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California, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia, Arizona, Tennessee, Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin, Colorado, South Carolina, Alabama, Louisiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Utah, Iowa, Nevada, Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nebraska, Idaho, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Montana, Delaware, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska & Wyoming Estate & Inheritance Tax Calculator

California has no state estate tax, so only the federal exemption of $13,990,000 applies.

California, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia, Arizona, Tennessee, Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin, Colorado, South Carolina, Alabama, Louisiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Utah, Iowa, Nevada, Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nebraska, Idaho, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Montana, Delaware, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska, Wyoming share this page. Their rules produce the same answer to within a rounding difference, so publishing separate near-identical pages would add URLs without adding information. Every figure below applies to all 38 states.

California estate tax estimator

California has no state estate tax, so only the federal exemption of $13,990,000 applies.

Estimated total estate tax —
California estate tax —
Federal estate tax —
Passes to heirs —

California at a glance

FigureCaliforniaSource
State estate taxNone[1]
State inheritance taxNone[1]
State top rateN/A[1]
Federal exemption$13,990,000[2]

[1] [2] Sources

Median home price (estate context) — all 50 states

California highlighted. Same data as the table below, shown as a distribution so the comparison is visible at a glance.

Median home price (estate context) — all 50 states. California is $776,000, ranked 2 of 50. The national median is $342,000, the highest is $837,000 (Hawaii), and the lowest is $183,000 (West Virginia). HI $837,000 CA $776,000 MA $673,000 WA $603,000 NJ $585,000 CO $543,000 UT $542,000 NY $526,000 NH $523,000 RI $517,000 OR $504,000 ID $482,000 MT $476,000 CT $455,000 NV $448,000 MD $436,000 ME $424,000 AZ $423,000 VA $420,000 DE $412,000 VT $402,000 AK $401,000 FL $378,000 WY $373,000 MN $357,000 WI $342,000 NC $340,000 TN $339,000 GA $335,000 SD $326,000 NM $321,000 SC $309,000 TX $303,000 IL $299,000 ND $294,000 PA $294,000 NE $284,000 MO $272,000 MI $270,000 IN $262,000 KS $253,000 OH $252,000 AL $242,000 IA $241,000 KY $235,000 AR $229,000 OK $225,000 LA $218,000 MS $198,000 WV $183,000

Highlighted: California, ranked 2 of 50. Median $342,000.

California estate tax by estate size

State and federal exposure across estate values.

Estate valueState taxFederal taxTo heirs
$250,000$0$0$250,000
$500,000$0$0$500,000
$750,000$0$0$750,000
$1,000,000$0$0$1,000,000
$1,500,000$0$0$1,500,000
$2,000,000$0$0$2,000,000
$2,500,000$0$0$2,500,000
$3,000,000$0$0$3,000,000
$4,000,000$0$0$4,000,000
$5,000,000$0$0$5,000,000
$6,500,000$0$0$6,500,000
$8,000,000$0$0$8,000,000
$10,000,000$0$0$10,000,000
$13,000,000$0$0$13,000,000
$16,000,000$0$804,000$15,196,000
$20,000,000$0$2,404,000$17,596,000
$27,000,000$0$5,204,000$21,796,000
$35,000,000$0$8,404,000$26,596,000

Worked figures for California

California values:

EstateState TaxFederalTotalNet
$500,000$0$0$0$500,000
$1,000,000$0$0$0$1,000,000
$2,000,000$0$0$0$2,000,000
$3,000,000$0$0$0$3,000,000
$5,000,000$0$0$0$5,000,000
$7,500,000$0$0$0$7,500,000
$10,000,000$0$0$0$10,000,000
$15,000,000$0$404,000$404,000$14,596,000
$20,000,000$0$2,404,000$2,404,000$17,596,000
$30,000,000$0$6,404,000$6,404,000$23,596,000

How California compares nationally

On median home price (estate context), California ranks #2 of 50 at $776,000 — 127% above the median of $342,000. The national range runs from $183,000 (West Virginia) to $837,000 (Hawaii).

RankStateMedian home price (estate context)
#1Hawaii$837,000
#2California$776,000
#3Massachusetts$673,000
#4Washington$603,000

California questions, answered with California numbers

Does California have an estate tax?▾
No. California has no state estate tax, so only the federal exemption of $13,990,000 applies — most estates owe nothing.
What would a $5,000,000 estate owe in California?▾
Nothing at either level. $5,000,000 is well under the federal $13,990,000 exemption and California adds no state tax.
And a $20,000,000 estate?▾
Approximately $2,404,000 in total tax — all federal, since California has no state estate tax, leaving about $17,596,000.

Last reviewed 2026-08-27. California figures only — verify with the relevant California agency before acting. How this is calculated.