With plenty of time to spare before the first day of school, there’s no excuse not to take advantage of Florida’s three-day 2013 tax holiday from August 2nd to 4th.

Save on clothing, footwear, certain clothing accessories, certain school supplies and, for the first time this year, personal computers and certain related accessories for personal use.

Florida’s Tax Free Weekend Applies to:

• Clothing and footwear ($75 or less)
• School supplies ($15 or less)
• NEW for 2013: Computers and certain related accessories when purchased for non-commercial home or personal use ($750 or less)

What doesn’t apply?

• Any single item of clothing selling for more than $75
• Any single school supply item selling for more than $15
• Any personal computer or related accessory selling for more than $750
• Books (except those books that are always exempt, such as Bibles)
• Clothing, school supplies or computers and certain related accessories within a theme park, entertainment complex, public lodging establishment or airport

Smart Shopping Strategies for Florida’s Tax Free Weekend:

Being a sensible shopper is the best way to save even more more during tax free weekend. For example, compare prices at several different stores, which you can do online, and plan on using coupons when you can.

In addition, don’t buy anything you don’t really need. Since the regular sales tax rate in Florida is 6-7% (depending on what county you’re in), that’s the amount of money you’ll save by shopping during the sales tax holiday. You might find that you can actually save more money by shopping at competitive sales either before or after the tax free weekend, along with using coupons or taking advantage of special promotions.

Keep in mind, too, that some items will still be taxed during Florida’s tax free weekend. For example, many sporting goods are not tax exempt in Florida, such as football pads and protective helmets, but cleats and spiked shoes are.

The Florida Department of Revenue has created a publication with complete details regarding the upcoming tax holiday, as well as a list of what is tax exempt or taxable. The Department also provides a question & answer document regarding the 2013 Florida Sales Tax Holiday, and the DOR has a handy QR code to scan with your smartphone to pull up a list of eligible items. Reviewing these documents and following the above shopping strategies should help you save money this weekend when stocking up on clothes and supplies for the upcoming school year.