Taxes
Illinois vs. Nevada taxes: the side-by-side.
The single biggest reason our clients move. Every major tax, compared honestly — including the one where Illinois is genuinely fine and the ones where Nevada isn't free.
Illinois funds itself with a flat income tax, the second-highest property taxes in the country, an estate tax that starts at $4 million and a long list of fees layered on top by Cook County and Chicago. Nevada funds itself with gaming, sales tax and a modest, capped property tax, and has no personal income tax, no corporate income tax and no estate tax. For a homeowner, a business owner or anyone with an estate to protect, that difference dwarfs everything else in the relocation math.
The comparison
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| Tax | Illinois | Nevada |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax | 4.95% flat on wages, business income, interest and dividends | 0% — none, constitutionally |
| Tax on capital gains | 4.95% | None |
| Retirement income (pensions, 401(k), IRA, Social Security) | Exempt | None |
| Estate / inheritance tax | Estate tax on estates over $4M, 8–16%, no spousal portability | None |
| Effective property tax | ≈1.9–2.1% of market value statewide (#2 in U.S.); Lake County ≈2.6% | ≈0.5–0.6% of market value; owner-occupied increases capped at 3%/yr |
| Sales tax (major metro) | 10.5% Chicago (since Aug 2026) · 11.5% downtown restaurants · ≈8–10.25% suburbs | 8.375% Clark County |
| Grocery tax | 1% (state repealed Jan 2026; 650+ municipalities re-imposed it) | None |
| Gasoline tax (state) | 48.3¢/gal + 1.1¢ fees; Cook County +6¢, Chicago +8¢ | 23¢/gal state excise plus county |
| Toll roads | 294-mile Tollway; typical toll 75¢ → $1.20 from Jan 2027 | None in Southern Nevada |
| Vehicle registration | $151/yr plates + Chicago city sticker ≈ $100 | $33 base + value-based governmental services tax |
| Corporate income tax | 9.5% (7% + 2.5% replacement tax) | None (Commerce Tax only above $4M gross revenue) |
| Real estate transfer tax | Chicago 1.05% + state/county 0.15%; many suburbs add their own | ≈0.51% Clark County ($2.55 per $500) |
Property tax: the line that moves people
Illinois' effective property tax rate is roughly 1.9–2.1% of market value, second only to New Jersey, and the collar counties run higher: Lake County is above 2.5%, DuPage, Kane, McHenry and Will sit near 2%. Cook County bills a year in arrears in two installments, reassesses on a three-year cycle, and the levy rises because local pensions are funded from it. A $500,000 home in Naperville costs about $10,000 a year; a $1.2 million home on the North Shore can carry $25,000–$35,000. Nevada assesses at 35% of taxable value against district rates that land most Clark County homeowners at 0.5–0.6% of market value, and increases on an owner-occupied home are capped at 3% a year. The same $500,000 home in Henderson is about $2,750.
Income tax: 4.95% vs. 0%
Illinois taxes nearly all non-retirement income at a flat 4.95%: wages, self-employment, capital gains, interest and dividends, with no brackets and only a $2,925 personal exemption. Nevada taxes none of it. On a $150,000 household that is about $7,100 a year; on $400,000 it is closer to $19,500. The honest caveat: Illinois exempts pensions, 401(k) and IRA distributions and Social Security, so a retiree's income-tax saving is small. For retirees the move is about property tax, the estate tax and the weather.
Run your own numbers
Estimate: Illinois 4.95% flat rate less the 2026 personal exemption; Illinois effective property tax ≈2.0% of value vs ≈0.55% in Clark County; tolls at 52 weeks. Excludes federal tax, sales tax, gas tax, fees and credits. Not tax advice.
What Illinois costs you each year
$18,175
income tax $7,135 · property tax $10,000 · tolls $1,040
Same lines in Nevada
$2,750
property tax only
You keep, per year
$15,425
$1,285 a month
This compares illustrative annual costs at the values you entered. Actual property tax, taxable income, toll use and future rates vary. Confirm tax treatment with your CPA.
Estate tax: $4 million is not a lot of house and retirement account
Illinois is one of about a dozen states with its own estate tax. It applies to estates above $4 million at rates from 8% to 16%, the exemption has not moved since 2013, and there is no portability between spouses. A family with a paid-off North Shore home, a business and two retirement accounts is over the line without feeling wealthy. Nevada has no estate tax and no inheritance tax; once you are domiciled here Illinois can reach only Illinois real estate and tangible property you still own there.
Sales tax and the everyday fees
Clark County (Las Vegas, Henderson) charges 8.375%. Chicago charges 10.5% (up a quarter point in August 2026 for transit), plus 0.25% on restaurant meals and another 1% downtown, a 15¢ checkout-bag tax, a 10.25% amusement tax on streaming and tickets, a 15% tax on cloud and software subscriptions, a 1.5% liquor tax, a 5¢ bottled-water tax and 23.25% on parking. Illinois adds a 45¢–$1.95 PaintCare fee on every can of paint and the nation's second-highest state gas tax at 48.3¢ a gallon before Cook County and Chicago add 14¢. The full list is here. Nevada has none of the above; its gasoline excise is 23¢ plus a county share, and there are no toll roads.
Business taxes: Nevada is built for owners
Illinois charges a 9.5% combined corporate income and replacement tax, a 1.5% replacement tax on pass-through entities, and a franchise tax on paid-in capital. Nevada has no corporate income tax and no personal income tax; its Commerce Tax applies only to businesses with more than $4 million in Nevada gross revenue, and most LLCs pay a few hundred dollars a year in annual list and business license fees. Nevada's asset-protection and business-court statutes are a large part of why owners re-domicile here.
The catch: you have to actually move
Illinois is not California — the Department of Revenue does not audit departing residents with the same appetite — but the test is the same: where your home, family, driver's license, voter registration, doctors and days actually are. Do the move deliberately, use the moving checklist, and keep the paperwork. Income that is genuinely Illinois-sourced, like rent from an Illinois property, stays taxable there regardless.
Tax questions we hear every week
What is the Illinois income tax rate?
A flat 4.95% on federal adjusted gross income, less a personal exemption of $2,925 per person (2026). There are no brackets: a $60,000 household and a $600,000 household pay the same rate. A 2020 ballot measure to allow graduated rates was rejected by voters. Retirement income — pensions, 401(k) and IRA withdrawals and Social Security — is exempt.
Is Nevada really a no-income-tax state?
Yes. Nevada has never levied a personal income tax and its constitution prohibits one without a vote of the people. Wages, self-employment income, capital gains, interest, dividends, pensions, IRA and 401(k) distributions and Social Security are all untaxed at the state level. There is no state return to file.
How much higher are Illinois property taxes than Nevada's?
Roughly three to four times. Illinois' effective rate is about 1.9–2.1% of market value, the second-highest in the country, and Lake County runs above 2.5%. Clark County, Nevada lands most homeowners at 0.5–0.6%, and annual increases on a primary residence are capped at 3%. On a $500,000 home that is about $10,000 a year in Illinois versus about $2,750 in Henderson.
Does Illinois have an estate tax?
Yes. Illinois taxes estates above $4 million at graduated rates from 8% to 16%. The exemption is not indexed to inflation and is not portable between spouses, so a couple that has not planned carefully can lose the first spouse's exemption entirely. Nevada has no estate tax and no inheritance tax.
Is sales tax higher in Nevada?
No. Clark County's combined rate is 8.375%. Chicago's is 10.5% since the August 2026 transit-tax increase, and 11.5% at a downtown restaurant. Most Chicago suburbs run between 8% and 10.25%. Groceries are exempt in Nevada; in Illinois the state's 1% grocery tax was repealed on January 1 2026 and more than 650 municipalities immediately re-imposed it.
Can Illinois tax me after I leave?
Only on Illinois-source income: rent from an Illinois property, an Illinois business, or wages for work physically performed in Illinois. The year you move you file a part-year IL-1040 with Schedule NR. Illinois is far less aggressive than California about residency audits, but keep the evidence of the move — license, registration, voter card, closing statements — in one folder.
Keep reading
Every Illinois tax and fee
Paint, bags, tolls, gas, the cloud — the full 17-item list.
Read the guide
Cost of living: Las Vegas vs. Chicago
Same house price, a third of the tax. The honest table.
Read the guide
Where Illinoisans live in Las Vegas
Henderson, Summerlin, Lake Las Vegas — matched to where you're from.
Read the guideWant the tax picture for your specific situation?
Ron will connect you with a Nevada CPA who handles Illinois exits, and map the move so the savings are real.