What are the 2026 long-term capital gains rates?

Long-term gains (assets held over a year) are taxed at 0%, 15% or 20% depending on your taxable income. For a single filer in 2026, the 15% rate starts at $49,450 of taxable income and the 20% rate at $545,500. The gain stacks on top of your ordinary income.

How are short-term gains taxed?

Assets held a year or less are short-term and taxed as ordinary income at your regular bracket — which is why holding past one year can substantially cut the tax.

What is the Net Investment Income Tax?

An extra 3.8% tax on investment income, including capital gains, once your income exceeds $200,000 (single) or $250,000 (married filing jointly). These thresholds are not adjusted for inflation.

United States · 2026 tax year

US Capital Gains Tax Calculator

Estimate federal tax on an investment gain — long-term rates of 0%, 15% and 20% that stack on your ordinary income, short-term gains taxed as ordinary income, and the 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax for higher earners.

The sale

Filing status

Your other taxable income After deductions, before this gain — sets where the gain stacks

Sale proceeds

Cost basis What you paid, plus commissions & improvements

Capital gain$0

How long did you hold it?

The computation

Federal tax on this gain

—

If long-term

0 / 15 / 20% + NIIT

If short-term

ordinary rates + NIIT

Capital gain

Effective rate on gain

Net Investment Income Tax

Net after tax

How US capital gains tax works

The tax on a gain depends almost entirely on one thing: how long you held the asset. Hold it more than a year and it's long-term, taxed at preferential rates of 0%, 15% or 20%. Hold it a year or less and it's short-term, taxed at your ordinary income rate — often far higher. That single distinction is the most valuable lever in US investment tax.

Long-term gains stack on your income

Long-term gains aren't taxed in isolation — they sit on top of your ordinary taxable income. If your income already fills the 0% band, the gain is taxed from 15% up. For a single filer in 2026, the 0% rate runs to $49,450 of total taxable income, 15% to $545,500, and 20% above that. A low-income year can let you realize gains at 0%.

The 3.8% surtax

On top of the rate, higher earners pay the Net Investment Income Tax — an extra 3.8% on investment income once income passes $200,000 (single) or $250,000 (married jointly). Those thresholds have never been adjusted for inflation, so they catch more people each year.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get the 0% rate?

If your total taxable income including the gain stays under the 0% ceiling ($49,450 single / $98,900 joint in 2026), the long-term gain in that band is taxed at nothing. Realizing gains in low-income years is a common strategy.

Short-term vs long-term — how big is the difference?

Large. The toggle above shows both: short-term is taxed at your ordinary bracket (up to 37%), long-term usually at 15%. Holding one extra day past a year can change the rate.

Does my home sale count?

A primary residence has a separate exclusion ($250,000 single / $500,000 joint) not modeled here. This tool is for investments like stocks and second properties.

Educational estimate — not tax advice. US 2026 (IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32): long-term capital gains 0% / 15% / 20% by taxable income, stacked above ordinary income (15% from $49,450 single / $98,900 MFJ / $66,200 HoH; 20% from $545,500 / $613,700 / $579,600); short-term at the 2026 ordinary brackets; Net Investment Income Tax 3.8% over $200k single / $250k MFJ / $125k MFS (statutory, unindexed; based on MAGI, approximated here from the income you enter). It excludes state tax, the primary-residence exclusion, collectibles (28%), §1250 depreciation recapture (25%), wash sales and loss carryforwards. Confirm with the IRS or a tax professional.