Cuyahoga Falls local tax guide
Who pays Cuyahoga Falls's local tax
If you work in Cuyahoga Falls, your employer withholds 2% for the city, whether you commute from Akron, Stow, or Hudson. If you live in the Falls, the city taxes your wages wherever you earn them, but RITA applies a 100% credit for municipal tax paid to your work city, up to 2%. Because Akron and Cleveland both withhold more than 2%, a Falls resident working in either city owes Cuyahoga Falls nothing. A resident whose job is in a township with no city tax owes the Falls the full 2%.
How the Cuyahoga Falls tax works
Cuyahoga Falls, a Summit County city of about 49,000 on Akron's northern border, taxes wages, commissions, and business net profit at a flat 2%. Unlike Akron, which runs its own tax office, the Falls is a RITA member, so returns, payments, and refunds go through RITA's MyAccount portal or its paper Form 37.
The base is Medicare wages from box 5 of your W-2, not the smaller box 1 figure. A traditional 401(k) deferral therefore does not reduce what you owe the Falls.
RITA also administers a Cuyahoga Falls joint economic development district with Boston Township. Wages earned there are taxed under the district's own rules, so check your W-2 to see which locality withheld tax.
Worked example: $75,000 in Cuyahoga Falls
For a single filer at $75,000, federal income tax is $7,670, Ohio tax is $1,288, Social Security is $4,650, and Medicare is $1,088. The Cuyahoga Falls tax is $1,500. Take-home pay is $58,804 a year, or about $4,900 a month.
Compared with no municipal tax at all, where take-home would be $60,304, the Falls costs $1,500 a year. Compared with working in Akron, it saves $375, the gap between $1,875 and $1,500.
That $375 also explains a common pattern. A Falls resident who takes a job in Akron pays Akron $1,875 and owes the Falls nothing, so the move across the border raises the yearly city tax by $375.
Filing with RITA
Employers withhold the Falls tax and remit it to RITA. If your employer withheld for the wrong city, or for a work city at less than 2%, file a RITA return to settle the Cuyahoga Falls balance.
Nonresidents who work for a Falls employer but spend some days working from home elsewhere can claim a refund for those days through RITA. Keep a dated record of home and office days to support the claim.
How Cuyahoga Falls compares with other Ohio cities
At 2%, the Falls ties Dublin, Hamilton, and Mansfield in the middle of the Ohio cities on this site. Nine cities, including Akron and Cleveland, charge 2.5%, and Youngstown charges 2.75%, which is $563 more than the Falls at $75,000.
Only a few listed cities charge less: Cincinnati at 1.8% ($1,350), Newark at 1.75% ($1,313), and Lima and Lakewood at 1.5% ($1,125).
Tips for Cuyahoga Falls paychecks
Working in Akron costs $375 more
Akron withholds 2.5%, and the Falls cannot refund the difference. Factor $375 a year at $75,000 into a job offer across the border.
Use RITA's online account
RITA's MyAccount lets you file the Cuyahoga Falls return, make estimated payments, and track refunds in one place.
Check the locality on your W-2
If your job is in the Boston Township district or a nearby city, confirm which locality withheld tax before you claim credit.