DealScan.devResearchUsed Car Dealer Fees by State (2026)
The documentation (“doc”) fee is the same paperwork task in every state, yet it costs $85 in California and nearly $1,000 in Florida. We compiled the typical doc fee, the legal cap (where one exists), and title and registration costs for all 50 states and DC. Journalists and researchers may cite any figure with attribution to DealScan.dev and the date shown.
Key findings
- Doc fees vary more than 11x by state. The typical doc fee runs from $85 in California to $999 in Florida for the identical paperwork.
- Only 16 states cap the doc fee by law; 35 states and DC let dealers set it themselves. Uncapped states dominate the high end of the table.
- Florida, Virginia, Colorado and North Carolina are the priciest, each averaging $699or more. California, Arkansas, Texas and Minnesota are the cheapest, all at or below $150.
- A legal cap is the single biggest predictor of a low fee. Seven of the ten lowest-fee states cap the doc fee, while every one of the ten highest is uncapped.
- Caps move. Several states (Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania) index their cap to inflation, so the ceiling rises automatically each year.
10 highest doc-fee states
| # | State | Avg doc fee | Capped? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida | $999 | No |
| 2 | Virginia | $799 | No |
| 3 | Colorado | $699 | No |
| 4 | North Carolina | $699 | No |
| 5 | New Jersey | $695 | No |
| 6 | Connecticut | $599 | No |
| 7 | Georgia | $599 | No |
| 8 | Oklahoma | $599 | No |
| 9 | Missouri | $565 | Yes |
| 10 | Wyoming | $500 | No |
10 lowest doc-fee states
| # | State | Avg doc fee | Capped? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $85 | Yes |
| 2 | Minnesota | $125 | Yes |
| 3 | Arkansas | $129 | Yes |
| 4 | Texas | $150 | Yes |
| 5 | New York | $175 | Yes |
| 6 | Iowa | $180 | Yes |
| 7 | Indiana | $199 | No |
| 8 | Washington | $199 | Yes |
| 9 | South Dakota | $200 | No |
| 10 | Vermont | $200 | No |
All 50 states + DC
Typical doc fee, legal cap (if any), and ballpark title and registration costs. Registration is usually value-, weight-, or age-based, so those figures are ranges.
| State | Avg doc fee | Capped by law? | Cap | Title fee | Registration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $489 | No | — | ~$18 | Weight-based; ~$23–$105/yr |
| Alaska | $299 | No | — | ~$15 | ~$100 biennial |
| Arizona | $499 | No | — | ~$4 | Value-based vehicle license tax, yearly |
| Arkansas | $129 | Yes | $129 | ~$10 | ~$17–$30/yr by weight |
| California | $85 | Yes | $85 | ~$28 | Value-based; several hundred $/yr on newer cars |
| Colorado | $699 | No | — | ~$7 | Ownership tax by age and value |
| Connecticut | $599 | No | — | ~$25 | ~$120 biennial |
| Delaware | $475 | No | — | ~$35 | ~$40/yr |
| District of Columbia | $300 | No | — | ~$26 | Weight-based; ~$72–$155/yr |
| Florida | $999 | No | — | ~$78 | ~$28–$46/yr + one-time $225 new-plate fee |
| Georgia | $599 | No | — | ~$18 | ~$20/yr (7% one-time TAVT on value) |
| Hawaii | $395 | No | — | ~$5 | Weight-based; ~$45–$75/yr+ |
| Idaho | $399 | No | — | ~$14 | ~$45–$69/yr by age |
| Illinois | $347 | Yes | ~$347 (indexed) | ~$165 | ~$151/yr |
| Indiana | $199 | No | — | ~$15 | ~$21/yr + excise tax by value/age |
| Iowa | $180 | Yes | $180 | ~$25 | Value + weight based, yearly |
| Kansas | $499 | No | — | ~$10 | ~$30–$45/yr + vehicle property tax |
| Kentucky | $450 | No | — | ~$9 | ~$21/yr + property tax |
| Louisiana | $425 | Yes | ~$425 (indexed) | ~$68 | ~$20–$82/yr by value |
| Maine | $499 | No | — | ~$33 | ~$35/yr + local excise tax by value |
| Maryland | $499 | Yes | $500 | ~$100 | ~$135–$187 biennial |
| Massachusetts | $459 | No | — | ~$75 | ~$60 biennial + local excise tax |
| Michigan | $260 | Yes | $260 or 5% (indexed) | ~$15 | Value-based, yearly |
| Minnesota | $125 | Yes | $125 | ~$8+ | Value-based; drops as car ages |
| Mississippi | $425 | No | — | ~$9 | ~$14/yr + ad valorem tax |
| Missouri | $565 | Yes | ~$565 (indexed) | ~$8.50 | ~$24–$87/yr by horsepower |
| Montana | $299 | No | — | ~$12 | Age-based; ~$28–$217/yr |
| Nebraska | $299 | No | — | ~$10 | ~$15/yr + motor vehicle tax |
| Nevada | $499 | No | — | ~$29 | $33/yr + governmental services tax by value |
| New Hampshire | $375 | No | — | ~$25 | Town + state by weight/value; ~$60–$600/yr |
| New Jersey | $695 | No | — | ~$60 | ~$35–$85/yr by weight/age |
| New Mexico | $339 | No | — | ~$5+ | ~$27–$62/yr |
| New York | $175 | Yes | $175 | ~$50 | Weight-based; ~$26–$140 biennial |
| North Carolina | $699 | No | — | ~$56 | ~$38/yr + vehicle property tax |
| North Dakota | $299 | No | — | ~$5 | Weight/age-based; ~$49–$274/yr |
| Ohio | $250 | Yes | $250 or 10% of price | ~$15 | ~$31/yr + local permissive tax |
| Oklahoma | $599 | No | — | ~$11 | Age-based; ~$26–$96/yr |
| Oregon | $250 | Yes | $250 ($200 without e-filing) | ~$101–$192 | ~$126–$316 per 2 years |
| Pennsylvania | $449 | Yes | ~$449 (indexed) | ~$67 | ~$45/yr |
| Rhode Island | $399 | No | — | ~$54 | ~$30–$60/yr by weight |
| South Carolina | $400 | No | — | ~$15 | ~$40 biennial + vehicle property tax |
| South Dakota | $200 | No | — | ~$10 | Weight-based; ~$36–$144/yr |
| Tennessee | $499 | No | — | ~$14 | ~$29/yr + county wheel tax |
| Texas | $150 | Yes | $150 | ~$33 | ~$51–$54/yr + local fees |
| Utah | $299 | No | — | ~$6 | Age-based uniform fee; ~$10–$150/yr |
| Vermont | $200 | No | — | ~$35 | ~$76–$132/yr |
| Virginia | $799 | No | — | ~$15 | ~$31–$46/yr + local property tax |
| Washington | $199 | Yes | $200 | ~$15 | ~$30/yr + RTA excise tax in Sound Transit area |
| West Virginia | $250 | Yes | $175 (statutory) | ~$15 | ~$51.50/yr + property tax |
| Wisconsin | $299 | No | — | ~$164.50 | ~$85/yr |
| Wyoming | $500 | No | — | ~$15 | County fee by value + $30 state fee |
Data as of 2026-07-11. Cite as “DealScan, Used Car Dealer Fees by State, 2026-07-11.”
How to fight junk fees
- Know your cap. If your state limits the documentation fee, anything above the cap on the contract is an error — point it out and it disappears.
- Negotiate the out-the-door total, not the fee. In uncapped states the doc fee is dealer profit; offset a high fee with a lower car price instead of arguing the line item.
- Watch for duplicates. An electronic filing fee or dealer prep fee stacked on top of the doc fee often bills you twice for the same paperwork.
- Decline the add-ons. Nitrogen tire fill, VIN etching, and paint and fabric protection are optional; a market adjustment is negotiable.
- Browse the full dealer-fee glossary or look up the rules in your state before you sign.
Methodology
“Average doc fee” is the typical charged documentation fee in each state from CarEdge’s 2026 dataset. In capped states the average sits at or near the legal cap because dealers charge the maximum allowed. Whether a fee is capped, and the cap amount, come from published state statutes as summarized by RealCarTips and Edmunds; several caps are indexed to inflation and adjust annually, so we mark those “(indexed)” and recommend verifying the current figure with your state DMV or revenue department. Title and registration figures are ballparks aggregated from state DMV fee schedules; registration in most states is value-, weight-, or age-based, so those are ranges rather than fixed prices. Figures were compiled on 2026-07-11.
Sources: CarEdge, “Car Dealer Doc Fee by State (2026)”; RealCarTips, “Average Dealer Documentation Fees by State”; Edmunds, “What New Car Fees Should You Pay?”; state DMV fee schedules. Press inquiries: hello@dealscan.dev.
See dealer fees in your state