Window tinting is a desirable option for many vehicle owners today, whether it’s for a new, used, or classic car. It provides:
- Enhanced privacy in your vehicle
- Lower interior temperatures
- Protection from ultraviolet rays
- Protection from the sun’s glare
- An aesthetically pleasing look
Many new vehicles come equipped with some level of tint in the window glass. If your vehicle's windows are untinted you can opt to have tint installed, and if you have factory-equipped tint you may choose to have your windows tinted darker. In either case, tinted windows can be applied by either an aftermarket tint installation professional or with a do-it-yourself kit.
How dark can you go?
Window tint is represented as a percentage of visible light transmission levels (VLT) that can pass through the window. A higher percentage indicates a greater amount of light coming through the windows, so a low tint percentage would appear much darker.
Every state or county is able to set their own laws on an allowable tint limit. The common allowable limits are 50 percent for the driver’s front and passenger’s front window, and 35 percent for the rear passenger or side windows and the back window. That means the front windows will allow more light through the window tint than the rear windows, though the difference in appearance is minor.
Window tint darkness is regulated. If your window tint is too dark, you will not be able to see well enough out of your windows to drive safely at night. You have a higher likelihood of being involved in a crash or hitting a pedestrian. Also, law enforcement needs to be able to see the occupants of a vehicle during a traffic stop to ensure their own safety. If the window tint is too dark, they are not able to clearly identify any dangers that may be in the vehicle.
Law enforcement can perform a traffic stop and pull you over if they believe your windows are tinted too dark. Police officers are equipped with a tool that performs a tint measurement, and gauges the darkness of your tint as a percentage. If your tint is too dark, you can be fined and required to have the film removed or replaced to be within the acceptable limits.
Legal Tint Limits By State
Window tint definitions
The tint darkness is measured as the visible light transmission percentage, or VLT%
Front side windows are the driver’s and passenger front moveable windows
Rear side windows are any side windows behind the front side windows, and include rear-seat passenger windows
A windshield "shade band" is a band of window tint film extending down from the top of the windshield
The AS1 line is a glass manufacturer’s marking near the top sides of a windshield
Tint reflection refers to a metallic or reflective window tint film
Values separated by a slash (/) indicate different window tint legal limits for passenger cars, and SUVs or vans. The first number is passenger cars, and the second is for SUVs and vans
Alabama
- Front side windows: 32%
- Rear side windows: 32% / no limit
- Back window: 32% / no limit
- Windshield: 6” shade band
- Tint reflection: not more than 20% reflective
Alaska
- Front side windows: 70% / not permitted
- Rear side windows: 40% / not permitted
- Back window: 40% / not permitted
- Windshield: 5” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Arizona
- Front side windows: 33%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 35% reflective
Arkansas
- Front side windows: 25%
- Rear side windows: 25% / 10%
- Back window: 10%
- Windshield: 5” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
California
- Front side windows: 70%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: 4” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Colorado
- Front side windows: 27%
- Rear side windows: 27%
- Back window: 27%
- Windshield: 4” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Connecticut
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: front windows no more than 21% reflective / rear windows no more than 27% reflective
D.C.
- Front side windows: 70%
- Rear side windows: 50% / 35%
- Back window: 50% / 35%
- Windshield: the lesser of 5” shade band or down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no current limit
Delaware
- Front side windows: 70%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Florida
- Front side windows: 28%
- Rear side windows: 15%
- Back window: 15%
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: front windows 25% reflective / rear windows 35% reflective
Georgia
- Front side windows: 32%
- Rear side windows: 32% / no limit
- Back window: 32% / no limit
- Windshield: 6” shade band
- Tint reflection: no more than 20% reflective
Hawaii
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: 70% on whole windshield
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Idaho
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 20% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no more than 35% reflective
Illinois
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: 6” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Indiana
- Front side windows: 30%
- Rear side windows: 30% / no limit
- Back window: 30% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 25% reflective
Iowa
- Front side windows: 70%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Kansas
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35%
- Back window: 35%
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Kentucky
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 18% / no limit 8” from top of window
- Back window: 18% / no limit 8” from top of window
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no more than 25% reflective
Louisiana
- Front side windows: 40%
- Rear side windows: 25% / no limit
- Back window: 12% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no more than 20% reflective
Maine
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: 4” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Maryland
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: 5” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Massachusetts
- Front side windows: 28%
- Rear side windows: 28%
- Back window: 28%
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 35% reflective
Michigan
- Front side windows: top 4” only, no limit to tint
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: 4” shade band
- Tint reflection: not more than 35% reflective
Minnesota
- Front side windows: 50%
- Rear side windows: 50% / no limit
- Back window: 50% / no limit
- Windshield: not permitted
- Tint reflection: not more than 20% reflective
Mississippi
- Front side windows: 28%
- Rear side windows: 28% / no limit
- Back window: 28% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 20% reflective
Missouri
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 35% reflective
Montana
- Front side windows: 24%
- Rear side windows: 14% / no limit
- Back window: 14% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 35% reflective
Nebraska
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 20% / 35%
- Back window: 20% / 35%
- Windshield: the lesser of 5” shade band or down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 35% reflective
Nevada
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no current limit
New Hampshire
- Front side windows: not permitted
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: 6” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
New Jersey
- Front side windows: not permitted
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: not permitted
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
New Mexico
- Front side windows: 20%
- Rear side windows: 20% / no limit
- Back window: 20% / no limit
- Windshield: the lesser of 5” shade band or down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no current limit
New York
- Front side windows: 70%
- Rear side windows: 70% / no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: 6” shade band
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
North Carolina
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no more than 20% reflective
North Dakota
- Front side windows: 50%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: 70% applied to whole windshield
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Ohio
- Front side windows: 50%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: 70% applied to whole windshield
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Oklahoma
- Front side windows: 25%
- Rear side windows: 25% / no limit
- Back window: 25% / no limit
- Windshield: the lesser of 5’ shade band or down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 25% reflective
Oregon
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35%/ no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: 6” shade band
- Tint reflection: not more than 13% reflective
Pennsylvania
- Front side windows: 70%
- Rear side windows: 70% / no limit
- Back window: 70% / no limit
- Windshield: not permitted
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Rhode Island
- Front side windows: 70%
- Rear side windows: 70% / no limit
- Back window: 70% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no current limit
South Carolina
- Front side windows: 27%
- Rear side windows: 27% / no limit
- Back window: 27% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
South Dakota
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 20% / no limit
- Back window: 20% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking on windshield
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Tennessee
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35%
- Back window: 35%
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking on windshield
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Texas
- Front side windows: 25%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: the lesser of 5” shade band or down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 25% reflective
Utah
- Front side windows: 43%
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Vermont
- Front side windows: not permitted
- Rear side windows: no limit
- Back window: no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: non-reflective
Virginia
- Front side windows: 50%
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no more than 20% reflective
Washington
- Front side windows: 24%
- Rear side windows: 24% / no limit
- Back window: 24% / no limit
- Windshield: 6” shade band
- Tint reflection: no more than 35% reflective
West Virginia
- Front side windows: 35%
- Rear side windows: 35% / no limit
- Back window: 35% / no limit
- Windshield: 5” shade band
- Tint reflection: not more than 20% reflective
Wisconsin
- Front side windows: 50%
- Rear side windows: 35%
- Back window: 35%
- Windshield: down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: no current limit
Wyoming
- Front side windows: 28%
- Rear side windows: 28% / no limit
- Back window: 28% / no limit
- Windshield: the lesser of 5’ shade band or down to AS1 marking
- Tint reflection: not more than 20% reflective
