Residents with their eyes on a new computer or wardrobe for their kids will get a bit of a state discount this weekend as sales taxes on several items takes a holiday.

Tax-free weekend will begin at 12:01 a.m. Friday, Aug. 5, and continue until 11:59 p.m. Sunday.

The tax reprieve is only good on certain items including school supplies, clothes, sports equipment and computers – with some spending limits. The tax-free weekend began 10 years ago as a way to stimulate the economy before school starts, and many stores have said it’s one of the busiest weekends of the year excluding holiday shopping.

In a back-to-school study by The National Retail Federation, the average family will spend more than $600 on clothes, school supplies and electronics, up from $548.72 last year. That’s a savings of about $43.50 in Mecklenburg County, which has a sales tax of 7.25 percent.

Which items are tax-exempt?
• Clothing, footwear and school supplies of $100 or less per item
• Sports and recreational equipment of $50 or less per item
• School instructional materials of $300 or less per item
• Computers of $3,500 or less per item
• Computer supplies of $250 or less per item

Which items aren’t tax-exempt?
• Clothing accessories
• Cosmetics
• Furniture
• Items used in a trade or business
• Jewelry
• Protective equipment
• Wallets
• Rentals

– Source: North Carolina Department of Revenue