2026 tax year · Ohio
Local income tax in Ohio
Euclid is the most expensive of the Ohio levies we hold, $2,280 on $80,000, on top of federal and state tax.
A city income tax on wages and business profit, plus a separate school district tax on top for people who live in a district that levies one.
Your city taxes your whole business profit, the state break for business owners does not exist at city level.
What the Ohio levies cost on $80,000
| Jurisdiction | How it is worked out | On $80,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Columbus | 2.5% of municipal taxable income | $2,000 |
| Cleveland | 2.5% of municipal taxable income | $2,000 |
| Cincinnati | 1.8% of municipal taxable income | $1,440 |
| Toledo | 2.5% of municipal taxable income | $2,000 |
| Akron | 2.5% of municipal taxable income | $2,000 |
| Dayton | 2.5% of municipal taxable income | $2,000 |
| Parma | 2.5% of municipal taxable income, with the credit for tax paid elsewhere capped at 2% | $2,000 |
| Canton | 2.5% of municipal taxable income | $2,000 |
| Youngstown | 2.75% of municipal taxable income | $2,200 |
| Lorain | 2.5% of municipal taxable income, with the credit for tax paid elsewhere capped at 2% | $2,000 |
| Hamilton | 2% of municipal taxable income | $1,600 |
| Springfield | 2.4% of municipal taxable income, with the credit for tax paid elsewhere capped at 0% | $1,920 |
| Kettering | 2.25% of municipal taxable income | $1,800 |
| Elyria | 2.25% of municipal taxable income | $1,800 |
| Lakewood | 1.5% of municipal taxable income, with the credit for tax paid elsewhere capped at 0.5% | $1,200 |
| Cuyahoga Falls | 2% of municipal taxable income | $1,600 |
| Middletown | 2% of municipal taxable income | $1,600 |
| Euclid | 2.85% of municipal taxable income | $2,280 |
| Newark | 1.75% of municipal taxable income, with the credit for tax paid elsewhere capped at 1% | $1,400 |
| Mansfield | 2.25% of municipal taxable income, with the credit for tax paid elsewhere capped at 1% | $1,800 |
- School district (if yours levies) 0.25% to 2% on top of the municipal tax, in 203 of Ohio's districts.
Does it reach self-employment profit?
Yes. In Ohio the local tax reaches net profit from self-employment, not only wages. No employer withholds it, so it is on you to pay it, usually alongside your quarterly estimates, and it is routinely missed for exactly that reason.
The credit for tax paid to your work city is not always full
Live in one Ohio city, work in another, and your home city credits you for what the work city already took. Most people assume that credit covers it. In 6 of the twenty largest cities the credit is capped below the city's own rate, so the resident still owes the difference at home:
| City | Rate | Credit capped at | Still owed on $80,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Springfield | 2.4% | 0% | $1,920 |
| Mansfield | 2.25% | 1% | $1,000 |
| Lakewood | 1.5% | 0.5% | $800 |
| Newark | 1.75% | 1% | $600 |
| Parma | 2.5% | 2% | $400 |
| Lorain | 2.5% | 2% | $400 |
What catches people out in Ohio
Ohio has the most complicated local income tax in the country, and the complications are structural rather than a matter of arithmetic. Four things work differently here from what you might expect.
First, the income your city taxes is not the income Ohio taxes. Municipal tax skips pensions, Social Security and personal investment income altogether, so a retiree with a large state tax bill can owe their city nothing.
Second, if you work for yourself, your profit is taxed in full. Ohio gives business owners a state break, the Business Income Deduction, which exempts the first $250,000 of business profit from state income tax and taxes the rest at 3%. That break does not exist at city level. Your city taxes the whole profit, and it does so both where you did the work and where you live. This is the single most common surprise for people who run their own business, because the state return and the city return give completely different answers on the same profit.
Third, the credit for tax you already paid to another city is not always a full credit. If you live in one Ohio city and work in another, your home city normally credits what the work city took. Six of the twenty largest cities cap that credit below their own rate, so the credit does not cover the bill and you still owe the difference at home. Someone living in Lakewood and working elsewhere still owes Lakewood 1%; someone living in Springfield owes at least 1.2%.
Fourth, school district income tax is a separate tax on top, not part of your city tax. It is triggered purely by where you live, your workplace is irrelevant. And it is filed with your state return rather than with the city. About half the districts that levy it tax retirement income; the other half do not.
These figures were checked in July 2026 against Ohio city and state revenue sources, and we rate our confidence in them as high. Local rates change by council vote and local referendum far more often than state rates do, so confirm yours with the city or county itself before relying on a number here.
What these words mean
- Business Income Deduction
- Ohio’s state-level break for business owners: the first $250,000 of business profit is exempt from state income tax and the rest is taxed at 3%. It applies to the state return only, never to a city one.
Related
- Local income tax in every state
- 1099 taxes in Ohio
- Paycheck in Ohio
- Quarterly payments in Ohio
- S-corp election in Ohio
General information about how these taxes work, not tax advice. Local rates change by ordinance and referendum, confirm with your jurisdiction or a tax professional before acting on anything here.