Crypto Capital Gains Tax Calculator
Calculate your tax liability for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other crypto assets in 2026.
Last updated: May 2026
Reviewed by Vikram Malhotra
•Mortgage Specialist & Ex-BankerWith over 15 years in retail banking, Vikram provides deep insights into bank-specific interest rate tiering and processing fee structures for home and personal loans. All mathematical models and regulatory data points have been verified for the current 2026 fiscal period.
How is Crypto taxed in the USA?
The IRS treats cryptocurrency as property, not currency. This means every time you sell, trade, or spend your crypto, it is a taxable event.
Short-Term Gains: If you held the crypto for 1 year or less, your profit is taxed at your ordinary income tax rate.
Long-Term Gains: If you held it for more than 1 year, you qualify for lower capital gains rates (0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your total income).
How to use this calculator
- 1Input Cost Basis — Everything you spent to acquire the crypto (price + exchange fees).
- 2Enter Sale Price — The total value of the assets when you sold them.
- 3Select Holding Period — Was it held for more than 365 days? This significantly changes the tax rate.
- 4Check Net Proceeds — See exactly how much you're taking home after the tax bite.
Formula & example
Tax = (Sale Price - Cost Basis) × Capital Gains Rate
If you bought 1 BTC for $30,000 and sold it for $60,000 after 2 years, your gain is $30,000. At a 15% LTCG rate, you owe $4,500 in taxes.
Benefits
Avoid Tax Surprises
Know your tax bill before you spend your gains.
Tax Loss Harvesting
Calculate potential losses to offset other gains with our realized gain/loss view.
LTCG Strategy
See the benefit of waiting for the 1-year mark to sell.
Use cases
Asset Rebalancing
Calculate the tax impact of selling one coin to buy another.
Paying for Expenses
If you spend crypto on a car or laptop, use this to calculate the taxes owed on that 'spend'.
Frequently asked questions
Is trading one crypto for another taxable?+
Yes. The IRS views a crypto-to-crypto trade as a sale of one asset and a purchase of another. You owe taxes on the gain of the coin you traded away.
Can I deduct my losses?+
Yes. Capital losses can offset capital gains. If your total losses exceed gains, you can deduct up to $3,000 of the loss against your ordinary income.