How to Use the Realized Gain After Tax Calculator
The money you actually take home from selling a stock isn't just proceeds minus cost basis — U.S. federal capital gains tax and a tiny SEC fee also come out of the total. Enter your cost basis, proceeds, holding period, and applicable tax rate, and this tool instantly calculates your realized gain after everything is deducted.
Unlike Korea's separate securities transaction tax charged on every sale, the U.S. has no such transaction tax on stock trades. The only per-transaction charge is the SEC Section 31 fee, a tiny amount (a small fraction of a cent per $1,000 in proceeds) collected only when you sell — it's included here for completeness but has almost no real impact on your result.
What actually matters is your holding period: shares held one year or less are taxed as short-term gains at your ordinary income tax rate, while shares held longer than a year qualify for the lower long-term capital gains rates of 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your taxable income. Enter the rate that applies to your specific tax bracket for an accurate result — this calculator is a planning estimate, not tax advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Shares held one year or less before selling are taxed as short-term gains at your ordinary income tax rate. Shares held longer than one year qualify for long-term capital gains rates of 0%, 15%, or 20% depending on your taxable income.
No. The U.S. does not charge a securities transaction tax on stock sales. The only transaction-based charge is the tiny SEC Section 31 fee on sells, currently a fraction of a cent per $1,000 in proceeds — far smaller than a transaction tax.
No capital gains tax applies to a loss. Realized losses can also offset other capital gains and up to $3,000 of ordinary income per year, with any excess carried forward to future years.