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Florida Taxes for Retirees (2026): What You Pay, What You Don’t, and What Probate Actually Costs

Clear Money Guide

What this state guide covers

A quick view of the questions, practical details and source notes below.

Income taxes: the easy part
What Florida probate actually costs (the part every guide skips)
New for 2026: the small-estate limit just doubled
Is Florida a good state to retire in for taxes?

Comparison tables scroll horizontally on smaller screens.

2026 edition · statute-cited · part of Clear Money Guide’s 51-state retirement tax series. This guide covers state taxes on retirement income and estate transfers; property and sales taxes vary by county and are outside its scope.

Updated July 24, 2026. Quick answer: Florida levies no personal income tax — Social Security, pensions, 401(k) and IRA withdrawals are all untaxed at the state level (Fla. Const. art. VII), and there is no estate or inheritance tax (constitutionally prohibited). That part is table stakes. What most guides never quantify is the cost that does exist: probate. Florida is one of only a handful of states with a statutory attorney-fee schedule for estate administration, and it can dwarf a lifetime of state-tax savings if you don’t plan around it.

Income taxes: the easy part

State income taxNone — prohibited by Fla. Const. art. VII
Social SecurityNot taxed
Pension / 401(k) / IRA withdrawalsNot taxed
Estate taxNone (constitutionally prohibited)
Inheritance taxNone

What Florida probate actually costs (the part every guide skips)

Florida’s presumptive attorney-fee schedule (Fla. Stat. §733.6171) — presumed reasonable, disclosed as negotiable: $1,500 for estates up to $40,000; +$750 for $40–70k; +$750 for $70–100k; 3% of the next $900,000; 2.5% from $1M–$3M; 2% from $3M–$5M; 1.5% from $5M–$10M; 1% above $10M. The personal representative earns a separate statutory commission (Fla. Stat. §733.617): 3% of the first $1M.

Worked example — $600,000 probate estate: presumptive attorney fee $1,500 + $750 + $750 + 3% × $500,000 = $18,000; personal representative commission 3% × $600,000 = $18,000; clerk filing fees ≈$400 (Fla. Stat. §28.2401). Total ≈ $36,400 before costs — on an estate that paid $0 in Florida income and estate tax.

New for 2026: the small-estate limit just doubled

Effective July 1, 2026, Florida’s summary administration threshold rises from $75,000 to $150,000 (Fla. Stat. §735.201, amended by CS/HB 1337, Ch. 2026-57, signed April 29, 2026) — exempt homestead doesn’t count toward the limit, and estates of any size qualify once the death is more than two years past. Disposition without administration (§735.301) doubled from $10,000 to $20,000 of exempt personal property. A $120,000 non-homestead estate that needed formal administration in June 2026 qualifies for summary administration in July — roughly a $345 filing instead of the statutory fee schedule above. Most sites still cite the old $75,000 figure.

Planning tools: our will-vs-trust breakeven calculator models Florida’s statutory schedule directly, and the 51-state probate cost table and small-estate limits table put these numbers in national context.

What the tax picture means for your own accounts

A state guide can set out how the rules treat retirement income in general, but not how they land on your particular mix of pensions, withdrawals and savings, and an adviser can work that through with you.

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Is Florida a good state to retire in for taxes?

On income taxes: yes, unambiguously — $0 on Social Security, pensions, and retirement-account withdrawals, and no tax at death at the state level. The honest caveats are the ones this page quantifies: an unplanned probate estate faces a statutory fee schedule that a revocable trust or summary administration can largely avoid, and (outside this guide’s scope) county property taxes and homeowner’s insurance are the costs relocators most often underestimate. Verify both for your county before you move.

Does Florida tax Social Security? All 51 jurisdictions, 202643 do not tax Social Security at any income level. 8 tax it only above an income or age limit. Florida is in the first group.Does Florida tax Social Security? All 51jurisdictions, 202643 do not tax Social Security at any incomelevel. 8 tax it only above an income or agelimit.Florida is in the first group.Not taxed at any income (43)Taxed only above a limit (8)ALAKAZARCACOCTDEDCFLGAHIIDILINIAKSKYLAMEMDMAMIMNMSMOMTNENVNHNJNMNYNCNDOHOKORPARISCSDTNTXUTVTVAWAWVWIWYPostal abbreviations, alphabetical. TheDistrict of Columbia is counted as ajurisdiction, which is why the total is 51 andnot 50.Counted from Clear Money Guide’s 2026 51-jurisdictionretirement-tax table, where every row carries its statutecitation. Table read 2026-08-17.
Florida is one of 43 jurisdictions that do not tax Social Security at any income level in 2026. The other 8 exempt benefits only up to an income or age limit. Full rules and statutes: the 51-state table.

How Florida compares with other Southeast retirement states

StateSocial SecurityPension / 401(k) / IRAEstate taxInheritance tax
FloridaNot taxedNot taxed (no income tax)NoneNone
GeorgiaNot taxedExcluded up to $65,000/person at 65+NoneNone
South CarolinaNot taxedDeduction: $10,000/yr at 65+NoneNone
North CarolinaNot taxedTaxed at flat 3.99% (2026)None (repealed 2013)None
TennesseeNot taxedNot taxed (no income tax)NoneNone

Comparison rows summarize each state’s general rules; see our 51-state retirement tax table for statute-cited detail on every state.

Considering a Roth conversion? The converted amount is taxed as ordinary income in the year you convert, and Florida may treat it differently from the retirement income above — see how all 51 jurisdictions tax Roth conversions.

Finding a financial advisor in Florida

Per the SEC’s July 2026 Investment Adviser roster, Florida is home to 1,056 SEC-registered advisory firms (#4 nationally) managing $4.08 trillion in regulatory assets (#8 by AUM). Median firm size is $377,489,336. Full breakdown: Florida advisor statistics.

A move between states is exactly when fee structures and state tax rules deserve a second look — see our advisor cost guide and fee-drag calculator.

Thinking about moving?

Four taxes change when you move state in retirement, not one: income tax on withdrawals, state estate tax, state inheritance tax, and what probate costs your heirs. Corridor comparisons involving Florida:

Moving to Florida? See retiring to Florida.

Compare any two states with the retirement tax comparison tool, or browse all corridors at the relocation hub.

What probate costs in Florida

Florida is one of only seven jurisdictions that publish an actual statutory percentage schedule, so the probate fee can be computed exactly rather than estimated. And the small-estate shortcut of $150,000 does not clear a solely owned house on its own, which is the detail most guidance omits. Full detail with the governing statute, the court filing fee and the threshold: Florida probate cost. To price a specific estate, use the probate cost calculator.

Cite or share this guide

Suggested citation: Clear Money Guide, “Florida Retirement Taxes (2026 edition),” statute-cited; clearmoneyguide.com/florida-retirement-taxes/. Free to cite with attribution and a link. Statutes and official sources are linked throughout; data verified July 23–24, 2026 against state statutes, session laws, and revenue-department guidance.

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