11 Florida Sales Tax Breaks Worth Planning Your Shopping Around

A Tampa mom rolls a cart of diapers, batteries, and a life jacket past the Publix registers and owes no sales tax on any of it.

Her neighbor pushed the same cart in 2022 and got taxed on all three.

Florida rewrote a stack of tax rules between then and now.

These are the tax-free windows Floridians can plan a shopping trip around.

Note: This is general information, not tax advice. Sales tax holiday dates and covered items are subject to change. Double-check current details with the Florida Department of Revenue.

Back-to-School Month

Florida’s back-to-school sales tax holiday runs a full month, from July 20 through Aug. 20.

Clothes, shoes, wallets, and bags ring up tax-free at $100 or less per item.

School supplies drop the tax at $50 and under.

Personal computers and accessories qualify up to $1,500, so that new laptop for a Seminole County freshman counts.

Our advice?

Skip the first Saturday of back-to-school tax-free month if the crowds get to you.

Stores along the I-4 corridor get picked over fast once the rush hits.

Hunting, Fishing, and Camping

Come Sept. 1, Florida opens a hunting, fishing, and camping sales tax holiday that runs to New Year’s Eve.

Four months.

Tents aren’t taxed at $200 or less, and sleeping bags, camp stoves, hammocks, and folding chairs qualify at $50 and under.

Rods and reels run tax-free at $75 apiece, or $150 for a set.

Lanterns and flashlights count up to $30.

Firearms, ammunition, and suppressors carry no price cap at all this year.

Load the truck before a Fakahatchee Strand trip or an opening-day dove hunt.

Hurricane Supplies, Year-Round

Hurricane season in Florida runs June through November, and the prep gear stopped being a two-week tax break deal.

It’s tax-free year-round now.

Batteries, portable generators, gas cans, tarps, and tie-down anchors ring up with no sales tax any month you buy them.

Smoke detectors, carbon monoxide alarms, fire extinguishers, life jackets, sunscreen, and bug spray join the list.

So, buy a generator from Home Depot in June, not the day a cone points at Tampa Bay.

Shoppers empty the shelves the second a storm gets a name.

Impact Windows and Doors

Homeowners hardening a Florida house against wind can claim a sales tax refund on impact-resistant windows, doors, and garage doors.

The refund runs through June 30, 2029.

It caps at $500 per homestead property.

But there’s a catch: The home has to be your homestead property.

Its just value, the number the county uses for market value, has to sit at $700,000 or less.

You buy the impact glass, keep the receipt, then apply to the state for the money back.

For a Cape Coral or Punta Gorda house that took Hurricane Ian’s punch, that’s a straight discount on the next upgrade.

Propane Tanks, Grill Size

Small propane tanks lost their sales tax in Florida for good.

Any tank holding 20 pounds or less qualifies, which covers the standard grill cylinder.

That’s the tank you swap at the Circle K cage or refill at Tractor Supply.

It also covers the little green camp bottles for a weekend at Ocala National Forest.

Portable gas cans already ride tax-free too.

Fire up the smoker without the state taking a cut of your fuel.

Diapers and Kids’ Clothes

Diapers stay tax-free in Florida every day of the year, single-use or cloth.

Children’s clothing and shoes for kids under 5 ring up the same way, permanently.

That covers the Huggies mega-box at Walmart and a rack of toddler tees at Target.

Reusable diaper inserts count too.

A Jacksonville parent buying a size up every few months keeps that sales tax in their pocket all year.

Baby Gear

The big baby purchases come tax-free in Florida too, not just the disposables.

Cribs, strollers, playpens, and baby monitors sell tax-free year-round.

Car seat carriers, changing tables, breast pumps, bottles, and wipes come off the tax as well.

Kit out a nursery at Target or Walmart, and the state adds nothing at the register.

For a first-time family in Wesley Chapel, that’s a few hundred dollars off a pricey list.

Adult Incontinence Supplies

At the other end of life, the break holds up in Florida just the same.

Adult incontinence undergarments, pads, and liners are permanently exempt.

That’s Depend and Poise off the tax at Publix or CVS, no coupon, no calendar.

For a caretaker in Sarasota buying a case every couple of weeks, the savings stack up fast.

Few stores flag it at the shelf, so many shoppers still pay tax they don’t owe.

Gun Safes and Locks

Gun safes and the gear that locks a firearm away sell tax-free in Florida now.

Lockboxes, cases, trigger locks, and cable locks all count as firearm safety devices, and none of them carry an end date.

Pick up a biometric safe at Academy Sports or a cable lock at Ace Hardware and pay only the sticker price.

A Panhandle hunter storing rifles away from the grandkids skips the tax on the safe every time.

Gold and Silver Bullion

Coin buyers in Florida used to owe tax on any bullion purchase under $500.

Gone now.

Since Aug. 1, 2025, gold, silver, and platinum bullion sell tax-free at any amount.

A single silver Eagle counts now, not just a $600 bar.

That’s a break for coin shops from Tampa to a Fort Lauderdale bourse table.

Palladium still gets taxed, so check the metal before you buy.

State Park Admission

State park entry in Florida shed its sales tax too.

Admission to spots like Wekiwa Springs, Myakka River, and Bahia Honda rings up tax-free now, and the annual pass rides the same exemption.

Pack your cooler, grab your kayak, and head for the springs on a Saturday.