Estate & Inheritance Tax by State Calculator (2026)
Federal exemption is $15M. Your state's may be $1M
Data verified: Aug 2026 · Source: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32
Check estate tax by state for 2026. The federal exemption is $15 million, but Oregon starts at $1 million and two states have outright cliffs.
Your details
Transfers to a surviving spouse are unlimited and untaxed under the marital deduction.
Total estate tax exposure
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Breakdown
✓Everything passing to a surviving spouse is exempt under the unlimited marital deduction, so no tax is due now. The exposure reappears on the second death, when only one exemption is available unless portability was elected.
⚠Massachusetts has a hard cliff. Above — the tax is computed on the entire estate, not just the excess — so crossing it by one dollar creates a bill on the whole amount.
⚠New York has a 105% cliff. Between — and — the exemption phases out rapidly; above that it is gone entirely and the whole estate is taxable from the first dollar.
⚠You owe — in state estate tax but nothing federally — your estate is well under the — federal exemption. This is the most common situation by far, and the one people least expect.
✓No estate tax is due. You are below both the federal exemption of — and your state threshold of —.
Tax across estate sizes
Estate value
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How this is calculated
Estate tax is charged on what you leave; inheritance tax is charged on what someone receives. They are different taxes with different payers, and Maryland is the only state that levies both.
The federal exemption of $15,000,000 per person means very few estates owe anything federally. State thresholds are a different matter entirely — Oregon starts at $1,000,000 and has never been indexed, Massachusetts at $2,000,000, Minnesota and Washington at $3,000,000. An estate that is invisible to the IRS can face a substantial state bill.
Formula
taxableEstate = grossEstate − debts − charitable − administration
− (unlimited marital deduction if applicable)
federal: tax on max(0, taxableEstate − $15,000,000) at up to 40%
state: if estate ≤ exemption → 0
MA cliff: estate > exemption → tax the ENTIRE estate
NY cliff: estate > 105% of exemption → exemption is gone entirely
otherwise: tax the excess over the exemption
The cliff states are the trap. In Massachusetts and New York, crossing the threshold does not tax the excess — it can tax everything.
Worked example
A $7,300,000 estate domiciled in New York, where the exemption is $7,350,000.
Federal exemption$15,000,000 — no federal tax
New York exemption$7,350,000
105% cliff ceilingabout $7,717,500
Estate positionJust under the exemption
New York estate tax$0 — but $400,000 more would cost far more than $400,000
The New York cliff is genuinely brutal
New York gives you the full exemption at the threshold and nothing at all above 105% of it. In between, the exemption phases out extraordinarily fast. An estate of $6,940,000 owes nothing. An estate a few hundred thousand higher can owe several hundred thousand dollars. Charitable bequests that bring the estate back under the line are worth far more than their face value in that band.
Portability is federal only
Federal law lets a surviving spouse inherit the unused portion of the first spouse's exemption, but only if an estate tax return is filed to elect it — even when no tax is owed. Illinois and Minnesota offer no portability at all, so a credit shelter trust may be needed to preserve both exemptions.
Domicile is decided on facts, not intention
States that lose a wealthy resident often audit the move. Voter registration, driving license, where you actually spend your days, where your doctors are, and where your closest connections lie all count. Keeping a home in a high-tax state after "moving" is the single most common way these audits are lost.
Life insurance is usually inside the estate
If you own the policy, the death benefit counts toward your estate, which surprises many people. An irrevocable life insurance trust owning the policy instead keeps the proceeds outside the taxable estate.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between estate and inheritance tax?
Estate tax is paid by the estate itself before anything is distributed, and depends on the total size of the estate. Inheritance tax is paid by the person receiving, at a rate that depends on how closely related they were to the deceased. Maryland is the only state that levies both, which can compound.
Which states have an estate tax?
Twelve states plus the District of Columbia: Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. Their exemptions range from Oregon's $1,000,000, which has never been indexed, up to Connecticut's $15,000,000, which matches the federal figure exactly.
Which states have an inheritance tax?
Five: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Nebraska, Kentucky and Maryland. Spouses are exempt in every one of them, and children are exempt in most. Pennsylvania is the notable exception, taxing lineal descendants at 4.5% with no dollar exemption at all, so even modest estates generate a bill for children.
Is the federal exemption really permanent?
OBBBA made the $15,000,000 exemption permanent and indexed for inflation, removing the sunset that was scheduled to halve it at the end of 2025. Permanent in this context means until Congress changes it again, which it has done repeatedly over the past two decades, so long-range plans should stay flexible.
Does moving states before death work?
It can, but domicile is determined on facts rather than intention, and high-tax states audit these moves closely. Voter registration, driving license, where you actually spend your days, where your doctors are and where your closest ties lie all count. Keeping a home in the old state is the most common way these audits are lost.
How does the Massachusetts cliff work?
Exceed $2,000,000 and the tax is computed on the entire estate rather than only the excess above the threshold. An estate of $2,000,001 is therefore taxed on the full amount, not on one dollar. That is why planning immediately around that threshold, including charitable bequests, is disproportionately valuable in Massachusetts.
IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 · State departments of revenue · Tax Foundation state estate tax survey · SSA Contribution & Benefit Base
Disclaimer
Estimates for general information only, not legal or tax advice. State progressive rate schedules are approximated using top rates; actual liability follows each state's own graduated table. New York's exemption is disputed across sources — verify with NY DTF. Estate planning requires a qualified attorney.