Wyoming families with the lowest incomes pay 11.1% of their income in state and local taxes. The top 1% pay 3.4%. That’s more than three times the share.
Wyoming is known as a low-tax state, and for many people it is. But how much tax you pay depends on how big a slice of your income it takes. By that measure, the burden here falls hardest on the people who earn the least. These figures come from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), which models every state’s taxes the same way.
Share of income paid, by income group
The share falls with every step up the income ladder. A family in the middle, earning about $70,000, pays 7.4%.
Why it works out this way
Wyoming has no personal or corporate income tax. Most state and local revenue that families pay comes from sales, excise and property taxes, and those take a bigger bite from smaller incomes.
| Tax | Lowest 20% pay | Top 1% pay |
|---|---|---|
| Sales and excise taxes | 6.1% of income | 0.9% of income |
| Property taxes | 4.3% of income | 1.8% of income |
| Other taxes | 0.7% of income | 0.7% of income |
| Income taxes | 0% | 0% |
| Total | 11.1% | 3.4% |
“Other taxes” in ITEP’s model covers severance taxes on minerals plus licenses and fees, such as driver’s, business and alcohol licenses. Figures may not add exactly because of rounding.
- Sales and excise taxes. A family earning $15,000 spends nearly all of it, much of it on taxable goods. A family earning $1.7 million spends a much smaller share and saves or invests the rest, which isn’t taxed at the register. Excise taxes on things like gas and tobacco work the same way.
- Property taxes. Homeowners pay them directly, and renters pay them indirectly through rent. Housing costs take a bigger share of a smaller income.
- No income tax. In most states, a graduated income tax charges higher rates on higher incomes, which balances out sales and property taxes. Wyoming doesn’t have that counterweight.
- Few credits to offset it. Wyoming exempts groceries from sales tax, which helps a little. But it has no refundable credits to offset sales or property taxes for low-income families.
How Wyoming compares
On ITEP’s Tax Inequality Index, Wyoming has the 11th most regressive state and local tax system in the country. “Regressive” means lower-income families pay a larger share of their income than higher-income families. ITEP finds that incomes in Wyoming are more unequal after state and local taxes than before them.
That ranking is about who pays, not how much. A state can have low taxes overall and still ask more of its lowest earners.
What these figures don’t show
- Only taxes residents pay. A large share of Wyoming’s revenue comes from taxes on the mineral industry. ITEP counts only the part residents end up paying, in the “other taxes” row. Taxes passed on to people outside Wyoming aren’t included.
- No seniors. ITEP leaves out tax units headed by someone 65 or older, so tax breaks aimed at seniors aren’t reflected.
- A snapshot in time. The model uses 2024 tax law at 2023 income levels. Tax changes Wyoming has passed since then aren’t included.
- State and local only. Federal taxes aren’t included.
- Not a verdict. These figures describe who pays. They don’t settle what Wyoming’s tax system should be. That’s a choice for residents and lawmakers.
Sources
- ITEP: Wyoming, Who Pays? 7th Edition. Shares by income group, tax types, income ranges, Tax Inequality Index rank.
- ITEP: Who Pays? 7th Edition methodology. How the model works and what it leaves out.
- State 44: Wyoming: Where We Stand.