Car registration fees in Tennessee
Registering a car in Tennessee costs about $27, on top of a dealer doc fee averaging $687 and a vehicle sales-tax rate of 7%. Together these are part of the real cost of putting a car on the road here — see the calculator below with Tennessee’s tax pre-filled.
Your Tennessee car payment, with tax
Monthly payment
$970.44
$48,430 financed at 7.5% for 60 mo
Total interest
$9,796
Sales tax
$3,430
Total of payments
$58,226
| Year | Principal | Interest | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | $8,294 | $3,351 | $40,136 |
| Year 2 | $8,938 | $2,707 | $31,198 |
| Year 3 | $9,632 | $2,013 | $21,565 |
| Year 4 | $10,380 | $1,265 | $11,186 |
| Year 5 | $11,186 | $460 | $0 |
The numbers behind this estimate
Sourced figures last verified 2026-11-07| Figure | Value | Source · verified |
|---|---|---|
| Sales tax on vehiclesCombined avg ~9.61%. | 7% | Tax Foundation — State & Local Sales Tax Rates, Midyear 2026 · 2026-07-06 |
| Average dealer doc feeNo statutory cap — market average (CarEdge). | $687 | CarEdge — State of Dealer Fees 2026 · 2026-11-07 |
| Registration feeState standard passenger plate fee; county fees extra; title ~$11. | $27 | Tennessee Dept of Revenue — Registration Fees (VR-4) · 2026-11-07 |
Registration fees by state
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia · soon
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming