Montana · County property tax · ACS 2024
Carbon County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Carbon County pays $2,281 a year, an effective rate of 0.54%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,281
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 0.54%
- Effective rate · Low rate
- +14%
- vs U.S. average
- #47 of 56
- rank in MT
The verdict
Homeowners in Carbon County pay a median $2,281 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.54%, more affordable than 79% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,281
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.54%
- Effective rate on median home
- #659 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +14%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($420,800). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Montana. Population: 11,116. Owner-occupied homes: 3,638.
The median annual property tax in Carbon County is $2,281, which is 15% lower than the Montana state average and 14% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.54% on a median home value of $420,800. Property taxes represent 2.8% of the median household income in this county.
Carbon County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Carbon County's 0.54% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 79%).
Decision signal 2
High among Montana counties by effective rate
Carbon County ranks #47 of 56 counties in Montana by effective rate (16% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill is near the usual comparison points
Homeowners in Carbon County pay a median annual property tax of $2,281, notably higher than the national median and notably lower than the Montana state median. On a $420,800 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.54% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Carbon County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.8% of the $80,261 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Carbon County as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
The rate gave way faster than almost anywhere
Between the 2020 and 2024 releases the median home value in Carbon County rose 55.0%, from $271,500 to $420,800. The effective rate fell 19.8% over the same span, a steeper move than in 82% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 24.4%, to $2,281. Where the rate drops this far and the bill rises anyway, what changed is the value the rate is applied to.
Effective rate is the published median bill divided by the published median home value, so the two multiply back to the bill exactly; the rate's movement here is derived from those two figures rather than read from the rounded published rate. Both are ACS 5-year survey estimates for the median owner-occupied household, compared across non-overlapping releases. They describe what the Census published, not a local policy, assessment, or exemption change.
How to read this county's bill
Bills rose across 2020-2024, from $1,834 to $2,281, a gain of 24%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The plurality of owner-occupied homes here falls in the $2,000 to $2,999 band, at 1,126 of 3,638 (31.0%). This shows the reported distribution around the county median, while individual assessments can vary.
The most forgiving PAIRING in the data, top-quartile household income with a bottom-quartile effective rate, puts the median bill at 2.8% of median household income. Home values still drive the dollar figure, which is why the ratio above varies widely among counties that share this position.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
What Carbon County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Carbon County homeowners, 1,126 of 3,638 owner-occupied homes (31.0%), pays $2,000 to $2,999 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 10.5% (382)
- $800 to $1,499 14.9% (543)
- $1,500 to $1,999 13.4% (487)
- $2,000 to $2,999 31.0% (1,126)
- $3,000 or more 25.2% (918)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
182 homes here (5.0%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Montana handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Carbon County, mortgaged homeowners actually pay 13% less than those without a mortgage, a mild inversion from the national norm worth cross-checking against the historical table above.
Carbon County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Carbon County's effective rate is higher than 16% of the 56 counties in Montana - ranking #47 of 56.
Where Carbon County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.54% Among the most affordable more affordable than 79% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024
Below Montana on both measures
Carbon County's effective rate runs 25% under the Montana median and its bill 15% under. Both sitting on the same side means the gap is not a valuation artefact: a county can post a low rate purely because its homes are expensive, but then the bill rises to meet the state. Here it does not, so the $2,281 median bill reflects a genuinely lighter charge than the Montana norm rather than a different denominator. Compare it against the state page before reading anything into the county rank.
Carbon County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Carbon County | Montana Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 2.8% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Carbon County is QUIET · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Montana counties.
Carbon County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,281 +9.7% | 0.54% |
| 2023 | $2,080 +1.0% | 0.55% |
| 2022 | $2,060 +3.5% | 0.58% |
| 2021 | $1,990 +8.5% | 0.67% |
| 2020 | $1,834 | 0.68% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Carbon County: tax-to-income at 2.8%
Counties near Carbon County's effective rate
On effective rate, Carbon County sits nearest West Baton Rouge Parish (LA), Ouachita Parish (LA), Lafourche Parish (LA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Berrien County (MI), Ottawa County (KS), Ogemaw County (MI).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Carbon County: only 7% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 420 of 5,680 returns from Carbon County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,205 - 36% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Montana
Carbon County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Carbon County?
- Carbon County, Montana scores C (55/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is mortgage premium at A+ ($-322). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- What is the average property tax in Carbon County, Montana?
- The median annual property tax in Carbon County is $2,281, an effective rate of 0.54% on a $420,800 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Carbon County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Carbon County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.54% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Carbon County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Carbon County jumped 24.4% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,834 to $2,281, a 4-year span. These are survey estimates covering five years each, so this compares the two releases furthest apart rather than consecutive ones, which overlap and would mostly measure the same households twice.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Carbon County?
- Property taxes in Carbon County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.8% of the $80,261 median household income.
What to do with Carbon County's QUIET rate
At Carbon County's 0.54% effective rate, a $420,800 home implies about $2,281/yr - plug in your own assessed value rather than quoting the county median. Estimate your bill →
Carbon County ranks #47 of 56 Montana counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Montana overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Carbon County's QUIET effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 0.54%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,281/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Carbon County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Carbon County (QUIET · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET MID
Harrisonburg city, VA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Carbon County at $2,281/yr; rate 0.76% vs Carbon County 0.54%.
Okanogan County, WA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Carbon County at $2,281/yr; rate 0.76% vs Carbon County 0.54%.
Merrick County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,280/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.30% vs Carbon County 0.54%.
Crow Wing County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,283/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.74% vs Carbon County 0.54%.
Montana county set
State ACS overview for every published Montana county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Carbon County stamps QUIET · MID - how assessed value and millage become the ACS median bill.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Carbon County (QUIET · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.