Out-the-door price in Illinois
How Illinois works
- City and county sales taxes don't apply to cars in Illinois. The rate follows the dealer's location: 6.25% in most of the state, 7.25% at a dealer in DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry or Will, 7.5% in Cook and 6.5% in the Metro-East. Where you live adds two things: 1.25% if you live in Chicago (and buy in the six-county region) and 1% if you live in Cook County. This estimate assumes you buy from a dealer in your own county.
- Illinois gives you FULL trade-in credit with no cap — the $10,000 cap that existed in 2020–2021 expired on January 1, 2022, so your entire trade-in value reduces the taxable amount.
- Manufacturer rebates are taxed in Illinois: when the dealer is reimbursed for the rebate, it's part of the taxable selling price, so tax is computed before the rebate is applied. A dealer discount, by contrast, does lower your taxable price.
- The doc fee is capped at $377.63 for 2026 (CPI-indexed) and is part of the taxable selling price.
- Battery-electric cars pay an extra $100 a year with registration. Plug-in hybrids don't.
- Dealers may add an electronic title and registration (ERT) fee of up to $35, but it must be labeled optional and you can decline it. The estimate includes it; untick it under "My price already includes…" or remove it if you decline.
Rules last verified Oct 11, 2026. Our methodology.
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What an Illinois advertised price has to include
Illinois rules already require a dealer's advertised price to include delivery, dealer prep and "any other charges of any nature", and you have to be able to buy at that price. The FTC expects more: every fee the dealer charges, the doc fee included, belongs in the advertised price, so only taxes and license and title fees can be added on top. From January 1, 2027, Illinois's own law says the same. That still isn't your out-the-door number; the calculator above adds the rest for your ZIP.
Federal law comes first
The FTC requires a dealer's advertised price to include every fee the dealer charges. Only charges the government requires you to pay, like tax, title and registration, can be left out. Where a state's rules let a dealer leave a fee out, the dealer still has to follow the federal rule, so the fee goes in. The FTC says a state's doc-fee rules can add disclosures, but they don't change the price that has to be advertised. Read the FTC's guidance.
Illinois law and the FTC conflict on the doc fee, until 2027
Illinois's advertising rule lets a dealer leave the doc fee out of an advertised price if the ad clearly says so. The FTC expects every fee a dealer charges to be in the advertised price. The conflict ends on January 1, 2027, when Illinois's own junk-fee law also requires every mandatory fee in an advertised price, leaving out only taxes and government fees. Until then, you may see Illinois ads that leave the doc fee out. Ask whether a price includes it, and get the out-the-door price in writing.
What the FTC expects in the advertised price
- Delivery (destination) and dealer preparation charges
- Anything the dealer has added to the car, such as accessories and add-on packages
- The doc fee (capped at $377.63 in 2026)
- An electronic title and registration (ERT) fee, if the dealer charges it to everyone
- Any other dealer charge of any kind
Can still be added on top
- Sales tax and any Chicago or Cook County use tax
- License, registration and title fees
- Optional products you choose to buy, such as a service contract or GAP coverage
- The doc fee amount: capped at $377.63 in 2026 and adjusted each January for inflation. It's subject to sales tax, and the contract has to carry a notice that begins "A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT AN OFFICIAL FEE."
- The ERT fee: Illinois lets a dealer charge up to $35 for filing your title and registration electronically, but it has to be labeled optional or accepted on a separate signed form. If a dealer charges it to everyone, it belongs in the advertised price.
- Price honoring: you have to be able to buy any car in the ad at the advertised price.
- Enforcement: in 2025 the FTC and the Illinois Attorney General reached a $20 million settlement with Leader Automotive Group, whose order requires an offering price that leaves out only government charges.
More in our guide: Do dealers have to put fees in the advertised price? What actually changed for 2026
See every state: Which states let dealers leave the doc fee out of the advertised price?
Illinois in detail
Rates by county in Illinois
Counties where the rate differs from the rest of Illinois, or changes from one city to the next. The 8 listed here are the ones where your county actually changes the number.
| County | Combined rate | ZIPs |
|---|---|---|
| Cook County | 8.5%–9.75% | 213 |
| DuPage County | 7.25% | 53 |
| Kane County | 7.25% | 29 |
| Lake County | 7.25% | 33 |
| McHenry County | 7.25% | 20 |
| Will County | 7.25% | 33 |
| Madison County | 6.25%–6.5% | 28 |
| St. Clair County | 6.25%–6.5% | 30 |
Illinois OTD questions, answered
Does a trade-in reduce sales tax in Illinois?
Yes — Illinois taxes the difference: your trade-in's value is subtracted before tax is computed.
Are manufacturer rebates taxed in Illinois?
Effectively yes — tax is computed before the rebate is applied, so you pay tax on the pre-rebate price.
Is the doc fee capped in Illinois?
Yes — the cap is $377.63 (815 ILCS 375/11.1). A dealer may not exceed it.
What does an Illinois dealer's advertised price have to include?
Delivery, dealer prep and any other dealer charge (Illinois rules), plus every fee the dealer charges, including the doc fee and any ERT fee charged to everyone (the FTC's position; Illinois lets dealers leave the doc fee out if the ad says so, so the two conflict). From January 1, 2027, Illinois law also requires every mandatory fee in the price. Only taxes and license and title fees can be added on top.
Is Illinois car sales tax based on where I live or where I buy?
Mostly where you buy. City and county sales taxes don't apply to cars, so it's 6.25% at most dealers, 7.25% in DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will, 7.5% in Cook and 6.5% in the Metro-East. Where you live adds 1.25% if you live in Chicago and buy in the six-county region, and 1% if you live in Cook County.