Australia Capital Gains Tax Calculator 2026-27

How does this tool calculate the tax on a gain?

It subtracts the cost from the sale price, applies the discount if you chose 12 months or more, adds the taxable gain to your other income, and then computes resident income tax on the total and on the other income alone. The tax on the gain is the difference between the two. With the default inputs ($50,000 cost, $80,000 sale, $80,000 other income) the gain is $30,000, $15,000 is taxable, and the difference in tax is $4,500, or 15.0% of the gross gain.

Which tax rates are built in?

The tool uses five bands labelled 2026-27: nil up to $18,200, 15% to $45,000, 30% to $135,000, 37% to $190,000 and 45% above. These are the figures built into this tool, applied to total income with no residency check beyond assuming a resident individual. Australian rules change each 1 July, this tool’s tables are not updated automatically, and the Australian Taxation Office governs what applies to you.

What does the 50% discount choice do?

If you choose 12 months or more, the tool halves the gain before adding it to income; if you choose under 12 months, the whole gain is added. On a $30,000 gain with $80,000 of other income, that is the difference between $4,500 and $9,000 of tax. The tool does not ask for purchase and sale dates, does not test who owns the asset, and does not apply the discount differently to companies, foreign residents or superannuation funds; it assumes an individual resident taxpayer.

Why does the asset type selector not change the result?

The selector for shares, investment property and other assets is part of the form but does not enter the calculation. Every asset is run through the same cost, discount and bracket logic. Property-specific issues such as a main-residence exemption, partial use, depreciation recapture or foreign-resident treatment are not modelled, so a gain you enter is simply taxed as a gain.

What happens with a capital loss?

If the sale price is at or below the cost, the tool shows the loss, reports $0 of tax and notes that losses may be used against other gains. It does not carry the loss forward, net it against another gain you enter elsewhere, or reorder losses before the discount. A loss entered with a sale price equal to the cost shows $0 rather than a negative figure.

What is missing from the tax figure?

The Medicare levy and surcharge, the low income offset, student debt repayments, other offsets, deductions you may have, and the tax already withheld on your salary are not part of this calculation. Because only the income-tax bands are applied, the number is likely lower than the extra amount your full return would show. Treat it as the income-tax effect of the gain, not a complete tax bill.

Why is the effective rate sometimes higher than the discount suggests?

A large gain can span more than one band. A $300,000 gain with $130,000 of other income becomes a $150,000 taxable gain, and the tool charges $62,350, 20.8% of the gross gain, because the gain is taxed partly at 30%, partly at 37% and partly at 45%. The same $30,000 gain costs $2,250 on $20,000 of other income and $6,750 on $200,000, because the gain sits in different bands.