Rates

• Any purchase of material personal property in Missouri is subject to a state sales tax, which was 4.225 percent in 2010. Groceries are taxed at a reduced rate of 1.225 percent.
  
  The Missouri state sales tax is sometimes known as the sales/use tax, because it also applies to the use of taxable services.
  
  

Distribution

• Sales tax revenue funds four areas of state government. Three percentage points of the 4.225 percent assessment are for general revenue; one percentage point goes toward education; .125 point pays for conservation; and .1 point funds parks.
  
  

Other sales taxes in Missouri

• Local jurisdictions, such as county and city governments, may also institute their own sales taxes.
  
  

Show-Me Green Sales Tax Holiday

• As of July 2010, the state holds two annual sales tax "holidays," or periods in which no state sales tax is charged for certain purchases. The first is the Show-Me Green Sales Tax Holiday, which runs from April 19 through April 25. During this holiday, new Energy Star-certified appliances such as clothes washers, dishwashers, and air conditioners are exempt from state sales tax.
  
  

Back to School Tax Holiday

• The second holiday is the three-day Back to School Sales Tax Holiday, which starts at 12:01 a.m. on the first Friday in August and ends the following Sunday. During that time, purchases of items such as clothes, computers and school supplies are exempt from state sales tax.