PlainTariff

Tariff Rankings

Explore the extremes of US import tariffs.

Highest Tariffs

The 100 items with the highest general duty rates, reaching up to 350%.

Free Trade Items

Items that enter the US with a 0% general duty rate.

Top tariff lines at a glance

Full ranking

The 25 individual HTS lines with the highest general (MFN) duty rates. Click any code for its full rate detail.

  • 1 2401.10.65 Unmanufactured tobacco (whether or not threshed or similarly processed); tobacco refuse — Other 350%
  • 2 2401.20.35 Unmanufactured tobacco (whether or not threshed or similarly processed); tobacco refuse — Other 350%
  • 3 2401.20.87 Unmanufactured tobacco (whether or not threshed or similarly processed); tobacco refuse — Other 350%
  • 4 2401.30.70 Unmanufactured tobacco (whether or not threshed or similarly processed); tobacco refuse — Other 350%
  • 5 2403.19.90 Other manufactured tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes; "homogenized" or "reconstituted" tobacco; tobacco extracts and essences — Other 350%
  • 6 2403.91.47 Other manufactured tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes; "homogenized" or "reconstituted" tobacco; tobacco extracts and essences — Other 350%
  • 7 2403.99.90 Other manufactured tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes; "homogenized" or "reconstituted" tobacco; tobacco extracts and essences — Other 350%
  • 8 9903.04.05 In original loaves (provided for in subheading 0406.40.44, 0406.40.54, or 0406.40.70) 200%
  • 9 9903.04.10 Other (provided for in subheading 0406.20.15, 0406.20.24, 0406.20.28, 0406.30.05, 0406.30.14, 0406.30.18, 0406.40.48, 0406.40.58, or 0406.40.70) 200%
  • 10 9903.04.15 Edam and Gouda cheeses (provided for in subheading 0406.20.44, 0406.20.48, 0406.30.44, 0406.30.48, 0406.90.16 or 0406.90.18) 200%
  • 11 9903.04.20 Cheeses and substitutes for cheeses, valued over 11.3¢ per kg, containing, or processed from, Italian-type cheeses, made from cow's milk, not in original loaves (Romano made from cow's milk, Reggiano, Parmesan, Provolone, Provoletti, Sbrinz and Goya) (provided for in subheading 0406.20.77, 0406.20.79, 0406.30.77, 0406.30.79, 0406.90.66 or 0406.90.68) 200%
  • 12 9903.04.25 Endive, including Whitloof chicory, fresh, chilled, or frozen, not reduced in size nor otherwise prepared or preserved (provided for in subheading 0705.21 or 0705.29) 200%
  • 13 9903.04.30 Olives, prepared or preserved, in brine, not ripe and not pitted or stuffed, not green in color and not packed in airtight containers of glass, metal, or glass and metal (provided for in subheading 2005.70.75) 200%
  • 14 9903.04.35 Pork hams and shoulders, boned and cooked, packed in airtight containers holding less than 1.4 kg (provided for in subheading 1602.41.20 or 1602.42.20) 200%
  • 15 9903.04.40 Carrots (whether or not reduced in size), prepared or preserved, but not packed in salt, not in brine, nor pickled, in airtight containers (provided for in subheading 2005.99.10) 200%
  • 16 9903.04.45 White still wines produced from grapes, containing not over 14 percent of alcohol by volume, in containers each holding not over 3.8 liters, valued over $1.05 per liter (provided for in subheading 2204.21.20, 2204.21.40 or 2204.29.20) 200%
  • 17 9903.04.50 Brandy (other than pisco, singani and slivowitz), in containers each holding not over 3.8 liters, valued over $3.43 per liter (provided for in subheading 2208.20.40 or 2208.90.30) 200%
  • 18 9903.04.55 Gin, in containers each holding not over 3.8 liters (provided for in subheading 2208.50) 200%
  • 19 9903.85.67 Aluminum articles that are the product of Russia, or where any amount of primary aluminum used in the manufacture of the aluminum articles is smelted in Russia, or where the aluminum articles are cast in Russia, the foregoing under the terms of note 19(a)(vii)(A) to this subchapter, or note 19(m)(A) to this subchapter, as applicable per the date of entry for consumption or withdrawal from warehouse for consumption, except any exclusions that may be determined and announced by the Department of Commerce The duty provided in the applicable subheading + 200%
  • 20 9903.85.68 Derivative aluminum articles that are products of Russia, or where any amount of primary aluminum used in the manufacture of the derivative articles is smelted in Russia, or where the derivative aluminum articles are cast in Russia, when such derivative articles are provided for in the headings or subheadings enumerated in note 19(a)(iii) to this subchapter, or notes 19(i), 19(j) or 19(k) to this subchapter, as applicable per the date of entry for consumption or withdrawal from warehouse for consumption, except any exclusions that may be determined and announced by the Department of Commerce The duty provided in the applicable subheading + 200%
  • 21 9903.85.69 Except for goods provided for in heading 9903.85.67, aluminum articles that are the product of Russia, or where any amount of primary aluminum used in the manufacture of the aluminum articles is smelted in Russia, or where the aluminum articles are cast in Russia, the foregoing under the terms of note 19(a)(vii)(A) to this subchapter, or note 19(m)(A) to this subchapter, as applicable per the date of entry for consumption or withdrawal from warehouse for consumption, admitted into a U.S. foreign trade zone under "privileged foreign status" as defined in 19 CFR 146.41, prior to 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on April 10, 2023, except any exclusions that may be determined and announced by the Department of Commerce The duty provided in the applicable subheading + 200%
  • 22 9903.85.70 Except for goods provided for in heading 9903.85.68, derivative aluminum articles that are products of Russia, or where any amount of primary aluminum used in the manufacture of the derivative aluminum articles is smelted in Russia, or where the derivative aluminum articles are cast in Russia, when such derivative articles are provided for in the headings or subheadings enumerated in note 19(a)(iii) to this subchapter, or notes 19(i), 19(j) or 19(k) to this subchapter, as applicable per the date of entry for consumption or withdrawal from warehouse for consumption, admitted into a U.S. foreign trade zone under "privileged foreign status" as defined in 19 CFR 146.41, prior to 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on April 10, 2023, except any exclusions that may be determined and announced by the Department of Commerce The duty provided in the applicable subheading + 200%
  • 23 1202.41.80 Peanuts (ground-nuts), not roasted or otherwise cooked, whether or not shelled or broken — Other 163.8%
  • 24 1202.30.80.00 Peanuts (ground-nuts), not roasted or otherwise cooked, whether or not shelled or broken — Other 131.8%
  • 25 1202.42.20 Peanuts (ground-nuts), not roasted or otherwise cooked, whether or not shelled or broken — Other 131.8%

How PlainTariff Rankings Are Compiled

Every ranking is computed directly from the source datasets, the USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule and FAO FAOSTAT trade data, not editorially curated and not influenced by advertisers. Each ranking surfaces a clear, reproducible metric (for example, the average general duty rate of an HTS chapter, the share of duty-free lines in a section, or total agricultural trade value by country), and the underlying numbers are visible on the linked chapter, section, commodity, and country pages so you can verify them.

What Rankings Mean (and What They Do Not)

A ranking is a useful lens, it tells you where to start looking, but it is not advice about what to import or how to source. A chapter at the top of the "highest average duty rate" list reflects how the schedule taxes that category, not whether the goods are good or bad value. For rate-based rankings we always describe the denominator (for example, average across dutiable lines versus across all lines), because the choice of denominator changes the order substantially.

Why We Publish These Rankings

Rankings make a 13,855-line tariff schedule navigable. Most visitors arrive with a concrete question - "which products carry the highest US import tariffs?" or "which chapters are mostly duty-free?" - and benefit from a ranked list with direct links to the full tariff records. We surface the raw rates, link to the official USITC source, and avoid editorial spin.

Methodology, Sources, and Corrections

Every ranking is derived from the source dataset documented on the methodology page. We do not blend proprietary signals or substitute opinion for the published rates. If you believe a ranking is miscomputed or a tariff line is misclassified, contact us with the specific HTS code and the expected correction and we will investigate against the next data refresh.

Reading PlainTariff rankings as research, not advice

PlainTariff rankings should be read as research-grade descriptive statistics, what the data shows, not what an importer should do. A chapter that ranks #1 by average duty rate does not necessarily mean importers should avoid that chapter or seek alternative sourcing; it means duty cost is one input in a sourcing decision that also includes shipping, payment terms, supplier reliability, regulatory compliance, and product-quality fit. Conversely, a low-rate chapter is not automatically attractive, special preferential rates, antidumping duties, and quota restrictions often apply selectively within an otherwise low-tariff chapter and can change the landed-cost calculus substantially.

For trade journalists and researchers, the rankings provide a quick reference for sentences like "agricultural products carry an average MFN duty rate of X%, with prepared food chapters at the top of the schedule." For policy analysts, they show which chapters would be most affected by a policy change to General rates. For importers, they provide a quick gut check on where in the schedule their product sits relative to peer chapters.

How we choose which rankings to publish

The rankings list is deliberately curated, we do not auto-generate a ranking for every possible cut of the data. New rankings are added when (a) reader feedback or search demand suggests the cut answers a common question, (b) the cut is well-defined and reproducible from the source data, and (c) the headline number does not carry a risk of being misread as a quality or policy judgment.

Rankings refresh whenever the USITC publishes a new edition of the HTS (typically annually, with mid-year revisions for trade-policy actions), and whenever the FAO publishes new annual trade data. When a new edition lands, every ranking on PlainTariff is automatically recomputed from the new dataset; we do not maintain stale rankings against the old data.

How rankings relate to detail pages

Every ranking links through to the underlying detail records, clicking a chapter, a section, a country, or a commodity in a ranking takes you to the full data page for that entity. The ranking is a navigational layer over the data, not a separate editorial product. This means corrections to a detail page automatically flow through to the ranking on the next recomputation, and the ranking's row count always matches the underlying record set.

Detail pages provide deeper context than the ranking can show. A chapter detail page lists every tariff line within the chapter, with its individual rate, unit of quantity, and any preferential program coverage. A country detail page lists the country's top agricultural import and export commodities with cumulative trade values. The ranking shows the headline number; the detail page shows the work underneath it.

Limitations and caveats applicable to all rankings

Rankings carry a number of generic caveats that apply regardless of the specific cut. First, they reflect the data as published by the source agency. Second, rankings are point-in-time; a ranking computed against the 2026 Basic Edition will differ from one computed against a later mid-year revision. Third, rankings show ordering but not magnitude differences, a #1 vs #2 ranking might reflect a tiny gap or a huge gap, so readers should always check the actual numbers on the ranking page rather than just the position.

Finally, rankings can shift the framing of a story in subtle ways. A "highest average duty rate by HTS section" ranking puts duty cost in the foreground; a "most diverse tariff schedule" ranking would put variance in the foreground. Different framings can lead to different reader conclusions even on the same underlying data. We try to choose framings that are descriptive rather than evaluative, leaving the evaluative interpretation to the reader.

Every figure on PlainTariff is rendered directly from federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.