Washington State Department of Revenue

02/13/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 02/13/2026 14:15

Retail sales increase 3.9% in third-quarter 2025

OLYMPIA, Wash. - Feb. 13, 2026 -- Taxable retail sales increased 3.9% across the state in third-quarter 2025, reaching $63.4 billion, thanks to sales of furniture, home furnishings, electronics, appliances, and construction.

Taxable retail sales are transactions subject to the retail sales tax, including sales by retailers, the construction industry, manufacturing, and other sectors.

Retail trade, a subset of all taxable retail sales in the state, rose 3.2% in the third quarter of 2025 over the same period in 2024 for a total of $25.3 billion. Retail trade includes sales of items such as clothing, furniture, and automobiles but excludes other industries, such as services and construction.

These figures are part of a quarterly report released today by the Washington State Department of Revenue. The taxable retail sales figures compare the same quarter year-to-year to equalize any seasonal effects that would influence consumer and business spending.

Here are some sectors that saw increases in taxable retail sales during third-quarter (July-September) 2025 compared to the same period in 2024:

  • Furniture, Home Furnishings, Electronics, and Appliance sales increased 9.0% to $2.5 billion.
  • New and Used Auto Dealers sales rose 1.1% to $4.3 billion.
  • Apparel and Accessories sales increased 5.7% to $1.5 billion.
  • Construction rose 1.9% to $13.1 billion.

Several industries saw decreases in sales during third-quarter 2025, including:

  • Building materials, garden equipment and supplies sales dropped -1.9% to $2.4 billion.
  • Drug and health retailers' sales decreased -5.4% to $725 million.

See third-quarter 2025 taxable retail sales and retail trade sales by industry (PDF).

Find out more information about taxable retail sales in cities and counties (PDF).

Some highlights of 10 counties and cities in the state:

County Taxable retail sales Percent change Retail trade Percent change
King $23.6 billion 4.3 $8.0 billion 3.1
Pierce $6.6 billion 4.6 $3.0 billion 3.4
Snohomish $5.9 billion 2.7 $2.8 billion 2.1
Spokane $4.0 billion 0.8 $1.9 billion 2.3
Clark $3.2 billion 1.1 $1.3 billion 2.2
Thurston $2.1 billion 2.9 $986 million 1.2
Kitsap $1.9 billion 4.8 $879 million 4.6
Benton $1.7 billion 9.1 $775 million 4.4
Whatcom $1.7 billion 0.2 $719 million -2.3
Yakima $1.5 billion 4.8 $699 million 2.1
City Taxable retail sales Percent change Retail trade Percent change
Seattle $9.2 billion 4.3 $2.5 billion 1.2
Bellevue $2.6 billion 2.8 $1.0 billion 5.9
Tacoma $1.9 billion 2.6 $841 million 3.4
Spokane City $1.8 billion -1.0 $783 million 2.5
Vancouver $1.6 billion -1.8 $710 million -0.2
Everett $1.1 billion -2.5 $448 million 2.0
Bellingham $1.0 billion -0.3 $492 million -3.2
Lynnwood $876 million 0.5 $563 million -3.0
Puyallup $822 million 7.9 $467 million 2.3
Kennewick $795 million 7.7 $431 million 1.9

Compare taxable retail sales numbers for third quarter 2025 and previous years by checking out the "Retail sales for cities and counties" page on our website.

Check Revenue's Statistics and Reports page for additional detail about taxable retail sales.

Understanding how businesses are classified

Revenue uses business tax return data to create this quarterly report. Businesses are categorized under the U.S. Census Bureau's classification system based on their primary taxable activity. The North American Industry Classification System - or NAICS - is the same method federal statistical agencies use for the purpose of analyzing economic data.

Washington State Department of Revenue published this content on February 13, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on February 13, 2026 at 20:15 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]