Connecticut Car Tax by Town (2026)
Connecticut taxes cars by town, not county. The annual motor-vehicle tax is 70% of your car's value × the town mill rate, capped statewide at 32.46 mills. Towns below the cap — Greenwich, Norwalk, Stamford — pay far less. Find your town below.
Mill rates verified July 2026 from the CT OPM FY2026 mill-rate table. Tax shown is on a $15,000 car ($10,500 assessed at 70%).
| Town (county) | MV mill rate | Tax on a $15,000 car |
|---|---|---|
| Bridgeport (Fairfield) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| Stamford (Fairfield) | 23.27 | $244 |
| New Haven (New Haven) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| Hartford (Hartford) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| Waterbury (New Haven) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| Norwalk (Fairfield) | 22 | $231 |
| Danbury (Fairfield) | 24.99 | $262 |
| New Britain (Hartford) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| West Hartford (Hartford) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| Greenwich (Fairfield) | 12.041 | $126 |
| Fairfield (Fairfield) | 28.39 | $298 |
| Hamden (New Haven) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| Bristol (Hartford) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| Manchester (Hartford) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
| Meriden (New Haven) | 32.46 (cap) | $341 |
Towns shaded green are below the 32.46-mill cap, so they pay less than the maximum.
Frequently asked questions
How is the car tax calculated in Connecticut?
Your car's market value × 70% (the assessment ratio) × your town's motor-vehicle mill rate ÷ 1,000. It's billed once a year by the town where the car is garaged. Connecticut has no county taxes — the town is the taxing unit.
What is Connecticut's motor-vehicle mill rate cap?
32.46 mills. State law caps the rate that any town can charge on motor vehicles at 32.46, so about a third of towns are pinned there. Towns below the cap — like Greenwich (12.0), Norwalk (22.0), and Stamford (23.3) — charge less, which is where the real variation is.
Why does Greenwich pay so much less car tax than Bridgeport?
Both are in Fairfield County, but Connecticut taxes by town. Greenwich's mill rate is about 12.0 while Bridgeport is at the 32.46 cap — so the same $15,000 car owes roughly $126 in Greenwich versus $341 in Bridgeport.
How much is the sales tax on a car in Connecticut?
6.35% statewide, rising to 7.75% on vehicles priced over $50,000 (on the full price). There's no local sales tax in Connecticut, so this part doesn't vary by town — only the annual property tax does.