≈14.75% of the room rate
The percentage layers come to about 14.75 percent of the room rate.
The short answer
$3.50 a night flat
On a room at $40 or more. Only the city half of that moves with the room price.
≈16% all-in
Tax and fees add about 16 percent to a room rate once both parts are counted.
00Four percentage layers
The four tax layers on a New York City hotel room
Percentages scale with the room rate. City unit fee is banded, state unit fee is flat.
New York State sales tax
4.000%
New York City sales tax
4.500%
MCTD transport surcharge
0.375%
New York City occupancy tax
5.875%
Combined ≈ 14.75% of the room rate
Plus, per room per night
New York City unit fee
$0.50 to $2.00 by room rate
New York State unit fee
$1.50, whatever the rate
So $3.50 a night on a room at $40 or more.
Rates and thresholds verified against NYS and NYC publications, August 2026. Not tax advice.
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Why the number is bigger than the label suggests
Not called a tourist tax anywhere on the bill
The search term is tourist tax. The bill shows four separate taxes and two flat fees, charged on the same room by two levels of government, and not one of them carries that name.
01How much
How much tax is on a New York City hotel room
Budget roughly 14.75 percent of the room rate, plus $3.50 a night on any room at $40 or more.
| Layer | Rate | $300 per night, 2 nights |
|---|---|---|
| New York State sales tax | 4% | $24.00 |
| New York City sales tax | 4.5% | $27.00 |
| MCTD transport surcharge | 0.375% | $2.25 |
| NYC hotel occupancy tax | 5.875% | $35.25 |
| Combined percentage | About 14.75% | $88.50 |
| NYC unit fee, per room per night | $2.00 on a room at $40+ | $4.00 |
| State unit fee, per room per night | $1.50 | $3.00 |
| Room, tax and fees | $695.50 |
The room is $600 of that. Tax and fees add $95.50 — $88.50 percentage layers and $7.00 flat charges.
The flat fees cost a cheap room proportionally more than an expensive one, because they are the same either way.
02Long stays
Hotel tax stages on a long New York City stay
A long stay drops the taxes in two stages.
Days 1–90
Everything applies
State sales tax, city sales tax, transport surcharge, occupancy tax, unit fee.
Days 91–180
State layers come off
City sales tax and city occupancy tax continue. The $1.50 unit fee stops.
Day 181 onward
Permanent resident — no hotel taxes
A business qualifies if it pays and is not reimbursed.
The nights need not be in the same room.
A final bill can differ from the figure you worked out in advance. Resort fees, cleaning fees and similar charges may be taxed as part of the room charge, or as services in their own right.
03Operator duties
Hotel and short term rental operator duties
You are the collector, and the liability is yours whether or not you charged the guest correctly.
Register twice
Operators need a state sales tax registration and separately a city Certificate of Registration filed within three days of the first guest. The city then issues its own certificate of authority.
File the city return quarterly
Form NYC-HTX, separately from your sales tax return. City quarters end in Feb, May, Aug and Nov, each due on the 20th of the month after.
Get the taxable base right
What counts as rent subject to occupancy tax, and what falls outside it, is the question that generates assessments. Splitting a rate into room and fee components does not move the fee portion out of the base. The $1.50 unit fee is not itself taxed, and is shown separately.
Short-term rentals are usually covered
Occupancy tax applies to the accommodation rather than the building type. Narrow exemptions exist for renting a single room in your own home, or for a few nights across a year.
Tell us how many units you rent and since when. We will confirm the registrations you need and take over the quarterly return.
04Not the tourist tax
Sales tax and other charges mistaken for a tourist tax
New York City sales tax at 8.875 percent applies to what you buy while you are here. Visiting is not itself taxed. Clothing and footwear under $110 escape the state and city portions, though the 0.375 percent transport surcharge still applies.
There is no city entry charge, nothing for a visitor to register, and no visitor levy of the kind some European cities operate.
A visitor working here rather than sightseeing faces a different question. Days worked in New York can create a state and city filing obligation, whatever the location of the employer.
05FAQ
Hotel and tourist city tax FAQs
How much tax is added to a New York hotel room?
Close to 15 percent, in four layers, plus a small fixed charge per night. On a $300 room the tax and fees come to about $48, taking the nightly total near $348.
Is there a tourist tax in New York City?
No. Not under that name, anyway. What a visitor pays is a city hotel occupancy tax on top of state and city sales taxes, plus two flat nightly charges.
When does a long hotel stay stop being taxed?
Not all at once. Roughly a third of the burden lifts at 90 consecutive days, and the rest at 180, when you count as a permanent resident and the room is untaxed.
Do I collect hotel tax on a short term rental?
Yes, usually. The duty is yours whether or not the platform collected it. Renting a single room in your own home, or renting on only a few occasions in a year, can fall outside the tax.
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Get the occupancy tax right
Get the occupancy tax right
If you rent out rooms or units in New York City, we will confirm what you owe, register you, and take over the quarterly filings. Call (212) 641-0673 or send the contact form. No charge for the conversation.
Reviewed by George Dimov, CPA, New York, NY. Serving clients in all 50 states, 15+ years advising New York hospitality and short-term rental operators. President of George Dimov, CPA, a New York City firm serving clients across the five boroughs and nationwide.