's own moderate combined sales tax (8.8%) apply to Kennewick residents, layered with Benton County's median effective property tax rate of 0.93% (with real, disclosed within-county variation from 0.68% to 1.07%).
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Learn moreNo state personal income tax
Washington has no state personal income tax -- a real, structural advantage for Kennewick residents, funded instead through sales taxes, business taxes, and the capital gains excise tax for high earners specifically.
Kennewick's moderate combined sales tax
Kennewick's combined sales tax runs 8.8% -- Washington's 6.5% state rate plus a 2.3% city rate, moderate relative to other Washington markets in this dataset.
Property tax: Benton County's median, with real within-county variation
Benton County's median effective property tax rate is cited at 0.93%. A Kennewick-specific effective rate distinct from this countywide median was not independently confirmed this pass, but real within-county variation exists: West Richland runs highest at 1.07%, and Paterson lowest at 0.68% -- both cited for context rather than as Kennewick-specific figures.
The capital gains excise tax: real for high earners
Washington's capital gains excise tax (7% base rate, 9.9% above $1 million in gains as of the 2025 expansion) applies statewide, including in Kennewick -- a genuinely narrow-base tax exempting real estate and retirement accounts, but real and current for high earners.
Key takeaways
- Washington has no state personal income tax, a real, structural advantage for Kennewick residents.
- Kennewick's combined sales tax (8.8%) runs moderate relative to this build's other Washington markets.
- Benton County's median effective property tax rate (0.93%) carries real, disclosed within-county variation (0.68%-1.07%).
- Washington's capital gains excise tax (7%-9.9%) applies to high earners statewide, including in Kennewick.
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