The Virginia property tax calculator gives you a fast estimate of your annual and monthly property-tax bill based on your home value and your locality’s average effective rate. Whether you are buying in Northern Virginia, budgeting for a Richmond townhouse, or comparing cities before a relocation, the tool lets you run the numbers in seconds — no spreadsheet needed.
How the calculation works
Virginia is a True Value assessment state, meaning localities are required to assess property at 100% of fair market value. There is no assessment ratio discount the way Alabama (10%) or California (inflation-capped) uses. The local millage is then expressed as a dollar rate per $100 of assessed value — the standard Virginia notation.
The effective rate used in this calculator converts that local rate into a straightforward percentage:
Effective rate (%) = local rate ($) per $100 of assessed value
Because assessed value equals market value in Virginia, the formula simplifies to:
Annual tax = home value × (effective rate ÷ 100)
Monthly tax is the annual figure divided by 12. The ”$ per $100” figure the calculator shows alongside each result is exactly the figure you would see on a Virginia tax rate table.
Worked example
Suppose you purchase a home in Fairfax County for $650,000. Fairfax County’s average effective rate is approximately 1.02%, equivalent to a local rate of $1.02 per $100 of assessed value.
- Annual property tax: $650,000 × 0.0102 = $6,630
- Monthly property tax: $6,630 ÷ 12 = $552.50
- Tax per $100 of assessed value: $1.0200
- Tax per $1,000 of value (mill rate): $10.20
Compare that to the statewide average of 0.82%: the same $650,000 home at the state average would generate an annual bill of roughly $5,330 — a $1,300 per-year difference purely from county location. Meanwhile, in Bath County at 0.36%, the same home would cost only $2,340 per year in property tax, just $195 per month.
| Home value | Locality | Eff. rate | Annual tax | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $400,000 | Statewide avg | 0.82% | $3,280 | $273 |
| $400,000 | Fairfax County | 1.02% | $4,080 | $340 |
| $400,000 | Arlington County | 0.88% | $3,520 | $293 |
| $650,000 | Fairfax County | 1.02% | $6,630 | $553 |
| $650,000 | Norfolk (city) | 1.25% | $8,125 | $677 |
| $400,000 | Bath County | 0.36% | $1,440 | $120 |
All figures are calculated in your browser — nothing is uploaded or stored.
Why Virginia’s property taxes vary so widely by locality
Virginia’s 0.82% statewide average is middling nationally, but within the state the spread is enormous. Northern Virginia localities fund high-quality schools and services with comparatively high rates (Fairfax at 1.02%, Arlington and Alexandria both at 0.88%). Independent cities such as Norfolk, Hampton, and Roanoke — which cannot levy a separate county tax — tend to push their city rates higher (1.22–1.25%) to cover services that county residents receive through two separate governments.
Rural and southwestern counties, by contrast, have lower service demands and lower property values, which combines with modest millage rates to produce very low effective rates (Bath at 0.36%, Scott County at around 0.44%).
Virginia also reassesses property on different cycles: Northern Virginia and Virginia Beach reassess annually, while many rural localities reassess every four years. This means that in a rising market, Northern Virginia homeowners see their assessed value — and tax bill — move upward faster than owners in localities with less frequent reassessments.
What to check before relying on any estimate
Because Virginia rates are set at the locality level and assessed values are updated on varying schedules, the effective rate in this calculator is a useful planning benchmark but not a substitute for the official figure. Before budgeting for a purchase:
- Look up your locality’s current rate — published each year by your city or county treasurer or commissioner of the revenue.
- Confirm your assessed value — find it on your locality’s online real-estate portal or your most recent assessment notice. In a rising market the assessed value may be below current market price if reassessment has not caught up.
- Check for special district overlays — some Northern Virginia communities levy additional service-district fees on top of the base county rate.
- Ask about exemption programs — seniors and people with disabilities in many Virginia localities can reduce or eliminate their real-estate-tax bill through local relief programs.
This calculator gives you the right ballpark for budgeting and comparison; your local assessor and treasurer give you the exact figure.