New 2026 State Taxes Target Netflix, Zyn, Airbnb Stays
New year, new year – especially if you happen to be a state tax code. A number of new tax laws across the country went into effect on Jan. 1, and some of what the taxpayer wants to reduce may be surprising.
Here are some of the most impactful and unexpected things you’ll be digging deep into your pockets in different states in 2026, as well as a few places where your wallet will get a little relief.
Airbnb accommodations
Rhode Island has added a new 5% tax on short-term rentals when you book an entire house. That’s on top of the regular hotel tax, which the state is also raising from 1% to 2% starting in 2026.
Gasoline
About half of the states have gas taxes that change automatically at the end of the calendar year. Above and beyond that, New Jersey raised gas taxes by nearly 4 cents on Jan. 1, raising the price to just over 49 cents per liter.
Michigan took things a step further, replacing the old 6% gas tax with a per-gallon tax that would add about 52 cents per gallon (that’s a base rate of 51 cents a gallon plus an inflation-indexed portion of a percentage point on top). That’s an increase of about 20 cents per gallon at current prices.
Gold
With gold prices set to rise by nearly 65% by 2025 and retail investors snapping up the yellow metal, it was only a matter of time before a bureaucrat somewhere got the idea to start taxing gold purchases.
That distinction goes to Washington, which ended its sales tax on gold bars and bullion, as well as other precious metals — silver, platinum, palladium and rhodium — that were covered by the exemption. Although Washington has a low 6.5% sales tax, the Tax Foundation notes that buyers often pay around 10% when various local taxes are added to the price.
Netflix
Luckily, dating is still free, but Netflix will cost more in Maine. The government has imposed a 5.5% tax on digital broadcasting services. This streaming tax applies to both video services like Netflix and Hulu and music streaming platforms like Spotify.
Streaming aficionados in other states may want to be prepared to pay more in the future, too. According to the Tax Foundation, many states are looking to add or increase taxes on “broadcasting, subscription, and other SaaS and digital services.” (SaaS is cloud-based software.)
Nicotine
Nebraska, Oregon and Washington added new taxes on certain categories of smokeless cigarettes (such as Zyn nicotine pouches) or amended their definition of tobacco products to include these items. Depending on where they live, people now face paying between 65 cents and 95% more for their nicotine fix.
These are excise taxes or wholesale taxes, so consumers won’t see their line broken on receipts, but customers will still bear the cost.
(Some) vending machine treats
Ohio implemented a new tax on an almost niche food category. Items purchased from refrigerated vending machines are now subject to the 5.75% Ohio state sales tax that also applies to restaurant meals (but not grocery or takeout orders). Think: yogurt, hummus packets and wraps.
The news when it comes to food-related tax changes in 2026 isn’t all bad, though: Arkansas and Illinois each eliminated the state grocery tax in 2026, though both states say municipalities can still levy local taxes.
Another place where some consumers’ budgets could get a break is Alabama, which has issued a new sales tax exemption for menstrual and maternity products, a category that includes period supplies like pads and tampons, and baby supplies like diapers, formula and wipes.
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