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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →In Commander, each time you cast a commander from the command zone after its first such cast that game, its cost gets an additional {2} generic mana for every previous command-zone cast. A commander with a mana cost of {3}{U} therefore costs {3}{U} the first time, {5}{U} the second, and {7}{U} the third, before other cost increases or reductions.
How to calculate commander tax
Count how many times that particular commander was cast from the command zone earlier in the current game. Multiply that count by {2}; the result is an additional cost when casting it from the command zone. The first command-zone cast has no tax.
| Command-zone cast | Earlier casts from command zone | Tax added | Example cost for a {2}{R}{G} commander |
|---|---|---|---|
| First | 0 | {0} | {2}{R}{G} |
| Second | 1 | {2} | {4}{R}{G} |
| Third | 2 | {4} | {6}{R}{G} |
The tax is an additional cost, not a change to the card’s printed mana cost. The Commander Rules Committee rules specify {2} for each time the commander was previously cast from the command zone.
Does commander tax apply if I cast my commander for free or another cost?
Yes, if the commander is cast from the command zone. An alternative cost or an effect that lets you cast it “without paying its mana cost” does not remove commander tax. It remains an additional cost. Wizards of the Coast’s Commander Masters release notes explicitly address both cases.
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Apply cost increases and reductions using the normal casting-cost procedure: start with the mana cost or alternative cost, add cost increases, then apply cost reductions. For example, Wizards’ release notes describe Gorex receiving {6} commander tax and reducing its cost by exiling four creature cards, resulting in a payment of {4}{B}{B}. This is a rules example, not a general promise that a reduction will cancel all tax; the result depends on the applicable costs and reductions.
Does casting a commander from my hand count?
No. Commander tax is based on casts from the command zone, not on every time the card has been cast or entered the battlefield. If an effect moves your commander to your hand and you cast it from there, that cast neither incurs commander tax nor increases the tax on a later command-zone cast. Wizards illustrates this with Command Beacon on its Commander format rules page.
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Do two commanders share commander tax?
No. In a game where you have two commanders, track each commander’s command-zone casts separately. Casting one commander does not add {2} to the other commander’s first command-zone cast. Wizards’ Commander format page confirms that the counts are separate.
What if my commander has Adventure?
If you cast the card from the command zone as either its creature or its Adventure, that is a command-zone cast and its tax is based on that card’s earlier command-zone casts. If the Adventure resolves and the card is later cast from exile, that cast from exile does not incur commander tax. The relevant distinction is the zone from which the spell is cast. The Commander Rules Committee’s August 2023 rules update addresses this case.
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What counts toward the previous-cast count?
The count concerns previous times that commander was cast from the command zone during the current game. It does not depend on how many times it entered the battlefield or changed zones. The official materials cited here do not directly establish how a countered commander spell affects the count, so this article does not make a claim about that interaction.
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