REVEALED: The Red Southern states that tax residents even more than California

As US consumers endure the most painful inflation rates in years, high sales taxes only compound the problem.

But residents face a zip-code lottery over how much sales tax they pay, and those in Red states fare worse than those in Blue, a new study shows.

Research from the Tax Foundation found that Louisiana residents pay the highest combined state and local sales taxes in the country — an eye-popping 9.6 percent rate.

Not far behind are Tennessee, Arkansas, Washington, and Alabama.

They're all ahead of California, which has the eighth-highest combined sales taxes in the nation, at 8.8 percent.

Analysts found that Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon offered the best deal for shoppers.

The lucky residents of those states pay no sales taxes at all.

Alaska, Hawaii, Wyoming, and Wisconsin were close behind with lower combined rates than elsewhere in the US.

Surprisingly, states with higher sales taxes were often led by Republicans in the South.

That runs counter to what many voters believe about Red states going easier on taxpayers.

Still, the overall tax burden faced by residents is more complicated than counting only sales tax.

It would also factor in state income taxes and average salaries.

Sales taxes are 'just one part of an overall tax structure,' says the group's researcher Jared Walczak.

'Tennessee has high sales taxes but no income tax, whereas Oregon has no sales tax but high income taxes,' he adds.

The research comes as residents in parts of South Carolina, Washington, and California weigh whether to support raising sales taxes to cover local spending plans in November's elections.

Areas of Minnesota, Kansas, and Washington have already bumped up local sales taxes this year.

They have come down in South Dakota, New Mexico, and Louisiana in recent years.

Sales tax is levied on goods and services at the point of purchase.

The rules vary by state, but groceries are nearly always excluded, and clothing is often exempt or at a reduced rate.

According to Walczak, shoppers are savvy and are willing to cross state lines or order online for better deals.

For the bigger picture, WalletHub researchers in May calculated which states were the most 'tax burdened' overall.

The personal finance website analyzed property, income and total sales and excise levies, while excluding federal taxes.

Unsurprisingly, its findings showed New Yorkers had the heaviest 'tax burden' as they are forced to shell out 12.02 percent of their income on levies.

The Empire State was followed by Hawaii where residents face a burden worth 11.8 percent of their income.

Researchers defined 'tax burden' as the proportion of total personal income residents pay toward state and local taxes.

It measures the share of total personal income that residents pay toward state and local taxes.

They found Alaska had the lowest tax burden of any US state, with citizens only paying 4.93 percent of their income in levies.

It was followed by New Hampshire, Wyoming and Florida where residents face tax burdens of 5.63 percent, 5.7 percent and 6.05 percent respectively.

Commenting on the findings, WalletHub analyst Cassandra Happe said: 'It's easy to be dismayed at tax time when you see just how much of your income you lose.

'Living in a state with a low tax burden can alleviate some of that stress.

'Some states charge no income tax or no sales tax, although all states have some form of property taxes and excise taxes.'

The average ranking of a Democrat state was 20.08, but this fell to 30.84 in Republican areas, WalletHub noted.