Updated 09.14.2026
Two homes worth the same amount, one in Orange County and one in Polk County, can carry meaningfully different tax bills, and it has nothing to do with the house itself. Florida has no state property tax, every dollar comes from local millage rates set independently by counties, school boards, cities, and special districts, and those rates genuinely differ enough to matter when you’re comparing where to buy.
Short version: Florida property tax is calculated by multiplying your home’s taxable value by a combined millage rate made up of several separate taxing authorities, mainly the county, the school board, and, if you’re inside city limits, the city itself. Among the five Central Florida counties covered on this site, unincorporated Orange County runs highest, around 16 mills, while the other four cluster fairly closely together in the 13 to 14 mill range. A ballot measure heading to voters in November 2026 could substantially raise the homestead exemption and change these numbers for homesteaded owners specifically, starting in 2027.
How the math actually works
A mill equals $1 of tax for every $1,000 of your home’s taxable value. Your taxable value starts at the assessed value the property appraiser sets each January 1st, then subtracts your homestead exemption if you have one. Multiply the result by the combined millage rate, county, school district, and city if applicable, divide by 1,000, and that’s your bill. The school district portion is the more consistent piece across a county, generally 5 to 6.5 mills, while county and city millage are what actually drive most of the difference you’ll see comparing two addresses.
The five counties compared
These reflect each county’s 2025-26 final adopted rates for unincorporated areas. Actual numbers shift year to year and run meaningfully higher inside city limits, where municipal millage stacks on top.
| County | Approx. total millage (unincorporated) | School portion | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orange | ~16.1 mills | ~6.45 mills | Higher still inside Orlando, roughly 18 to 19 mills |
| Osceola | ~13.9 mills | ~5.31 mills | County general fund held flat for the 15th straight year |
| Seminole | ~13.7 mills | ~5.25 mills | Recently raised for the first time in 16 years |
| Polk | ~13.0 mills | ~5.29 mills | County-wide rate held flat for 2025-26 |
| Lake | ~13.4 mills | ~6.09 mills | Several small county MSTUs, fire, stormwater, ambulance, stack even in unincorporated areas |
Within any of these counties, incorporated cities and special taxing districts push the actual rate higher, sometimes by several mills, so treat this table as a starting comparison between counties, not a precise number for any specific address. Want to see what your own exemption is worth against these rates? The homestead savings calculator runs the full math for a specific home value in any of the five counties.
Why the gap between counties is this wide
Since the school district portion is fairly consistent everywhere, the real driver of county-to-county differences is how much the county government itself levies, plus whether a given address sits inside a city, adding municipal millage, or a special fire, water, or stormwater district. Orange County’s higher overall rate reflects a larger, more urbanized county government and school system serving Orlando’s dense population base, while Polk, Lake, Seminole, and Osceola run leaner on the county side, part of why they’re often cited as the more tax-friendly options for otherwise comparable homes.
The number on the listing isn’t necessarily your number
This connects directly to what’s covered in the homestead exemption: under Save Our Homes, a longtime owner’s assessed value can sit far below current market value, capped at 3% growth a year regardless of what the market has done. That means the tax line shown on an active listing often reflects the seller’s years of accumulated protection, not what a new buyer will actually pay. Your first full year is typically reassessed at your purchase price, and your own homestead exemption doesn’t fully apply until you’ve filed, exactly the “year two surprise” covered in buying a house in Florida.
What could change everything: the November 2026 ballot measure
This is worth understanding regardless of when you’re reading this, because it affects every homesteaded owner in every one of these counties. On June 2, 2026, the Florida Legislature passed HJR 1-F, a constitutional amendment now heading to voters as Amendment 3 on the November 3, 2026 ballot, needing 60% approval to take effect. If approved, it would raise the homestead exemption for non-school property taxes from today’s $51,411 to $150,000 starting in 2027, then to $250,000 in 2028, indexed to inflation after that. School district taxes are specifically excluded and would continue to apply under current rules regardless of the outcome. The measure would also lower the annual assessment increase cap on non-homestead property, rentals, vacation homes, and commercial property, from 10% to 5%, and would require five years of residency for new homeowners to qualify for the expanded exemption.
Supporters, including Governor DeSantis, frame it as substantial, overdue relief that could reduce non-school property taxes to zero for a majority of homesteaded owners. Critics, including the Florida Association of Counties and the Florida League of Cities, have raised concerns about the roughly $4.8 billion in annual county revenue the expanded exemption is projected to redirect, and about the lack of a dedicated funding source to replace it for local services. Nothing changes until and unless voters approve it in November, current exemptions, caps, and deadlines apply exactly as they do today. The homestead savings calculator shows current-law, 2027, and 2028 scenarios side by side for a specific home value in each of these five counties.
Finding your exact rate
Every county property appraiser publishes a tax estimator that calculates the actual combined rate for a specific address, factoring in the county, school, city, and any special districts that apply. This is the only way to get a real number for a property you’re evaluating, county-level averages like the ones above are useful for comparison, not for budgeting a specific purchase.
Frequently Asked Questions
Orange County runs highest among the five counties covered here, around 16 mills in unincorporated areas and higher still inside Orlando city limits. The other four, Osceola, Seminole, Polk, and Lake, cluster fairly closely together in the 13 to 14 mill range.
A mill equals $1 of tax per $1,000 of taxable value. Your total rate combines separate millage set by the county, school board, and city if applicable, plus any special districts covering your property.
Often not. A longtime owner’s tax bill reflects years of Save Our Homes protection capping their assessed value, which resets closer to market value once the home sells to a new owner.
Amendment 3 would raise Florida’s homestead exemption for non-school property taxes from today’s $51,411 to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028 if approved by 60% of voters on November 3, 2026. School district taxes would be unaffected either way.
Each county property appraiser publishes a tax estimator tool that calculates the actual combined rate for a specific address, the only reliable way to get a precise number rather than a county-wide average.
Sources:
https://www.polkflpa.gov/Downloads/Files/finalmillage.pdf
https://files.scpafl.org/files/Public/MILLAGERATES/SeminoleCoMillageRates.pdf
https://ocpaimages.ocpafl.org/api/Content/GetContentDynamicFile?contentFileID=416846
https://www.property-appraiser.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/2025-Final-Millage-Rates.pdf
https://www.lakecopropappr.com/pdfs/2025/Tax%20Roll/2025MillageSheet%20-%20ADA.pdf
https://barneswalker.com/florida-property-tax-update-what-actually-happened-in-the-2026-legislative-session/
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