Tennessee · County property tax · ACS 2024
Shelby County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Shelby County pays $2,429 a year, an effective rate of 0.98%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,429
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 0.98%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +22%
- vs U.S. average
- #1 of 95
- rank in TN
The verdict
Homeowners in Shelby County pay a median $2,429 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.98%, more affordable than 37% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,429
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.98%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1972 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +22%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($249,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Tennessee. Population: 919,173. Owner-occupied homes: 196,379.
The median annual property tax in Shelby County is $2,429, which is 68% higher than the Tennessee state average and 22% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.98% on a median home value of $249,100. Property taxes represent 3.8% of the median household income in this county.
Shelby County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Shelby County's 0.98% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 37%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits above the Tennessee median
Homeowners in Shelby County pay a median annual property tax of $2,429, notably higher than the national median and far above the Tennessee state median. On a $249,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.98% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among Tennessee counties by effective rate
Shelby County ranks #1 of 95 counties in Tennessee by effective rate (99% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Shelby County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.8% of the $63,767 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Shelby 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 Shelby County rose 57.0%, from $158,700 to $249,100. The effective rate fell 25.7% over the same span, a steeper move than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 16.7%, to $2,429. 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 $2,082 to $2,429, a gain of 17%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 74,378 of 196,379 owner-occupied homes (37.9%) report annual real-estate taxes above $3,000. That band has no upper edge in the source, so the county median understates the burden carried by the plurality rather than describing it.
Earnings are below the national midpoint while the rate is above it, and the median bill equals 3.8% of median household income. The gap between those two positions is the whole story on this page.
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.
Shelby County is an outlier inside Tennessee
Across the 95 Tennessee counties with a published rate, the average effective rate is 0.48%. Shelby County is at 0.98%, which sits 5.2 standard deviations above that average. Fewer than one county in twenty nationally is this far from its own state's centre, so a state-level average is a poor guide to what is owed here.
Standard deviations are computed across every county in the state with a published effective rate for 2024; states with fewer than five such counties are not assessed.
What Shelby County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Shelby County homeowners, 74,378 of 196,379 owner-occupied homes (37.9%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 11.2% (22,068)
- $800 to $1,499 18.1% (35,594)
- $1,500 to $1,999 10.9% (21,500)
- $2,000 to $2,999 17.1% (33,675)
- $3,000 or more 37.9% (74,378)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
9,164 homes here (4.7%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Tennessee handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Shelby County, mortgaged homeowners pay 29% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Shelby County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Shelby County's effective rate is higher than 99% of the 95 counties in Tennessee - ranking #1 of 95.
Where Shelby County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.98% more affordable than 37% 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
Above Tennessee on both measures
Shelby County's effective rate runs 96% over the Tennessee median and its bill 68% over. When both move together the rate is not being offset by cheaper housing, so the $2,429 median bill is carrying the full weight of the higher rate rather than a valuation difference. This is a comparison of two published medians, not a statement about any individual parcel.
Shelby County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Shelby County | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.8% | - | - |
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.
Shelby County is UNDER · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Tennessee counties.
Shelby County rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,429 +2.2% | 0.98% |
| 2023 | $2,376 +2.8% | 1.03% |
| 2022 | $2,312 +8.6% | 1.12% |
| 2021 | $2,129 +2.3% | 1.25% |
| 2020 | $2,082 | 1.31% |
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.
Shelby County: tax-to-income at 3.8%
Counties near Shelby County's effective rate
On effective rate, Shelby County sits nearest Turner County (SD), Mellette County (SD), Day County (SD).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Carson City (NV), Morrill County (NE), Davie County (NC).
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
Shelby County: only 6% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 27,210 of 425,690 returns from Shelby County reported real estate taxes, averaging $6,077 - 35% of those reporters sat in the $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 Tennessee
Shelby County rate FAQs
- How does Shelby County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Shelby County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.98% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for Shelby County?
- Shelby County, Tennessee scores F (27/100) 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 rate relief at F (0.98%). 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 Shelby County, Tennessee?
- The median annual property tax in Shelby County is $2,429, an effective rate of 0.98% on a $249,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Shelby County?
- Property taxes in Shelby County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.8% of the $63,767 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Shelby County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Shelby County climbed 16.7% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $2,082 to $2,429, 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 to do with Shelby County's UNDER rate
Inside Tennessee, Shelby County's $2,429 median bill runs high versus the state median - compare the rest of the state before judging the burden. Tennessee overview →
Shelby County ranks #1 of 95 Tennessee counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Tennessee overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Shelby County's UNDER 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: 0.98%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,429/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Shelby County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Shelby County (UNDER · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER MID
Berrien County, MI
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Shelby County at $2,429/yr; rate 1.08% vs Shelby County 0.98%.
Howard County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Shelby County at $2,429/yr; rate 1.16% vs Shelby County 0.98%.
Dawson County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,430/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.60% vs Shelby County 0.98%.
Erie County, OH
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,428/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.22% vs Shelby County 0.98%.
Tennessee county set
State ACS overview for every published Tennessee county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Shelby County stamps UNDER · 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 Shelby County (UNDER · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.