Alachua County property taxes

Alachua County — Gainesville, the University of Florida and the small towns around them — carries the SECOND-highest countywide average total millage of Florida's 67 counties on the 2025 certified roll (Florida DOR, "Millage and Taxes Levied Report"). University and state land is largely tax-exempt, which leaves the levy on a smaller taxable roll, and the county is split between two water management districts, so neighboring parcels in the same city can carry slightly different totals.

The 2025 numbers

Alachua County's average total millage on the 2025 certified roll is 20.8894 mills — about $20.89 for every $1,000 of taxable value — the 2nd-highest countywide average of Florida's 67 counties (how all 67 compare in the 2025 data study). It splits like this:

A countywide average is a planning number, not your bill: the parcel's own districts set its millage (the city table below shows the spread), and non-ad-valorem assessments (fire, solid waste, CDD) come on top. On the 2025 tax roll they came to about $59.0 million here — $498 per parcel, against $597 statewide (see the 2025 non-ad valorem study).

2025 rate decisions. The county commission set its 2025 operating rate at 7.6000 mills (2024: 7.6180), above its rolled-back rate of 7.1455, so under Florida law it was a tax increase. The 2025 millage study lists all 12 county, city and district operating rates in Alachua County on the state's report, and the vote each one took.

Gainesville property tax rate and every Alachua County city (2025)

Actual 2025 rates by city, from the Alachua County 2025 final millage rates, as filed with the Florida Department of Revenue.

Totals in this table run from 18.9855 mills (Unincorporated Alachua) to 25.5196 mills (Archer): on $100,000 of taxable value, location alone moves the bill by about $653 a year.

Every Alachua parcel pays the county's 7.6000 mills, the Children's Trust's 0.4500, the library district's 0.9374 and 6.2510 for the school board — 15.2384 — plus a water management district: St. Johns River (0.1793) in the east or Suwannee River (0.2812) in the west, which is why Gainesville and Waldo show two totals. Unincorporated parcels add the county's 3.5678-mill law enforcement MSTU, and so do Archer, Hawthorne and Waldo — giving those three towns the highest totals in the county.

Fire fees by building value

The fire assessment in unincorporated Alachua County and the cities of Alachua, Archer, Hawthorne, Micanopy and Waldo is $132.47 for every parcel plus $7.28 for each full $5,000 of the building's value, on the 2025 bill:

The county held both rates for the 2026 bill (FY27 budget message); the two-tier method is set out in its fire assessment notice. Gainesville, High Springs, LaCrosse and Newberry run their own fire service and aren’t covered here, and solid waste and stormwater are separate charges. The property-tax lookup figures the building's value from the state's tax roll as the home's value less land and extra features like a pool, so the county's own figure can differ a little.

Trash pickup. In Alachua County, homes outside city limits get garbage service this way: county contract or franchise hauler (GFL Environmental). Cities run their own service. Check the official page, or compare every county in the trash pickup study. Look up a home’s pickup day by address.

Fire and trash fees. On Alachua County's 2025 tax roll, fire assessments came to about $328 per parcel (statewide: $129) and solid-waste assessments came to about $111 per parcel (statewide: $172). The 2025 fire and trash fee study compares all 67 counties. It also lists the yearly charge on a single-family home in Unincorporated Alachua and five small cities.

Amendment 3 here. The state's Revenue Estimating Conference puts the cut to Alachua County's local governments at $177 million a year once Amendment 3 is fully in effect ($77 million in its first year), out of about $11.83 billion statewide. A homestead assessed at $300,000 would save about $2,907 a year here from 2028, at the county's average non-school rate. The Amendment 3 by county study shows what it would cut for every city and county government.

What that means in dollars

Engine-computed examples at Alachua County's average millage, using the school/non-school split above:

Homestead rows apply only the $25,000 exemption (§196.031(1)(a)) and the additional exemption up to $26,411 on non-school levies (§196.031(1)(b), 2026 CPI-indexed). Other programs stack on top; the buyer estimator models all eleven.

Buying in Alachua County? The listing's bill is not your bill

At sale the assessment resets to market (§193.155), so your first Alachua County bill tracks your price, not the seller's (the reset question below has the county's gap in dollars). Run the buyer estimator with Alachua County pre-selected; moving a Florida homestead? The portability calculator computes what carries over.

USDA income limits in Alachua County

USDA's guaranteed home loan caps household income by county. In Alachua County the limit is $122,800 for households of 1 to 4 and $162,100 for 5 to 8, counting everyone who will live in the home after small deductions (USDA's income worksheet, October 2026). That is the $122,800 level most Florida counties share. The home also has to be in an eligible area: the USDA eligibility lookup checks an address and runs the income check. Other counties: all 67 USDA limits.

Key Alachua County property tax dates

Set by state law, so identical statewide:

• Pay early, pay less: the 2026 bill is 4 percent off through November, stepping down each month until it is due by March 31 (the exact dates).
• Homestead exemption: live there on January 1 and file with the Alachua County Property Appraiser by March 1 (what it saves).
• Value appeals: 25 days from the mailing date on your August TRIM notice (make a reminder for your deadline).

Add the 2026 tax discount dates to your calendar Add the 2027 homestead dates

Nearby counties

• Bradford County property taxes — 16.5732 mills average
• Columbia County property taxes — 14.6841 mills average
• Gilchrist County property taxes — 15.5297 mills average
• Levy County property taxes — 16.0399 mills average
• Marion County property taxes — 15.8838 mills average
• Putnam County property taxes — 17.7142 mills average
• Union County property taxes — 16.7165 mills average

Related reading

Your TRIM notice, explained · Amendment 3, explained · Homestead exemption calculator · Pay early, keep 4 percent

Buying here? Estimate your closing costs

Title insurance calculator · Documentary stamp (deed tax) calculator · Full closing cost worksheet · Seller net sheet

Look up an actual Alachua County record

Search any Alachua County address in the property-tax lookup, or go straight to the county's own offices:

• Property Appraiser: www.acpafl.org
• Tax Collector: www.alachuacollector.com

Estimates on this page are planning figures from official DOR millage data — never a bill, never tax advice. The county's TRIM notice and tax bill control.

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Quick answers

How much is property tax in Alachua County?

Alachua County's average total millage is about 20.89 mills — the 2nd-highest of Florida's 67 counties. On a $300,000 assessed home that computes to roughly $5,358 a year with the homestead exemption, or about $6,267 without it. Alachua County — Gainesville, the University of Florida and the small towns around them — carries the SECOND-highest countywide average total millage of Florida's 67 counties on the 2025 certified roll (Florida DOR, "Millage and Taxes Levied Report"). University and state land is largely tax-exempt, which leaves the levy on a smaller taxable roll, and the county is split between two water management districts, so neighboring parcels in the same city can carry slightly different totals.

Where do I pay my Alachua County property tax bill?

Alachua County property tax bills are issued and collected by the county Tax Collector (www.alachuacollector.com). The county Property Appraiser (www.acpafl.org) keeps the certified value record behind it; the property-tax lookup here finds both for any Alachua County address.

Will buying a home reset my property taxes in Alachua County?

Yes — Florida assessed values reset to market value at sale (Fla. Stat. §193.155), so the seller's Save Our Homes cap ends at closing and your first full Alachua County bill is computed from what you paid, not what the seller paid. The gap is visible in this county's own numbers: the same $300,000 home computes to about $6,267 without homestead protections versus $5,358 with them. Non-homestead property carries its own separate 10 percent assessment cap (Fla. Stat. §193.1554), which also does not transfer.

Who pays for title insurance in Alachua County?

In Alachua County, local custom puts the owner's title-insurance premium on the seller's side of the closing statement, as in most Florida counties. It is custom, not law; the contract controls.

What is the USDA income limit in Alachua County?

For a USDA guaranteed loan in Alachua County, household income must be under $122,800 for 1 to 4 people or $162,100 for 5 to 8, counting everyone who will live in the home after small deductions. The home must also be in a USDA eligible area; the USDA eligibility lookup checks both.

What is the property tax rate in Gainesville?

Gainesville's 2025 total property tax rate is 22.1474 mills (22.2493 where the Suwannee River water district applies), per Alachua County's 2025 final millage filing — about $2,215 for every $100,000 of taxable value. It includes the city's own 6.7297 mills; unincorporated Alachua starts at 18.9855.